Now that we can openly talk about the Pixel 11 series, share thoughts on new features and changes, and eventually get to full reviews, we wanted to start by talking about battery life. What good is a modern day phone that can actively run your life if it needs to be charged all of the time?
As you all know, the Pixel 11 Pro models feature smaller batteries when compared to their Pixel 10 Pro counterparts, yet Google is promising more hours of use out of each. What has that lead to?
We’ve been testing the Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro, and Pixel 11 Pro XL for the past week and have some early reports to share on battery life. So far, things look promising and I’m not sure you should worry much about the slightly smaller battery cells.
Pixel 11 Battery Life Report (ongoing)
During the past week of testing, Tim has had the Pixel 11, while I’ve gone from Pixel 11 Pro to Pixel 11 Pro XL. Of course, a week of switching between devices is not enough to definitively tell you how good battery life is, so we’ll be sure to update this over the coming days. Also, our full Pixel 11 reviews will arrive next week and you’ll see more details then.
The Pixel 11 sports a 4985mAh battery with full Qi2.2 support and 25W wireless charging. It also has fast charging capabilities that can get you a 55% battery charge in about 30 minutes. Unlike the Pro models, the Pixel 11 actually has a slightly larger battery than the Pixel 10 (4970mAh). Google is promising 30+ hours of battery life this year, while the Pixel 10 was promised 24+ hours.
The Pixel 11 Pro has a 4850mAh battery (4870mAh in Pixel 10 Pro) and the Pixel 11 Pro XL has a 5115mAh battery (5200mAh in Pixel 10 Pro XL). Like with the Pixel 11, Google is promising 30+ hours of battery life compared to the 24+ hours in the previous generation phones.
When it comes to charging, Google suggests slightly faster wired charging this year on the 11 Pro XL, hitting 75% in 30 mins vs 70% in 30 mins on the 10 Pro XL. Google did include a new Extreme Charging mode that temporarily pauses background activity to faster charge devices. It only works when below 50% and I’m seeing it top out at 25W at the moment on my Pixel 11 Pro at 37% charge.
How is Google expecting longer battery life on these phones if the batteries are either smaller or about the same sizes? There are two reasons: Tensor G6 is more efficient, plus we have a new MediaTek modem that Google says is “more power efficient.” That’s really what it comes down – more efficient components powering the most battery hungry things.
Alright, let’s get into it.
Pixel 11
We got a new puppy, so the typical schedule as of late has been 6:30-7am to about 10-10:30pm. Each night I am plugging in with around 10-20% battery life remaining.
I have been using the phone a lot for communication with the outside world, but at my current consumption rate, I can confidently say that there is no way this phone could get me through multiple days. With that said, there is a new feature called Extreme Charging Mode, which has the device focus solely on recharging its battery as quickly as possible when wired to a supported charger.
I have used this recharge experience once, going from about 5% battery to 45% battery in about 20 minutes. That can be a handy feature if you find yourself in need of a quick charge.
More thoughts to come in my full Pixel 11 review. – Tim
Pixel 11 Pro & Pixel 11 Pro XL
For my testing, I spent the first 5 days on the smaller Pixel 11 Pro and switched to the Pixel 11 Pro XL yesterday. Most of my days involved my typical usage with no out-of-the-ordinary scenarios. I like to bring consistency to my testing.
On the Pixel 11 Pro, I’ve consistently seen 3.5-4 hours of screen on time and then going to bed with 30% battery remaining. For most days, I was never worried, although I did have an odd day that you’ll see below where I only clocked a little less than 3 hours of screen on time and dropped to 37%. Most of the drain there came from wireless Android Auto, which really is the ultimate battery life villain.
In my single day of Pixel 11 Pro XL testing, I was around 3 hours of screen on time without starting on a full 100% charge. Battery dropped to roughly 50% when I went to bed and then forgot to attach to my charger. But I definitely went heavier on the XL for a first charge and came away surprised.
Overall, these numbers are pretty similar to our Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL results. If anything, the smaller batteries will at least give us comparable battery life to last year’s phones.
I’ve somehow failed to take screenshots of my battery each night on the Pixel 11 Pro, which is odd (I swear I took several!), so I’ll make sure there are more for the full review.
What else do you have questions on?
