Latest Google Pixel update includes surprise launch of Android 15's best battery feature

Android 15 will help you take care of your phone battery

News By Hamish Hector published 7 November 2024

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The latest Android updates are rolling out to Google Pixel devices, and while the leaked details Verizon had shared talked about the bug fixes and security improvements the patches would provide one thing the leak missed, the inclusion of a much anticipated battery feature: charging limits.

Rather than needing to completely fill your phone’s battery every time you plug it in, this Android 15 tool would allow your device to limit charging once it reaches 80%. The advantage here is that overcharging your phone can be detrimental to its battery health – causing it to run dry faster as time goes on. Over time, stopping charging early means your phone at 80% might last a lot longer than an identical device that is left charging to 100% overnight every night.

The feature was spotted by a Pixel user and shared by Android Authority with an image that shows the new feature in the user’s phone’s Settings – it’s in the Battery settings menu, in the Charging Optimization sub-section if you want to look for it on your device.

We’ve updated a Google Pixel 7 to the now live software AP3A.241105.007 version (it’ll be version AP3A.241105.008 for Google Pixel 9 phones) and don’t see it unfortunately, so it could be this tool is still being gradually released – or was accidentally shared with some users early. It’s one to look out for though once you’ve updated your Pixel device as this battery optimization tool could help you greatly in keeping your smartphone’s battery healthy for a long time.

Other AI updates on the way?

While we’re waiting to hear more about what features are coming in future Android 15 updates, one upgrade we might see from Google soon is its Jarvis AI assistant. Google accidentally leaked its AI that browses the web for you on the Chrome extension store before quickly removing it.

While not much is known about Jarvis, it’s expected to be a more automated version of Gemini that can perform tasks in Chrome with less frequent user input – like researching flight and travel options for your next trip or looking up holiday gift options while you’re doing something else.

Chrome extensions are reserved for Chromebooks and PCs but we wouldn’t be surprised if a mobile version of Jarvis came to Android and iOS fairly quickly – with the app researching and performing tasks in Chrome in the background while you play another round of Marvel Snap or binge YouTube videos.

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