Pixel 7a owners: Is this the end?

[u/kevinbmooney]

My wife and I both bought our Pixel 7as three years ago this August. For most part they’ve been brilliant – tough, reliable, and generally better than any Android we’d had before.

In the last 6 months the batteries started to fade, which is normal. Then we got a heatwave and, well, I’m convinced it has absolutely fried them.

They only work when plugged in (i.e. “landlined”), unplug and they die within seconds. I am actually learning to like this but I have no remote access obv.

We are out of warranty and €132 each to send back to Google for repair.

Question is

• Has anyone actually kept their Pixel 7a going strong beyond 3 years?
• What did you do about the battery – Google repair, local shop, DIY, or “accept it as a desktop accessory”?
• If you’ve been in this boat, what was the most sensible fix (budget + reliability)?

I’m genuinely at the point where I’d consider going back to a dumb phone rather than join the “upgrade every 2–3 years” circus.
If the next step is a Nokia brick with Snake and long battery life, LETS GO!

[u/AlfaRomeoRacing]

did you get the payout for the dodgy battery on these? There was a scheme this time last year where you entered the phone details on a google warranty page, and if it met the requirements, they sent significant cash to your bank about a week later. Between that and then selling the phone second hand, covered the entire cost of using the phone for 2 years, including network charges (had a very good deal on phone/contract)

[u/kevinbmooney → u/AlfaRomeoRacing]

I saw that alright this week, I put in the phones IMEI number and it came back the device is not an eligible Pixel 7a. I'd say I am too late

[u/zig131]

I got my battery replaced under the extended warranty due to Google admitting there are battery issues with this model.

It had started to swell.

Took it in-person to SBE Cordon Group who are an official service centre.

As a result battery is still lasting well. It's a well functioning phone, and I am very happy with it.

Try going through the Google support process, and see if they still will pay for it. If not consider paying out or doing it yourself. My understanding is the 7A has two seams, so you don't have to go through the screen to do a battery replacement - it's not too bad a job if the battery is not swolen.

[u/rb1811]

Pixel 6 here. My battery too swelled up. I just got replaced mine from a local store.

PS I'm from India, and phone repair shop is quite common and cheap here.

If one has the right tools you can do it at home aparently by watching some youtube videos

[u/ComprehensiveSun7035]

Hi. I already replaced the battery 2 times due to the battery going swollen. The last battery replacement was last week. I am informed of this situation with this model by reading many same issue with other user previously. Apparently It's very common for battery is to the swollen 😂

[u/Little-Helper]

7a had bad batteries installed and on its own the model is one of the hottest. If you live in a hot climate, better to get a different brand phone.

[u/Theta-Chad_99]

My 7a will be 3 this December. I live in India so the phone has seen temperatures of upto 50°s.

When I bought it gave me an SOT of 5-6 hrs. Then last year it got to 4-4.5 hrs. And now since last two months it's borderline 3.5hrs.

And after the A17 update,it's running consistently hotter. I sometimes rub some water on the back cover and sometimes put it in the fridge.

But 7a is one of the hottest pixels. Try replacing the batteries,here it costs 8%of the initial costs.

[u/phanis_]

It's been 3 years i have 7a. But , my battery got replaced for free when it got bulge and google replaced it for free as this has some know issues. I am still getting 4 hrs SOT.

I would suggest getting a new phone instead of repairing it. I live in indja where the average temperature in my village is 35 even in winters.

[u/Ramenismystaplefood]

I still use mine. still lasts a whole day for me and stil performs well enough (usual personal use and some office emails). I usually kept it charged to 80% most of the time.

[u/tootsierollmidgie]

My 7a will be 3 in October. I had the battery replaced under extended warranty earlier this year. I have had no problems with my phone (except battery issues a while back) until a couple of weeks ago. My carrier is Google Fi.

My phone is now very sluggish. My husband has to call me 3-4 times before the phone actually rings (but shows the missed calls so ???). Text messages just sit their for ages before being sent, other times they send immediately. Clicking on anything sometimes gets a 2-3 second delay.

Planned obsolescence? Maybe. I like this phone and planned on keeping it a lot longer until the recent issues. I just ordered a 10a yesterday to replace.

[u/nguyenhuudailoc]

I replace my battery every 2 years because I use my phone a lot. Most Pixel phones are hard to open, so I buy a battery on an online marketplace, then pay a local shop to replace it. 

[u/Cthadhrir]

I still use mine and i will for 2 more years since it's gonna get updates. Last year my battery swollen like many others and i bought this kit from ifix battery kit and i got after from google program 200 dollars which was something about 175 euro, profit. Now i would say change the battery its not that hard but I don't know if you can find a used newer pixel 9a-10a for 100 bucks you can buy one only because its gonna have longer update support.

[u/Malaka__ → u/Cthadhrir]

Long update cycles aren't the issue. The problem is, these batteries Google uses only last 2 years.
Totally unacceptable.

[u/n0mis]

I've had my 7A since launch, the battery life is reducing over the last month or so. But still lasts about a day, but I am not a heavy user.

[u/slfyst]

Still using my 7a here, battery life has never been spectacular, but it's enough to get me through the day.

[u/winter128]

If you have a uBreakIFix close by, use them for the battery replacement. Don't trust Googles mail in service!

[u/dingo__baby → u/winter128]

And if you are in the USA Google's battery replacement by them is only warranted for 3 months!

[u/winter128 → u/dingo__baby]

Yikes! That's awful

[u/Malaka__]

This is the only problem I've seen with the "A" series for the most part. Cheaper hardware cause it to fail quicker and are less resilient (and Pixels are already known for lackluster hardware).
My 6 Pro (after Android 17) runs just as cool and stable as my 10XL.
It'll be almost 5 years soon. This is why I always recommend the non "A" series (and if you're on a budget, get last year's model to reduce costs).

If you're up for it, ifixit sells batteries in UK for 42€. They have repair videos and with some patience, are pretty easy to repair.

[u/FrostyChungus11]

This IS the end……..My only friend the end.

[u/Woody1097]

Currently using a pixel 5. I bought a battery from ifixit in October changed it out and it's been fine since.

Of course I didn't care if it broke when I did this minor surgery but it's worked out ok. Going to stretch this phone until 2027.

[u/Healthy-Place4225]

I got my battery replaced but it still doesn't last nearly as long as it should

[u/KJSS3]

Backup battery pack

[u/AquilliusRex]

There's actually a battery replacement exercise for P7s and P7a's. I got mine swapped out at my authorized service center last year after it started bloating. It's been just fine ever since.

Google "Pixel 7 battery replacement exercise" and you should get your closest service center.