It appears that the Google Pixel 6 is running on less than the expected 30W charging speed

It appears that the Google Pixel 6 is running on less than the expected 30W charging speed

When Google released the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro, it boasted about the fast-charging capabilities of the device. Plugging a Pixel 6 series device into its $25 30W fast charger—which isn't even included in the box—should take full advantage of the phone's fast charging speeds, giving it up to 50 percent juice in just 30 minutes. We can all agree that this is an impressive tip, but unfortunately, it may not be entirely realistic.

Android Authority put the Pixel 6's fast charging speed to the test, and its findings suggest that Google's spec sheet is misleading. After trying out the 30W charger with the Pixel 6, Android Authority found that the Pixel 6 doesn't fully utilize the charger's power—instead, it only hits a maximum charging speed of 22W.

Android Authority notes that the charger took about 111 minutes to fully charge the Pixel 6 Pro's 5,000mAh battery, turning off its adaptive charging and adaptive battery settings. Google is right; It takes around 31 minutes to charge the device up to 50 percent, however, it takes longer to fill up past 50 percent.

It appears that the phone's charging speed drops to 12W at 75 percent, and then 2.5W when the battery is close to full, taking a full hour to fill the last 15 percent. While it is normal to reduce the charging speed over time to protect the battery from damage and prevent high temperatures, it is still unusual for it to drop to only 2.5W.

Android Authority compared the charging speed of the 30W fast charger to the 18W Power Delivery unit that Google included with the older Pixel. It was found that the 30W charger provided barely any improvement in terms of speed, as it took 121 minutes to charge the Pixel 6 Pro with the 18W charger - just 10 minutes slower than the 30W fast charger.

This confirms what we saw during our review of the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro. We mentioned that both support fast charging, but neither of them works that fast. Also in line with Android Authority's findings, we noted that Google throttles the charging speed once it reaches 80 percent.

Google doesn't explicitly say that the Pixel 6 has a 30W charging rate; It just says that both phones support "Charge up to 50 percent in 30 minutes with the Google 30W USB-C charger with USB-PD 3.0 (PPS)".

But it still doesn't make sense that Google will promote fast chargers if the Pixel 6 doesn't take full advantage of it. Not to mention that Google is encouraging users to buy chargers that offer really lightning-fast charging rates — are 10 minutes really worth the extra $25?

Google is also set to release the second-generation $79 Google Pixel Stand fast wireless charger in the near future. The "Superfast Wireless Charger" is listed as providing charging speeds of up to 23W "for compatible Pixel phones," which is close to the 22W charging rate that the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro tops out. It is not clear why Google would give more realistic expectations for the upcoming wireless charger and not for the 30W fast charger. We contacted Google with a request for comment on the situation and did not immediately hear back.