Pixel 9 Pro XL Lockscreen Charging Info Change: "Fast Charging" Indicator Gone?

Pixel 9 Pro XL Lockscreen Charging Info Change: "Fast Charging" Indicator Gone?Today, Artem Russakovskii, founder of APKMirror, posted on X that his Pixel 9 Pro XL no longer displays "Fast Charging" on the lockscreen. Instead, it now shows the estimated time to fully charge, making it difficult to tell if the phone is connected to a fast charger

Pixel 9 Pro XL Lockscreen Charging Info Change: "Fast Charging" Indicator Gone?

Today, Artem Russakovskii, founder of APKMirror, posted on X that his Pixel 9 Pro XL no longer displays "Fast Charging" on the lockscreen. Instead, it now shows the estimated time to fully charge, making it difficult to tell if the phone is connected to a fast charger.

In reality, the "Fast Charging" text hasn't completely disappeared. It still shows when using Google's 45W USB-C charger. In fact, any charger capable of delivering at least 20W to the Pixel 9 will trigger the "Fast Charging" text on the lockscreen.

This change stems from a recent update to Android that is currently only effective on the Pixel 9 series. IT Home has learned that Android is preparing to increase the "Fast Charging" threshold from 7.5W to 20W. The operating system on all other Pixel phones still uses the old 7.5W fast charging threshold, while the Pixel 9 series uses the higher 20W threshold.

This change is driven by Google's modification to the system property `charging_string.apply_v2`. When this system property is set to `true`, the system will use the 20W fast charging threshold to determine whether to display the "Fast Charging" text on the lockscreen.

Interestingly, AndroidAuthority first discovered this code change in the third beta of Android 15, but the Pixel 9 series' pre-installed Android 14 firmware has this standard enabled by default.

This means that even though the Pixel 9 series phones run Android 14, they have already adopted the new 20W fast charging threshold. For users, this means that even when using a charger with less than 20W power, they may see the estimated charging time on the lockscreen, not the traditional "Fast Charging" text.

This change might be confusing for some users, as they may be accustomed to the "Fast Charging" text as an indicator of fast charging. However, for those who want to know how long it will take for their phone to fully charge, the new display might be more convenient.

Overall, the 20W fast charging threshold that Android has introduced on the Pixel 9 series is a reflection of its continuous efforts to optimize the charging experience. While this change may pose some adaptation challenges, it will ultimately provide users with a more intuitive and convenient charging experience.