Android 13 Update Broke Wireless Charging on Pixel Phones: Report

Google recently released the Android 13 to Pixel smartphones and it looks like the update has started to cause problems for some Pixel phone users. As per a report, a lot of Pixel users, especially the owners of the Pixel 4 and the Pixel 4 XL smartphones, have complained the Android 13 update has partially broken the wireless charging feature of the handsets. Some users have apparently found a solution and claim that adjusting settings such as Adaptive Charging can fix the issue.

Citing multiple Reddit threads, 9to5Google reports that a lot of Pixel users have been complaining that the wireless charging feature on their phones stopped working almost immediately after the Android 13 upgrade was installed on the phones. The problem seems to have affected multiple Pixel smartphone models including the latest flagship Pixel 6 series, however, it looks like that the Pixel 4 and the Pixel 4 XL owners have been hit the most.

Users are also claiming that the problem persists no matter what charger they use to juice up the handset. Reportedly, Google hasn't acknowledged the problem yet and there is no information on the cause of the problem. It looks like a software-related issue which should be fixed in subsequent updates. Google released the Android 13 software update for Pixel owners last week.

One way to fix the problem is that Pixel owners can roll back to Android 12 and install the update once the wireless charging issue is fixed. However, this can only happen with all Pixel phones, except the Pixel 6 series, that have got the update. The Pixel 6 handsets come with a bootloader update that increments the anti-roll back version which essentially means a user will not be able to roll back to Android 12 once their handsets are updated with the latest OS version.

For a few Redditors who own Pixel phones, adjusting settings such as Adaptive Charging and “forgetting” a Pixel Stand, fixed the issue. It is a probability that this solution may not work for all those who are affected.