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Google confirms Pixel XL charging problem

Google confirms that a charging bug affecting the original Google Pixel XL with Android Oreo 8.1 will be fixed in the coming weeks.
Written by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, Contributing Writer

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Google has confirmed that there is an issue with the original Google Pixel XL running Android Oreo 8.1 that causes it to momentarily overcharge. And a fix is incoming.

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John McNulty, Head of Safety and Compliance Engineering for Google Consumer Hardware, confirmed the existence of the bug, gave assurances that a fix is coming, and reassured owners that the risk from this is low.

Thank you for submitting information on this bug. Our engineering team has verified a fix that will be rolling out in the coming weeks to prevent this from occurring.

Tests run by our safety engineers have also confirmed that even if a momentary overcurrent draw of the kind described were to occur in normal-use conditions, it would not pose a safety hazard. In addition, Pixel XL was designed with multiple layers of safety protections to further prevent overheating:

1. the phone input circuit is designed to carry more than the observed level of current;

2. both the battery and the phone have multiple layers of protection to avoid battery and phone overheating and overcharging;

3. the in-box charger, as well as any third party chargers that meet safety industry standards (UL and similar), have overcurrent protection.

Personally, as long as I was using a quality charger, I wouldn't lose any sleep over this. I would, however, avoid using cheap, poor-quality chargers or power banks until Google pushes out this fix, since they could increase the risk of problems.

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