Google Pixel 4 XL battery issues now qualify for a year’s warranty extension – but not in the UK
Google has extended the warranty of the Pixel 4 XL for a handful of regions for a set of specific battery related issues.
Pixel 4 XL owners in the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan now have access to a one-year extended repair program. But the UK, Australia and several named EU countries are omitted, with Google stating that “eligible devices will be processed as part of their normal two-year manufacturer’s warranty” instead.
As Android Police points out, this kind of offer is usually the result of a groundswell of grumbling over faults, or possibly even the threat of legal action, but widespread reports of Pixel 4 XL battery issues are conspicuous by their absence.
Nonetheless, those in an eligible country have a very specific set of faults that qualify for a free repair. Google says problems must be related to the following:
- Not able to turn on the phone
- The phone restarts or shuts down randomly without a manual restart or shutdown
- Charging with an adapter
- Wireless charging
- The phone’s battery draining significantly faster than earlier in its use
Other problems aren’t covered, and Google warns that it may need to treat other issues – a cracked screen, for example – at cost to the owner before it can deal with the battery fault free of charge.
Owners in an eligible region also won’t qualify if their handsets were purchased in a non-eligible country. So if you bought a Pixel 4 XL in the UK, but now live in Singapore, you won’t get the free service.
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This could simply be because the existing warranty supersedes the repair programme, but alternatively, it could give an insight as to the nature of the problem. Android Police points out that North America, Taiwan and Japan got their own SKU separate from the global model, so it’s possible this is an issue that simply doesn’t affect handsets bought in Europe.
We’ve reached out to Google to ask, and will update this piece when we get a response.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
