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How to deal with rapid battery draining problem on your Google Pixel 2 smartphone? [Troubleshooting Guide]

ByHarjie Hisona

Battery draining is one of the common issues that usually occur after installing a new firmware update in mobile devices on either smartphone or tablet. It can occur regardless of the platform a device is running on — iOS or Android. In this post, we’ll tackle battery draining problem on a robust Android flagship device, the Google Pixel 2 handset.

Despite being powered by an upgraded processor and RAM specs along with a 2700mAh battery, this new Pixel phone still succumb into quick battery draining issue. As a matter of fact, a lot of Pixel 2 owners have been raising complaints regarding the phone’s battery life that couldn’t last long. Indeed it’s a bummer given that this is such a hefty device. What could have triggered the battery to drain so quick on your Google Pixel 2 and what options do end-users have in order to preserve and extend the phone’s battery life? Read on to find out the answers to these questions.

Before we proceed, if you are looking for a solution to a different problem, make sure you visit our Google Pixel 2 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common problems with this phone. But if you need for help, then fill up our Android issues questionnaire and hit submit. Rest assured we’ll look into your concern.

What’s draining most your Pixel phone’s battery?

Aside from faulty updates, rogue apps are also found among the culprits or rapid draining on smartphone batteries. Social media apps like Facebook are usually using a significant amount of power when active or when left on standby. The use of animated themes, frequent data fetching, screen brightness, notifications, and other settings activated can also use up power on your device. Device usage like extensive or prolonged usage like playing mobile games or streaming videos on the phone for hours is likewise an underlying cause. Signal issues like when using your phone in an area with low to no network coverage can also cause the battery to drain faster. In general, anything you do on your phone that can trigger the processor to become exhausted would eventually result to your device running out of power so quick.

Battery draining issue can also be tied to a bad battery of faulty hardware on the phone. Unfortunately for hardware-related issues, service is often needed. But nonetheless, you can still try some workarounds and attempt to resolve the problem on your end before taking a trip to a service center and have a technician scrutinize the hardware components on your device.

Possible solutions to battery draining issue on Google Pixel 2

Battery draining can be tagged among other complex issues in mobile devices. This therefore denotes that the problem may not be promptly remedied by a single solution. If you are able to pinpoint the underlying cause, then you can work straight and fix whatever is causing the battery to drain so quick. Otherwise, you will have to go through a trial-and-error procedure and troubleshoot both the software and hardware components. You may refer to the following walkthroughs in case you need further assistance and additional inputs. If possible, try to exhaust all possible efforts and try all applicable options on your end. In the end if the problem continues, you can always escalate the matter to your carrier or Google Support and seek more help and more advanced solutions.

Again you need to look into two possibilities when it comes to battery draining problems on your phone and that would be a software issue and hardware damage. If you think that what you’re dealing with is a software issue, then you may try any of these subsequent workarounds.

First solution: Check and manage apps on your Google Pixel 2.

Most of the time, a sudden drop-off in battery is tied to a bad app. It could be an app that you’ve been using on your phone for some time or a recently downloaded app that’s acting weird due to a faulty update. To determine if the culprit is a bad app or not, check your battery settings and see which apps is draining much of your battery. If you see any unusual result like when a certain app is using over 5 percent of your phone’s battery, then it might be the culprit. Try to think what exactly the app was doing and then gauge whether it’s a reasonable usage or not.

Should it be a one-time problem with an app, a forced close on the app can help rectify any glitch that might have triggered the app to misbehave.

To view which apps use the most battery on your Google Pixel 2, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap Battery.
  3. Navigate to App Usage Since Full Charge section. You will then see a list of apps and services along with the percentage of battery used since the last full charge.
  4. Tap an app or service in the list to view more details and select options that can save battery, if necessary.

Some apps allow you to turn off Background activity, which works by limiting the app’s battery use while inactive or idle.

To force erratic apps to stop, follow these steps:

A forced stop and restart is similar to a hard reboot for an app. It completely turns off the app including services that could be draining the battery. A force stop option may not be  available for all apps though. If you wish to give it a shot, then here’s how it’s done:

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap Apps & notifications.
  3. Select the app from the list.
  4. Tap See all apps if you want to view more apps. If you don’t see a list, tap App info instead.
  5. Tap Force stop.
  6. Then tap OK to confirm.

After doing a forced stop on suspected apps, restart your Pixel 2 device then see if the battery is still draining so quick. Also try to start the app you’ve previously stopped. If the problem comes back after restarting the app, then it denotes that the app is causing it and therefore needs to be removed or uninstalled.

To uninstall problematic apps from your Pixel 2 device, follow these steps:

  1. Touch and hold the app that you want to uninstall.
  2. Start dragging the app to view more options.
  3. Drag the app to Uninstall at the top of the screen.
  4. Lift your finger or release the app to uninstall or remove the app from your device.

If you don’t see an option to Uninstall, that means you cannot uninstall the app.

Second solution: Restart device and install updates.

The following methods can help fix any software issue that could drain battery in the background. Try performing these methods if you found no apps draining the battery.

Restart your Pixel 2 (soft reset)

Many software-related issues can be fixed by performing a simple restart. So make sure you don’t forget doing so. For starters, here’s how a soft reset or restart is done on your Google Pixel 2 smartphone:

  1. Press and hold the Power button for a few seconds.
  2. Then tap Restart on your screen.
  3. If you don’t see Restart, press and hold the Power button for approximately 30 seconds until your device power cycles.

No data will be erased in the process so it’s definitely safe.

Install firmware updates available

If you haven’t installed any firmware update on your device yet, then check for system updates available then try to update your firmware. Firmware updates do not only offer new features and system enhancements but likewise contain fix patch to certain bugs including those that are draining the battery on your device. Here’s how:

  1. Tap to open the Settings app on your phone.
  2. Navigate to the bottom of the screen then tap System.
  3. Select System updates.
  4. If necessary, tap About phone to view your update status.

If an update is available, you’ll be prompted with an update notification. Before you go for an upgrade, be sure to create a backup of your device for safekeeping. Once the backup is secured, follow the onscreen instructions to proceed with the firmware update download and installation process.

Check for apps update to install

Apps are likewise needed to be updated regularly in order to keep them optimized and able to work perfectly with the current platform or software version your device is running on. Similar to system updates, app updates can also bring improvements that may fix the problem. Here’s how it’s done:

  1. Tap to open the Play Store app.
  2. Tap the Menu icon (three vertical lines).
  3. Then select My apps & games.
  4. Tap Update if an update is available, or Update all to install more apps updates.

Apps with available updates are labeled with Update.

Last option: Perform a complete system reset or reset your device to factory defaults

If none of the aforementioned procedures is able to fix the problem, then your next option would be a factory reset or master reset. This reset will wipe all your data from your device along with any processes that may be causing the issue. All apps and their associated data will also be uninstalled. It is therefore recommended to back up and restore all your critical data on your other device beforehand. Once you’ve backed up everything, proceed with a full system reset or master reset on your Google Pixel 2.

You can do factory reset through the Settings menu or using the hardware keys. The latter method is recommended if your device is not responding to touch inputs.

To reset your Pixel 2 via Settings menu, go to Settings-> System-> Reset-> Factory data reset-> Reset phone-> then tap Erase everything to confirm.

To reset your Pixel 2 using the hardware keys, follow these steps:

  1. Press and hold the Volume Down key with your phone powered off.
  2. Press and hold the Power key with the Volume Down key held down.
  3. Release both keys when the Android screen appears.
  4. Press the Volume keys to scroll to and highlight Recovery mode option.
  5. Then press the Power key to confirm selection.
  6. Press and hold the Power key again when the No command message appears.
  7. Then press and release the Volume Up key while holding the Power key.
  8. When the Android Recovery screen appears, release the Power key.
  9. Press the Volume Down key to scroll to and highlight Wipe data/factory reset option.
  10. Then press the Power key to confirm selection.
  11. Wait until the data wiping is finished and once it’s completed, the Reboot system now option is highlighted.
  12. Press the Power key to reboot your device.

See if the problem is gone after the reset. Be careful when adding back your apps. There is a chance that the battery draining problem comes back if you reinstall the app that’s causing the problem to occur in the first place.

If none of these methods is able to fix the problem and your phone is still draining the battery so fast, then you can have it diagnosed by a technician. It’s possible that the battery is damaged or some relevant components are no longer functioning as intended and therefore have to be replaced or repair.

You may also escalate the problem to Google Support especially if it started after installing a new firmware update on your Google Pixel 2. Should this be the case, the update might have contained some bugs that caused the battery to drain faster than it should. Seek more help and other options then.

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