Your Pixel Watch's battery could last longer with this Wear OS 6 feature
Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority
TL;DR The upcoming Wear OS 6 update may introduce a new adaptive charging feature designed to protect smartwatch batteries from degradation.
This feature will likely pause charging at 80% and then intelligently resume to achieve a full charge based on the user's typical daily habits.
Evidence was found in the Wear OS developer preview, and competitors like Samsung are also reportedly developing similar battery protection functions.
To protect your device's battery, it's best to avoid leaving it on the charger for extended periods. That's why many phones have features that pause charging at 80%, reducing battery stress and prolonging its lifespan. While most smartwatches lack these protections, the upcoming Wear OS 6 update could change that.
You're reading an Authority Insights story. Discover Authority Insights for more exclusive reports, app teardowns, leaks, and in-depth tech coverage you won't find anywhere else.
While digging through the recent Wear OS 6 Developer Preview, I discovered strings in the ClockworkSysUiGoogle app that hint at a new 'adaptive charging' feature. When enabled, charging will pause at a certain level and then resume to be fully charged by a specific time, likely based on your charging habits. You'll also be able to override this feature at any time to charge your watch to 100%.
Code Copy Text Charging to full now Adaptive charging overridden Charging will be completed by %1$s Adaptive charging is on Override Ready to go!
Although the strings don't specify the exact charging percentage or timing, the feature will likely mirror Adaptive Charging on Pixel phones. When this feature is enabled on Pixel phones, charging pauses at 80% and then finishes about an hour before you typically unplug your device. It's reasonable to assume Adaptive Charging in Wear OS will function similarly, though again, we haven't been able to confirm exact details.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
While features in developer previews don't always make it to specific devices, there's additional evidence for this one. We previously found clues in the Pixel Watch Management Service app suggesting Google is bringing Adaptive Charging to its own watches. We don't know when Google plans to release this feature, but it could arrive with the Wear OS 6 update. Notably, Google won't be the only one rolling out such a feature for its wearable lineup; Samsung is reportedly developing a similar battery protection feature for its Galaxy Watch series, expected in the One UI Watch 8 release.
Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at
Email our staff at news@androidauthority.com . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
32 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
How the Cybertruck Came to Embody Tesla's Problems
The bromance between Elon Musk and President Trump is ending at a difficult time for Tesla TSLA 3.67%increase; green up pointing triangle. The electric-vehicle maker lost roughly $150 billion of market value Thursday—its biggest ever drop—after the Tesla CEO and Trump traded insults. Sales of Teslas have slumped this year. Tariffs could disrupt the supply of key components. The sprawling Republican tax-and-spending bill would end tax credits for EV buyers. And Tesla's Cybertruck has been a disappointment. Musk set high expectations for the Cybertruck, telling investors it would be Tesla's 'best product ever.' The angular, stainless steel pickup was supposed to generate buzz for Tesla by showcasing new technology and unlocking the lucrative truck market. Instead, it has become synonymous with Musk's polarizing stint in politics, exposing some owners to graffiti or middle fingers from other drivers. And its reputation has been tarnished among Tesla fans because of a spate of recalls and manufacturing issues that have resulted in cycles of repairs. In the U.S., the company sold fewer than 40,000 Cybertrucks in 2024—well below Musk's ultimate goal of 250,000 a year. In the first quarter of 2025, Tesla sold around 7,100 Cybertrucks in the U.S., according to registration data from S&P Global Mobility. Ford's F-150 Lightning pickup outsold it. In an effort to boost sales, Tesla has rolled out lower-price versions of the truck and started offering buyers incentives such as 0% financing and free upgrades. Almost as soon as the $100,000 Cybertruck hit the road, quality problems began to multiply. Reports on social media cited cracked windshields and spotting from so-called rail dust, orange discoloration similar to rust. In its first year, Tesla recalled the truck seven times to fix dangerous defects. In March, with large metal panels falling off the trucks, the tally rose to eight. Some of the quality problems were known and documented internally before the truck went on sale, including issues with the accelerator pad and windshield wiper that later triggered recalls, said former employees who worked on the Cybertruck. But there was pressure inside Tesla to get the truck to market quickly, according to these employees. Tesla didn't respond to requests for comment. 'Elon Musk will tell you the biggest professional mistake was the falcon doors on the Model X,' said David Fick, a longtime Tesla owner who got his Cybertruck in March. He referred to the complex door design that opens upward and hinges at the roof. 'I believe that the Cybertruck is going to go down as an even bigger corporate stumble.' The retired banker in Boynton Beach, Fla., chose to wait more than a year to buy his Cybertruck, hopeful that many of the biggest issues would be identified before he drove his off the lot. 'They do a lot of bleeding-edge stuff where they rush to the market and then you're a beta tester as an owner,' Fick said. He paid about $72,000 for the car, plus $7,300 for window tinting and a custom wrap for exterior trim panels known as cant rails, covering his new car in a metallic maroon color. Soon after, Tesla recalled cant rails because they could become unglued. 'I've had tons of recalls on my Teslas over the years,' said Fick, who added that the cars are worth the hassle. 'Eighty percent were fixed by [software] updates, but these are physical things we are dealing with now.' Musk unveiled the prototype for the Cybertruck in 2019. At the time, he said it would cost $39,900, with a battery range of up to 500 miles—an ambitious combination that would be a stretch for any EV maker. Work on the vehicle was delayed a couple of years, leaving engineering and manufacturing teams with only a few months to do final testing before the trucks went to customers, former employees said. Musk tried to temper expectations around how quickly Tesla could increase production, given its unique design. 'There is always some chance that Cybertruck will flop, because it is so unlike anything else,' he wrote on social media in July 2021. Still, he promoted some of its most unusual features, including his dream of making the car amphibious. Former employees said they took Musk's social posts as orders, but the engineering proved difficult. By 2022, it was clear internally that Cybertruck wouldn't be able to meet all Musk's criteria, so engineers scrapped an early design and started over—developing a smaller, landlocked version of the truck, the people said. After about a year and a half of testing, Tesla delivered the first Cybertrucks to a dozen or so customers in late November 2023. An early version of the truck started at $100,000 and had an estimated range of 318 miles. Two months later, Tesla issued its first recall on the vehicle: a software update that required the company to increase the size of the font on a warning system used across its fleet. It was the first of three recalls that Tesla addressed on the Cybertruck through over-the-air updates to its software. Cybertruck's problems couldn't be fixed by software updates alone. In April 2024, Tesla issued a recall for the accelerator pedal. The company had received a notice from a customer complaining that the accelerator had gotten stuck. Tesla found that the pad attached to the long pedal could dislodge and get stuck in the trim above the pedal, causing the car to accelerate. An internal investigation found the issue was the result of an 'unapproved change,' in which Tesla employees used soap as a lubricant to attach the pad, according to the recall notice. Inside Tesla, the accelerator pad had been a known issue starting with the prototype, according to an employee who worked on the part. The manufacturing team also identified the part as problematic, this person said. Tesla also had problems with the Cybertruck's expansive windshield, which measured nearly 6 square feet. Sometimes the heavy glass would break, two employees said. The glass either arrived cracked from the supplier in Mexico or from handling at the Austin, Texas, facility, they said. Some owners took to social media to describe the glass cracking as soon as they drove off the lot, or while they wiped the inside of their windshield. The windshield required a large windshield wiper measuring 50 inches long. In June 2024, Tesla issued a recall on the wipers, whose motors Tesla found had been overstressed by testing. The wiper had been flagged nearly a year before, two people who worked on the Cybertruck said. It was one of the first issues identified on the vehicles, at which point it was classified as a 'gating issue,' which meant that it needed to be resolved before production could move forward. Reid Tomasko, a 25-year-old YouTube creator, took his Cybertruck on a cross-country trip, during which it performed perfectly, he said. Then came winter in New Hampshire. He was driving near his home in Lebanon, N.H., in February when a metal panel flew off the side of his truck. In March, Tesla issued a recall affecting most of the Cybertrucks it had produced—more than 46,000. The problem involved adhesive that could become brittle in extreme weather, causing exterior trim panels called cant rails to dislodge. Inspecting his truck, Tomasko said he found loose connections on almost every panel that used the adhesive, including the large pieces of stainless steel over the rear wheels, the front fender and the front doors. 'I was wondering, why are they not recalling the other panels?' Tomasko said. After replacing several panels, Tesla offered to buy back Tomasko's truck for nearly all of the $102,000 that he paid, he said. He accepted. 'I am planning on getting a newer one for cheaper soon,' he said. Write to Becky Peterson at
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
An OpenAI exec says she was diagnosed with breast cancer and that ChatGPT has helped her navigate it
Kate Rouch, OpenAI's chief marketing officer, said she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Rouch said she is expected to make a full recovery and urged other women to prioritize their health. She said she leaned on OpenAI's ChatGPT to navigate her treatment. Kate Rouch, the chief marketing officer at OpenAI, shared on Friday that she was diagnosed with invasive breast cancer weeks after assuming the role, which she called her "dream job," in December. In a thread posted on X, Rouch said she was sharing her story to help other women, adding, "We can't control what happens to us--but we can choose how we face it. My biggest lesson: no one fights alone." Prior to joining OpenAI as the company's first CMO, Rouch was CMO at Coinbase and, before that, spent over a decade at Meta, including as vice president, global head of brand and product marketing. Rouch said she started treatment right around the Super Bowl in February, when OpenAI aired its first-ever ad, and that she has since gone through 13 rounds of chemotherapy while leading OpenAI's marketing team. She wrote that she is expected to make a full recovery. "It has been the hardest season of life — for me, for my husband, and for our two young children," Rouch said, adding she has been supported by OpenAI "at every step." "Silicon Valley can be brutal and transactional. And yet — I've never felt more held," she said, adding that "people showed up in incredible and unexpected ways." Rouch also said OpenAI's ChatGPT has helped her navigate her diagnosis and treatment, including by explaining cancer in a way that is age-appropriate for her kids, helping her manage the side effects of chemo, and creating custom meditations. "Experiencing our work as a patient has made OpenAI's mission feel more personal and important," she said. Rouch said she was sharing her story to encourage other women to "prioritize their health over the demands of families and jobs." "A routine exam saved my life. It could save yours, too," she said. Business Insider reached out to OpenAI for comment. Kevin Weil, the chief product officer at OpenAI, expressed support for Rouch in a reply to her thread. "We love you @kate_rouch!" he wrote. "Proud of you for telling your story and for being so full of fight." Read the original article on Business Insider
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Possum-sized robot aids South Burlington sports fields
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (ABC22/FOX44) – Since last year, the South Burlington Parks Division has used a GPS-guided miniature robot to paint its fields for sports and mark lines. The robot even has a name – 'Linus'. The City of South Burlington wrote in a Facebook post, 'Linus the line-striping robot can mark a soccer field in about half an hour, freeing up its human coworkers for mowing and other maintenance.' The City has put the robot to work at Veteran's Memorial Park in advance of practices, games, and other events. UVM nurses practice at state-of-the art 'virtual hospital' By contrast, the Gold Country Soccer League in California estimates that a human painter would take twice that time just for a touch-up and longer for a whole new painting from scratch. Fields need to be repainted as often as once a week during regular use, and painting all the lines for a football field is even more complex and time-consuming. The robot, a specialized model known as a Turf Tank, can paint any of over 120 patterns entered into its customized software. It can also estimate how much paint it will use in its operations in advance. The company claims the robot's precision means it uses as little as half the amount of paint that would be needed to complete the painting manually. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
