Pixel Watch owners have been facing a major battery drain issue for a few days now. Google acknowledged the issue late last week, promising to roll out a fix as soon as possible. Sticking to its word, the company is now pushing an update to address the battery drain bug on its smartwatch lineup.
In a statement to Android Authority, Google confirmed that it is now rolling out an update for Pixel Watch to fix the battery drain issue.
"The fix for the battery drain issue, affecting a small number of Pixel Watch users has begun rolling-out and will be complete over the next couple of days. To implement the fix, please update your Pixel Watch apps by pressing the crown on your Pixel Watch, opening the Play Store app, and tapping Manage apps > Update all," says the company in its statement.
Note that Google is not rolling out a Wear OS system update. Instead, users can resolve the issue by updating the system apps on their watch from the Play Store. I would also recommend restarting the watch after installing all pending app updates.
Google did not reveal the exact cause behind the battery drain issue. But since it's resolving the issue without a system update, it seems to stem from a bug in one of the system apps.
Since Google is rolling out the fix over the next couple of days, you might not see the relevant app update immediately. If the Play Store shows no pending updates, check again later.
My Pixel Watch 4’s battery life fell off a cliff
Users reported the battery drain bug on all currently supported Pixel Watch models, starting from the Pixel Watch 2 to the Pixel Watch 5. Google’s latest smartwatch could last almost two days on a single charge, so the sudden drop to just 12 to 16 hours left many owners puzzled.
Google says the battery drain issue affects only a small number of Pixel Watch users, and I was among them. My Pixel Watch 4 went from lasting almost a day and a half on a single charge to struggling to make it through 12 hours.
Initially, I thought my Pixel Watch’s declining battery health was to blame, but the drop seemed too big and too sudden. Google acknowledging the bug confirmed that the issue was not with my Pixel Watch 4, but a system bug. Hopefully, the fix gets my Pixel Watch 4 back to lasting well over a day on a charge.