So… They made their device useless and instead of fixing it
Have the battery replaced for free
how is this not fixing it?
Users with a phone sporting the Amperex battery probably won’t see any difference after installing the update. But phones with the Lishen battery have the following changes applied:
Looks to be a manufacturing fault with the Lishen batteries
at a walk-in center
or […] a mail-in repair program (US-only).
I couldn’t find a walk in center in Germany, but I’ll just assume that there isn’t one in my village, just because the biggest thing we have is a small café near an old water mill, so I’m sure people would have discussed a Google walk in repair center if there was one. Which would leave me with, let me check, ah, no options to get that repaired according to that list.
Disabling half a battery remotely and then telling any non-US-citizen to either drive a few hundred kilometres or suck it isn’t really “fixing it”.
How do I obtain a battery replacement?
If you choose to request one free battery replacement, eligible Pixel 4a devices can be taken to walk-in repair centers in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Singapore and India. Visit our registration page and after selecting the Repair option, you can find a service location near you.
how is this not fixing it?
Looks to be a manufacturing fault with the Lishen batteries
I couldn’t find a walk in center in Germany, but I’ll just assume that there isn’t one in my village, just because the biggest thing we have is a small café near an old water mill, so I’m sure people would have discussed a Google walk in repair center if there was one. Which would leave me with, let me check, ah, no options to get that repaired according to that list.
Disabling half a battery remotely and then telling any non-US-citizen to either drive a few hundred kilometres or suck it isn’t really “fixing it”.
How do I obtain a battery replacement? If you choose to request one free battery replacement, eligible Pixel 4a devices can be taken to walk-in repair centers in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Singapore and India. Visit our registration page and after selecting the Repair option, you can find a service location near you.
https://support.google.com/pixelphone?p=pixel4a_battery_help&sjid=1353298532614703439-NC
That should tell you where your nearest repair centre is
drive a few hundred kilometres or:
Request a $100 Google Store credit that you can put toward the purchase of another Pixel phone or other hardware.
or
Request a $50 cash payment.
Maybe just take the $50 cash payment and get a local mobile phone shop to replace the battery?
I duno because to me:
The support period is so short, this is why I ended up going to Apple
Were phones with Lishen batteries only sold in those countries? If not then I guess I’ll just fly to Germany for a free battery replacement.
Depends, let me know if your battery life is suddenly cut in half ;)
I don’t have a pixel but if I did the only viable option is the cash payout. Apparently Google Store isn’t available in my country either :)