Google Pixel 9a battery: Rumored specs and upgrades
Google's Pixel 9a is coming soon, allegedly in the cards for a March 19 announcement and a market release not long after, on March 26.
The upcoming phone is set to bring more of the same, which is great for the affordable Pixel lineup, with a slightly refreshed design, the latest Tensor chipset, and the same formula that made previous Pixel phones such excellent bang for the buck.
But how will one of the most vital aspects of a modern smartphone––its battery life––evolve on the Pixel 9a? With the latest Tensor G4 likely making an appearance, battery life will likely improve, but as usual, the biggest factor will be the battery size. And judging from the rumors, Google could be cooking something spectacular with the Pixel 9a!
Let's summarize what we know about the Pixel 9a battery and charging so far.
Google Pixel 9a rumored battery upgrades
The rumor mill is telling us that we should expect a 5,100mAh battery inside the Pixel 9a.
This will be a significant battery upgrade in comparison with the Pixel 7a and Pixel 8a, which both had much smaller batteries: 4,385mAh and 4,492mAh.
Even the Pixel 9 has a smaller 4,700mAh battery. In fact, the only current-gen Pixel 9 phone with a similarly sized battery is the Pixel 9 Pro XL with a 5,060mAh battery.
This essentially could make the Pixel 9a one of Google's phones with the biggest batteries. Of course, this will have major repercussions on the potential battery life, which will most likely be around the top of the battery life charts.
| Phone | Battery size |
|---|---|
| Pixel 9a | 5,100mAh |
| Pixel 8a | 4.492mAh (-12%) |
| Pixel 7a | 4,385mAh (-14%) |
| Pixel 9 Pro Fold | 4,650mAh (-9%) |
| Pixel 9 Pro XL | 5,060mAh (-1%) |
| Pixel 9 Pro | 4,700mah (-8%) |
| Pixel 9 | 4,700mAh (-8%) |
The reason for this battery capacity windfall could be a significantly improved energy density for the battery of the upcoming phone. Lithium-silicon battery tech has been developing very fast, enabling much denser batteries with higher capacity in a similar form size as the standard lithium-ion batteries. Many phone manufacturers are employing such batteries in their phones these days: OnePlus, Vivo, Honor, and other China-based phone vendors are already employing the new tech in their devices.
While we don't know for sure that such a battery will be making the rounds inside the Pixel 9a, it could be a good guess about what's to come for the affordable Pixel line. Google might be testing denser batteries for its next flagships, which could really spell some pretty exciting potential upgrades for the milestone Pixel 10 range!
Of course, we will be putting the Pixel 9a through the paces of our custom battery life tests as soon as it's in our hands, stay tuned for the results.
Google Pixel 9a rumored charging upgrades
Sadly, we can't say that we expect any major upgrades to the Pixel 9a wired and wireless charging situation.
The rumor mill says we should expect the same 18W wired and 7.5W wireless charging on the next affordable Pixel. That's quite logical and pretty much par for the course when it comes to a device of the Pixel 9a's caliber.
With such a large battery in tow, the phone will likely take nearly two hours to charge fully wired. The Pixel 8a takes an hour and 46 minutes for a full wired charge, while the Pixel 7a gets from 0 to 100% in two hours.
Google Pixel 9a battery summary
It seems that the Pixel 9a could deliver some significant battery life gains, provided that the rumors for its significantly larger battery indeed pan out. We might have a new contender for the title of Pixel phone with the best battery life!
At the same time, we might get no upgrades in terms of charging, which would be understandable and logical to expect. Still, the blow would have been softer if the phone surpassed the 20W frontier, that's for sure.
In any case, we'd be very eager to see how Google's next affordable Pixel 9a will turn out, especially at its rumored and super-appealing $499 price tag.
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