The Google Pixel 8 battery apparently drains like crazy on mobile data
What you need to know
The Pixel 8 series is experiencing connectivity and overheating problems, and users of the regular model are reporting rapid battery drain when using mobile data.
The Exynos 5300 modem on the Tensor G3 is believed to be the culprit behind the battery drain issue.
Google may be able to resolve the connectivity and battery drain issues with a software update.
Mobile data appears to be quickly draining the Google Pixel 8, with the device running out of juice much faster than on Wi-Fi, causing many users headaches.
Pixel 8 owners have complained on various online forums about their batteries draining quickly and their phones getting warm when they use mobile data a lot. Some users are also having random connectivity issues and getting slow 5G speeds.
One user took to Google's support forum to say their week-old Pixel 8 had only 20% battery left after less than three hours of use. Android Police's Rajesh Pandey also had battery and overheating problems with his Pixel 8 Pro.
The rapid battery drain doesn't seem to happen when the phone is connected to Wi-Fi. Google has yet to shed light on the issue, but some Pixel 8 users posted on Reddit that the Exynos 5300 modem may be causing the battery drain, with most of them barely getting five hours of screen-on time on mobile data, compared to around seven hours on Wi-Fi.
It looks like Google's latest and greatest Android phones can't keep a good signal in places where other phones like the Pixel 7 usually work fine. Some Pixel 8 users reported having the same bad signal and connection problems as the Pixel 6.
It can be recalled that the Pixel 6 series was known for its bad signal and reception. Google fixed a lot of this with the Pixel 7 series, but some problems lingered.
Other users have complained on XDA forums that the Pixel 8 gets warm while charging or even browsing the web. It's not clear how many people are having this problem, but some Pixel 8 users say the phone feels cooler than older Pixel phones, which have had overheating problems in the past.
For many people, including Google fans who don't want to spend a lot of money and those who want a powerful phone, the Pixel 8 is a great option. But even though Google has made a lot of progress in making better phones, some old problems still persist.
Google will presumably release a bunch of fixes for these connectivity, overheating, and battery drain problems through a software update.
