Changes coming to your Pixel 4a

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bombadier

bombadier

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2010
4,883
7,057
The Burgh
Google Pixel 3a
Google Pixel 4a
For anyone wanting to roll back to the previous November 2023 update from the January 2025 Battery hobbling update, the January 2025 update only makes changes to battery management everything else is the same as the November 2023 final update.
Some new information about the update has come to light see here for further reading
ARS Technica Article
Checking your Battery Serial Number

If your serial number contains this string, it will be nerfed by the battery performance update:

8230020501

If your serial number contains this string, your battery is unaffected:

8230015901

majorfigjam's How to Undo Google's January 2025 update without losing data (Unlocked Bootloader Only)

See this post by @amateurninja about how to block the update once you have rolled back

If you are going to unlock your bootloader to roll back then have you considered switching to a customROM? LineageOS may be the one for you
@xj0 can help with any questions

Ok since Google seem to of taken down all other firmware versions the Nov 2023 update (Pre Battery hobbling changes) can be downloaded
Android 13
Factory images sunfish-tq3a.230805.001.s1-factory-82902ea9

New link here or thanks to @Turing1ncomplete can be downloaded here

Thanks to @Xj0 both the factory image and OTA can be found on Archive.org Strap yourself in as this one will take a long time to download

SHA256 File Checksum​

82902EA98C80F1A22706279A30D2BC46AA55CBE60703C9A02BA043BD052C6D99

Android 13

OTA Image sunfish-ota-tq3a.230805.001.s1-965296b1
here or here

SHA256 File Checksum​

965296b1498b1d71bbf4013088b34213d5e6bc4dc836a7d06d1534eaf7621336

Thanks to @xj0 there is also a
Factory Image Torrent
OTA
SHA256 Checksums are the same as posted above and should match if downloaded correctly.

If either link doesnt work due to download requests being exceeded send me a PM and I will send an alternative link.

Older Firmware Versions
There is another torrent with the final firmware for A10, A11 and A12, the readme has the SHA - 256 Checksum for each zip file

Thanks to @smokejumper76 for posting the Checksums
Android 10 build (sunfish-qd4a.200805.003-factory-fac7c08d)
SHA-256 Checksum fac7c08d3d4cb92078fbcdbcc7e80fc4c438612a1a004d3d12814f51928458f3

-latest Android 11 build (sunfish-rq3a.211001.001-factory-5d6da39f)
SHA-256 Checksum 5d6da39f4611f22eb6a1e75dd5beeecb7734ae249fc8f9e725f7aa8e94100957

-latest Android 12 build (sunfish-sq3a.220705.003.a1-factory-c1963f71)
SHA-256 Checksum c1963f71ccbe9a393a16f98f53b9504620e298ea50353b0e347c7f892ff56d02


Just got this email from Google,

We wanted to let you know about an upcoming software update for your Pixel 4a that will affect the overall performance and stability of its battery. Pixel phones, like other smartphones, use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that, over time, may experience performance, capacity or runtime degradation.


In the coming days, your Pixel 4a will receive an automatic software update to Android 13 that introduces new battery management features to improve the stability of your device. This update will reduce your battery's runtime and charging performance.


To address this, we're providing some options to consider. Please take a look and choose which one works best for you.


More details related to this change are available here. Eligibility criteria and other terms will apply.


Thank you,
Pixel team

Seems they are releasing an update that may affect the battery life if you have one of the affected devices, I have filled out the form and awaiting to find out if my 4a will be adversely affected with this new update, if it is I can get
A free battery replacement
B $50 or equivalent cash payment
C $100 or equivalent voucher towards another Pixel
Countries affected are US, Canada, UK. Germany. Singapore or India

Took me about a month to get my prefered option of the £100 Voucher, google processed my inital claim as wanting the cash with payoneer, took more as a few support sessions from Google to sort it out.

For Owners in Australia

ACCC Product Safety Announcement

In addition to the Google appeasement options it seems you may be able to get a full refund, see this @DiamondJohn post where he confirms that a full refund can be issued
 
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Grocery List

Grocery List

Member
Nov 8, 2014
38
7
Google Pixel 4a
I'm logging in on XDA for the first time in years because I'm frankly shocked by this email. It seems like a very blatant attempt to force users to upgrade their phones. I have submitted a claim for $50, as I'm not eligible for a free repair. I will monitor my battery activity once I receive the update and share my observations here (just eyeballing it, I'm running the most vanilla version of the Pixel 4a).
 
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bombadier

bombadier

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2010
4,883
7,057
The Burgh
Google Pixel 3a
Google Pixel 4a
Grocery List said:
I'm logging in on XDA for the first time in years because I'm frankly shocked by this email. It seems like a very blatant attempt to force users to upgrade their phones. I have submitted a claim for $50, as I'm not eligible for a free repair. I will monitor my battery activity once I receive the update and share my observations here (just eyeballing it, I'm running the most vanilla version of the Pixel 4a).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I upgraded to my Pixel 7a I should of traded the 4a in, battery is definitely failing, will be interesting to see if I get something from google, would imagine the update is bringing the 80% charging feature to it, wonder if they are doing the same with other older pixels ?
 
icantlogin

icantlogin

Senior Member
Aug 23, 2017
128
119
Grocery List said:
It seems like a very blatant attempt to force users to upgrade their phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or, you know, maybe a certain batch of batteries has a fault, and they are compensating customers who are disadvantaged by this with a free battery replacement or the money with which they can have the battery replaced themselves. Doesn't sound like a blatant attempt to force users to upgrade their phones to me, but you do you.

bombadier said:
would imagine the update is bringing the 80% charging feature to it, wonder if they are doing the same with other older pixels ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far the only reports I've seen are about the 4a. And it doesn't sound like this is about the 80% charging feature, more like a firmware update that limits charge speed and voltage usage range when an affected battery is detected.
 
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Grocery List

Grocery List

Member
Nov 8, 2014
38
7
Google Pixel 4a
icantlogin said:
Or, you know, maybe a certain batch of batteries has a fault, and they are compensating customers who are disadvantaged by this with a free battery replacement or the money with which they can have the battery replaced themselves. Doesn't sound like a blatant attempt to force users to upgrade their phones to me, but you do you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

I will do me, because I don't see it as benevolence when an update that is known to potentially worsen performance is forced on users way after the initial end of support period. At the very least they could've informed users that the update can negatively affect the battery and then leave it up to the user to update or not. What should I do if I have an affected device but can't replace the battery myself?
 
A

asdf2002

Member
May 30, 2019
7
14
I just disabled automatic updates, hopefully that's enough.

"We have noticed you are still using this $50 phone that works perfectly fine and does everything you need. Therefore, your device has been queued for self-destruction triggered by the next software update. You can apply for reimbursement of e-waste disposal fees (up to $10.00 in store credit) using the attached form. Thanks for being a loyal Pixel(tm) customer!"
 
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bombadier

bombadier

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2010
4,883
7,057
The Burgh
Google Pixel 3a
Google Pixel 4a
A wee update have just flashed the Jan 2025 battery update and got a notification to say my device is affected, yesterday I got an email from google giving details of making a payment
With the form that you fill out, if you enter your IMEI and the form advances and lets you choose one of the 3 options then your device is impacted, if your device is not affected then the form will end there.
Interestingly Ampere now reports my battery health to be dead !
Yeah the update has affected the battery ampere no longer collects charging data and it seems to max out at 1A so slow charging, if anyone does flash the update it looks like it kills the battery if you have an impacted device.
 
Last edited:
H

hasenbein1966

Senior Member
Aug 9, 2011
1,135
344
HELP!

I have a Pixel 4a with a ROOTED stock Android 11. And I want it to stay that way because it works perfectly.

BUT! Now the phone informs me that it has downloaded this dreaded update and wants me to restart the phone to install the update!! (It has never downloaded anything before, I have always turned off "Automatic updates" in developer options.)

WHAT CAN I DO TO PREVENT THE INSTALLING?

AND IF THE UPDATE WOULD INSTALL ANYWAY, WOULD IT BREAK MY PHONE (because of the root)??
 
Last edited:
D

DiamondJohn

Recognized Contributor/Forum Guide
Aug 31, 2013
8,223
8,405
Sydney
Weird. I am in australia. i.e. not listed above as a country being subsidised.

I have 2 Pixel 4A's. The first I bought from a local authorised seller. The second one was second hand off eBay, from an australian seller; maybe they bought it from OS, IDK.

I am using the second one I bought off eBay as my primary daily device. So I followed the links to see if I could get a reimbursement. The phone is old and the battery is not the best. It's a rooted phone running a custom OS. So I typed in my IMEI into the online form and selected the $100 USD voucher to get a new battery installed, and it accepted my request, and said I would be contacted in the following days.

On a roll, I thought I would do the same for my other phone; which was purchased in a large authorised pixel reseller retail store, here in AUS. When I entered the IMEI I selected to get the $50 USD cashback. It returned my device was not valid for the offer. DOH!

Dont know if it failed because the IMEI identified it was unaffected by the update, or it recognised I was not in a authorised region.

PS: Just remembered, the second one is running an A14 custom rom, while the first is A13 custom ROM
 
J

jpeeler

Member
Sep 25, 2012
21
1
I assume you have not been offered the update if on custom rom correct?
 
D

DiamondJohn

Recognized Contributor/Forum Guide
Aug 31, 2013
8,223
8,405
Sydney
jpeeler said:
I assume you have not been offered the update if on custom rom correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on a custom, self build, unofficial ROM; crDroid (A13 & A14). So I do not get offered updates from crDroid even, let alone google. I am dead to them, both. But I would like a new battery if I can get one, for each.

Interesting thing I just saw. There is a new Jan 2025 A13 update on the official google images site for the Sunfish. The previous update was back in Nov 2023

202501101607 P4a Jan 25 update.png

developers.google.com

Factory Images for Nexus and Pixel Devices | Google Play services | Google for Developers

developers.google.com developers.google.com
 
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S

SKVO2337

New member
Aug 18, 2014
4
5
What if i already changed battery like a year ago. Now what? Will this update will downgrade my new battery?

TLDR: YES, this will downgrade your battery. omfg.
 
Last edited:
bombadier

bombadier

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2010
4,883
7,057
The Burgh
Google Pixel 3a
Google Pixel 4a
SKVO2337 said:
What if i already changed battery like a year ago. And now this update will downgrade my new battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure what will happen, have you filled out the form to see if your IMEI is one of the affected devices? If it isn't then I don't think the update will change anything, since you have already replaced the battery i am unsure what the update tests, my device is affected and what I will say is Ampere now reports the battery as dead and doesn't seem to be reading much data, the built in battery widget doesn't report the correct battery level, charging seems limited to 1A, the update only addresses the battery as security patch date is the same as it was.
Haven't seen a report of what life is like after the update on an unaffected device.
 
S

SKVO2337

New member
Aug 18, 2014
4
5
bombadier said:
Not sure what will happen, have you filled out the form to see if your IMEI is one of the affected devices? If it isn't then I don't think the update will change anything, since you have already replaced the battery i am unsure what the update tests, my device is affected and what I will say is Ampere now reports the battery as dead and doesn't seem to be reading much data, the built in battery widget doesn't report the correct battery level, charging seems limited to 1A, the update only addresses the battery as security patch date is the same as it was.
Haven't seen a report of what life is like after the update on an unaffected device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
can confirm no more rapid charge after "battery downgrade" update. i think i will need to downgrade it or even consider some custom ROMs... holy f, this update is ridiculous.
 
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  • 11
    bombadier
    bombadier
    For anyone wanting to roll back to the previous November 2023 update from the January 2025 Battery hobbling update, the January 2025 update only makes changes to battery management everything else is the same as the November 2023 final update.
    Some new information about the update has come to light see here for further reading
    ARS Technica Article
    Checking your Battery Serial Number

    If your serial number contains this string, it will be nerfed by the battery performance update:

    8230020501

    If your serial number contains this string, your battery is unaffected:

    8230015901

    majorfigjam's How to Undo Google's January 2025 update without losing data (Unlocked Bootloader Only)

    See this post by @amateurninja about how to block the update once you have rolled back

    If you are going to unlock your bootloader to roll back then have you considered switching to a customROM? LineageOS may be the one for you
    @xj0 can help with any questions

    Ok since Google seem to of taken down all other firmware versions the Nov 2023 update (Pre Battery hobbling changes) can be downloaded
    Android 13
    Factory images sunfish-tq3a.230805.001.s1-factory-82902ea9

    New link here or thanks to @Turing1ncomplete can be downloaded here

    Thanks to @Xj0 both the factory image and OTA can be found on Archive.org Strap yourself in as this one will take a long time to download

    SHA256 File Checksum​

    82902EA98C80F1A22706279A30D2BC46AA55CBE60703C9A02BA043BD052C6D99

    Android 13

    OTA Image sunfish-ota-tq3a.230805.001.s1-965296b1
    here or here

    SHA256 File Checksum​

    965296b1498b1d71bbf4013088b34213d5e6bc4dc836a7d06d1534eaf7621336

    Thanks to @xj0 there is also a
    Factory Image Torrent
    OTA
    SHA256 Checksums are the same as posted above and should match if downloaded correctly.

    If either link doesnt work due to download requests being exceeded send me a PM and I will send an alternative link.

    Older Firmware Versions
    There is another torrent with the final firmware for A10, A11 and A12, the readme has the SHA - 256 Checksum for each zip file

    Thanks to @smokejumper76 for posting the Checksums
    Android 10 build (sunfish-qd4a.200805.003-factory-fac7c08d)
    SHA-256 Checksum fac7c08d3d4cb92078fbcdbcc7e80fc4c438612a1a004d3d12814f51928458f3

    -latest Android 11 build (sunfish-rq3a.211001.001-factory-5d6da39f)
    SHA-256 Checksum 5d6da39f4611f22eb6a1e75dd5beeecb7734ae249fc8f9e725f7aa8e94100957

    -latest Android 12 build (sunfish-sq3a.220705.003.a1-factory-c1963f71)
    SHA-256 Checksum c1963f71ccbe9a393a16f98f53b9504620e298ea50353b0e347c7f892ff56d02


    Just got this email from Google,

    We wanted to let you know about an upcoming software update for your Pixel 4a that will affect the overall performance and stability of its battery. Pixel phones, like other smartphones, use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that, over time, may experience performance, capacity or runtime degradation.


    In the coming days, your Pixel 4a will receive an automatic software update to Android 13 that introduces new battery management features to improve the stability of your device. This update will reduce your battery's runtime and charging performance.


    To address this, we're providing some options to consider. Please take a look and choose which one works best for you.


    More details related to this change are available here. Eligibility criteria and other terms will apply.


    Thank you,
    Pixel team

    Seems they are releasing an update that may affect the battery life if you have one of the affected devices, I have filled out the form and awaiting to find out if my 4a will be adversely affected with this new update, if it is I can get
    A free battery replacement
    B $50 or equivalent cash payment
    C $100 or equivalent voucher towards another Pixel
    Countries affected are US, Canada, UK. Germany. Singapore or India

    Took me about a month to get my prefered option of the £100 Voucher, google processed my inital claim as wanting the cash with payoneer, took more as a few support sessions from Google to sort it out.

    For Owners in Australia

    ACCC Product Safety Announcement

    In addition to the Google appeasement options it seems you may be able to get a full refund, see this @DiamondJohn post where he confirms that a full refund can be issued
    View
    8
    A
    amateurninja
    I found the URLs for the ota updates and blocked them. This works even if the update has been triggered and not finished, and there's way to delete a downloaded update and stop the update too.

    Posted this on Reddit and I am copy pasting it here.

    THE ONLY WORKING SOLUTION to stop the forced battery update - this works even if the update is currently downloading, or has already been downloaded and it's waiting for a restart to apply it (self.Pixel4a)
    submitted 3 days ago * by amateurninja
    Step 1:
    Block the following URLs using either:
    • a firewall app
    • or an app like AdAway
    • or edit your hosts file directly if rooted
    • or use a DNS service like NextDNS and make it the Android Default Private DNS setting
    ota.googlezip.net
    ota-cache1.googlezip.net
    ota-cache2.googlezip.net
    Click to expand...
    Click to collapse
    This is where the update is checked for from, and this is where it downloads the update from.
    Note for NextDNS: it can block only whole domains, so use googlezip.net in the Denylist and not the full URLs
    Step 2 (optional if the update is currently getting downloaded or has already been downloaded):
    Go to Settings > Apps > Find Google Play Services > Clear Storage, this will delete the downloaded update, you might have to re-login to your Google Account etc. if you do this.
    Step 3:
    You can now go to System Update screen and hit Check Now, it will try to reach the above URLs and will say check complete and won't find the update as it can't reach the server!
    The update will not get re-downloaded as long as the URLs can't be reached. You can check the NextDNS log, or the AdAway log or the log of app you are using to block the URLs - ota.googlezip.net would have been blocked.
    **** Google for forcing this upon us!
    I hope this helps at least a few people who are still trying to avoid this update!
    View
    8
    D
    DiamondJohn
    *** DL LINK REMOVED ***
    100% Done!

    Its a free service, so the file will be up only for 6 days.
    XXX

    Code: 
    Filename: sunfish-tq3a.230805.001.s1-factory-82902ea9.zip
File size: 2.3 GB (2276267484 bytes)
Created now (2025-01-23 06:33:15 UTC)
Expires 6 days from now (2025-01-30 06:33:15 UTC)

    For your own protection and certainty it downloaded correctly, check the SHA256: 82902EA98C80F1A22706279A30D2BC46AA55CBE60703C9A02BA043BD052C6D99

    EDIT: Whoa! that hit 19 downloads in a few minutes!
    View
    6
    M
    majorfigjam
    How to undo Google's update without losing data (unlocked devices only).

    As this post is now buried, I've deleted the detailed instructions, which can now be found here:



    How to: Undo the January 2025 update without losing data (unlocked devices only).

    You need to have some basic confidence with...
    xdaforums.com xdaforums.com





    Good luck.
    View
    5
    A
    asdf2002
    I just disabled automatic updates, hopefully that's enough.

    "We have noticed you are still using this $50 phone that works perfectly fine and does everything you need. Therefore, your device has been queued for self-destruction triggered by the next software update. You can apply for reimbursement of e-waste disposal fees (up to $10.00 in store credit) using the attached form. Thanks for being a loyal Pixel(tm) customer!"
    View

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