- Google has introduced an Extreme Battery Saver feature with the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G.
- The feature pauses most apps, slows your CPU down and limits numerous features/
- It’s coming to older Pixels in time.
Many phones have battery saver features to squeeze an hour or two of extra life out of a device, but Google is taking that a step further with Pixel phones. It’s launching an Extreme Battery Saver feature alongside the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G for those moments when you absolutely can’t afford to lose your connection to the outside world.
Turn on Extreme Battery Saver and Android will pause most apps (and their notifications), throttle the processor, turn off location scanning for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, reduce the screen timeout to 30 seconds, and disable extras like your work profile and hotspots. That’s on top of existing Battery Saver changes like losing “hey Google” access. You can still unpause apps if necessary, but your phone will otherwise be much quieter than usual.
Related: Why is my phone’s battery draining so fast?
It sounds harsh, but Google is promising real gains: the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G should keep running for up to 48 hours with Extreme Battery Saver active. That may be enough to make it through a weekend camping trip or an extended power outage.
You’ll currently need one of the two new phones to make use of the more aggressive energy conservation. As with Google Assistant’s Hold for Me, though, you should see Extreme Battery Saver come to older Pixels through a feature drop.
This kind of drastic energy-saving feature isn’t unheard of elsewhere in the Android world (the Stamina Mode in Sony phones comes to mind). It’s new for Google, though. Combine it with the larger batteries in the new Pixels and it’s evident that Google is taking battery life more seriously with this generation.
