Google Revives Pixel Referral Program as Android Users Extend Phone Life

Buyers must use an alphanumeric referral code at checkout, and the codes are currently valid until Nov. 4. For each successful referral, the referrer earns $50 in Google Store credit once the buyer's return window has passed. Eligible users can make up to 10 referrals during the campaign, for a potential total of $500 in Store credit, though each $50 reward expires 365 days after it is issued.

Access is not open to every Pixel owner. US referrers must be active Pixel phone users who were already opted in to receive Pixel emails when the program launched, and they must receive an invitation to participate. For now, Android Authority reported that access appears limited to eligible users Google has invited.

Android Authority also detailed a Pixel charging feature called Limit to 80%. The feature is found in Settings under Battery and Charging, then Charging Optimization, where users can turn on Use Charging Optimization and select Limit to 80%. As the name suggests, the Pixel generally stops charging when the battery reaches 80%, which can reduce battery wear over time. The phone may still occasionally charge to 100% so it can keep its battery capacity estimates accurate, and users may need to wait a charging cycle or two after enabling the feature before it consistently stops at 80%. Android Authority noted the feature is not new, having been around for roughly two years, but it is easy to miss.

Once the battery reaches 80%, keeping the cable connected can let power go directly toward running the phone instead of charging the battery. The author tested the behavior on a Pixel 11 with a Baseus PicoGo Pro 100W charger. At around 6% battery, the phone started at roughly 26W; the draw gradually dropped to around 5W by the time it hit 75%. At 80%, with the screen off and the phone idle, power draw fell to around 1W, and it rose to roughly 2W when the screen was used. The battery stayed at 80% during the test. The feature cannot be turned on manually at any time: if the phone is plugged in at 40%, it will still charge the battery until it reaches 80%, and only then does the bypass behavior begin.

Android Authority also described ways it is keeping a four-year-old Nothing Phone 1 running after the device reached the end of its software update support. The writer said the phone has another year or two of service left and began by replacing the battery at an officially licensed service center. The original battery's health was below 75%, and its poor condition caused performance throttling. The writer also swapped a fast charger for a slower 18W charging brick and replaced a heavy-duty case with a thinner one for better ventilation.

The report said switching to lighter, open-source apps helped extend battery life. The writer replaced Chrome with Brave, used AntennaPod instead of Spotify for podcasts, and used Before Launcher instead of the default Nothing launcher. The writer also replaced some heavy apps with their web versions and used Adguard's Private DNS to block unwanted ads across the system. Together, these changes yielded up to an hour of extra screen-on time per day, according to the report.

At the system level, the writer reduced window and transition animations in Developer Options to 0.5x, lowered the screen refresh rate from 120Hz to 60Hz, and restricted maximum charge to 80-90%. The writer also deleted large files and forgotten downloads to keep storage from filling beyond 90%, which can otherwise cause system-wide stuttering or lag. The writer considered flashing a custom ROM such as LineageOS but has not done so because it would mean losing existing optimizations and access to certain apps or features, including Google Wallet and banking apps.