We asked you how Google should improve Pixel batteries, and the results say it all

While smartphones have pushed the limits of mobile photography and straight-line performance in recent years, one frontier that remains largely untouched is battery life. Some OEMs have placed an emphasis on battery capacity, but that’s certainly not true for Google Pixel phones.

Google is certainly aware of this perception, and a new patent suggests that the company is actively working on solutions. This patent, in particular, addresses mounting the cell within the phone itself and highlights some interesting potential, especially for user-replaceable batteries.

This does beg the question: Is this something that users really want? And, if not, which innovation would users like to see in future Pixels? Well, we put a similar question to you in a recent poll, and the results are as follows.

This survey saw a massive number of votes — 6,147 to be exact. That certainly highlights readers’ disdain towards Pixels and their battery performance in general. What’s interesting to note is that not everyone agrees about the specific battery innovation they’d like to see Google introduce.

The most popular innovation, garnering just under 28% of the vote, is silicon-carbon batteries, with the hopes that this technology will improve the overall capacity. Beyond this technology already proving itself in other OEMs’ devices, it seems the most tangible and implementable.

Sure, silicon-carbon batteries aren’t perfect yet, but it’s a technology that doesn’t carry too much of a design or construction penalty and clearly works well in Google Pixel’s competitors.

“An easy user-replaceable battery,” claimed around 20% of the vote, and although this is the most practical innovation and one Google is actively considering, looking at its latest patent, it does present several issues. For one, Pixels would likely need a redesign, complete with a removable rear plate. This doesn’t seem to be an issue for some readers. OldeIronsides wrote:

I hope Google is paying attention to other companies like Fairphone, Nothing’s CMF, and even HMD. I’d absolutely buy a plastic-backed phone so I can access the battery quickly.

But why can’t we have both? Well, that’s what more than 50% of readers believe. “Both please,” and similar reader pleas were common in the comments section. Clearly, there is a desire for plenty of battery on tap and the ability to replace it easily if required. Oh, what a wonderful world that would be!

Notably, just 1.3% of readers want Google to develop something else entirely, foregoing any battery advancements. Reader samagon turned their sights towards a completely different form factor entirely:

I want a Pixel flip, going from a slab to a flip phone has allowed me to cut my battery consumption during the work day so drastically that at the end of the day, instead of being at 30% battery, I am at 60% battery remaining.

Do you think it’s a Pixel with a replaceable battery is a realistic concept in the future? What about silicon-carbon batteries? Let us know how you see your Pixel battery life, or how you believe Google will tackle the problem.