Google tells us how Pixel’s bypass charging feature works

As part of a recent Pixel Feature Drop, Pixel phones introduced a “Limit to 80%” charging option to help preserve long-term battery health. After some investigation, we discovered that this new option’s side effect is that Pixels support bypass charging once the phone hits this 80%. We reached out to Google with our findings, and the company has confirmed that this is exactly the intended behavior.

Here’s what Google told us about how the Limit to 80% feature works:

• Current flows into the battery until 80%. When 80% charge is detected by the fuel gauge, the battery stops charging.
• If you are still plugged in, the system will take input current to power the device.

In other words, yes, the battery is bypassed if you keep your Pixel plugged in at 80% with the new limit option enabled. However, the feature doesn’t work like a true bypass charging toggle that can be switched on at any battery level; the phone will always charge to 80% first and only then bypass the battery. Still, that’s pretty handy for keeping your phone cooler if you like using it while on charge.

From the sounds of things, any Pixel that receives the update with the new Limit to 80% feature will work this way. We’re still waiting for Google to confirm precisely which models this includes, but if you want to try it out, grab the latest Feature Drop, look in the charging optimization settings menu, and let us know if you see the option on your Pixel.