It has been three years since I first turned on my Pixel 6, and you know what? It’s still a great phone. The battery still gets me through the day, and the camera still produces stunning photos. It was never a great gaming phone; I would have gone with something more powerful for that. I’m a Google fan and the Pixel 6 is still one of the best Google Pixel phones.
I know it won’t stay snappy forever. It’s already beginning to get long in the tooth, especially when compared to the latest smartphones. But I’m cheap, so I’ll push it as long as possible. Here’s how I’ve done it so far.
1 Battery health for the win
Keeping the battery alive is the most important part of long-term phone use
You may have heard that you should never let your smartphone battery hit zero. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’s an urban myth I stick to. I aim to keep my Pixel 6 battery over 20% at all times. It seems to have worked because I haven’t had to scramble for a charger in the three years I’ve owned it.
Temperature matters, too. Heat can age a battery faster than anything, so I keep my phone out of direct sunlight and never leave it in the car. I live in Ottawa, Canada’s beautiful but cold capital city, so I don’t have to deal with extreme heat most of the time. But were I to live somewhere like Arizona or Texas, I would take great pains to keep my Pixel 6 cool. That also means avoiding wireless charging, which heats things up regardless of where I live. I stick with cables for charging and my battery seems to agree with this decision.
2 Optimized storage
Avoid the bloat and keep the phone snappy
Apps are cool and all, but Google’s Pixel experience is great precisely because it sticks to the necessities. Google’s stock apps take care of most of my mobile needs – email, calendar, notes, and music are all covered. I add a few essentials to my phone, such as Tasker and Uber, and my banking app, but that’s about it. Less clutter means fewer background processes slowing everything down.
Every few months or so I’ll do an “app audit” and delete anything I haven’t touched. This frees up a lot of space and takes the pressure off the phone, which has kept it snappy even in 2024. Another trick I use is the Files by Google app, which can hunt down large downloads and duplicate files. It only takes a few taps to get rid of junk and give my Pixel 6 some more life.
3 Updates are my friend
Performance boosts and security are important for longevity
I love updates. Heck, I even update my Windows 11 desktop PC every time it nags me. Updates have been essential for keeping my Pixel 6 going all these years. Not every update brings mind-blowing changes, but routine security patches and little boosts to performance from the good folks over at Google have kept my Pixel 6 running perfectly for three years now.
I don’t use automatic updates. It’s just a weird quirk of mine. I enjoy reading what each update brings and manually installing each of them on my Pixel 6. This is probably a weird thing only those of us in the tech space do. Of course, automatic updates are probably preferable for most people. Your phone will get what it needs while you sleep comfortably overnight. Thankfully, it doesn’t matter how you get yours, because unlike some phone manufacturers (cough Apple cough), Google’s apps can be updated individually through the Play Store.
4 Practice app safety
Use only Google-verified apps from legit app stores
One of the benefits to being a cheapskate is I generally avoid scams. That has translated to being careful about the apps I put on my Pixel 6. I stick to the Google Play Store and avoid random “free” apps from shady websites. Google Play Protect is a great program that hasn’t led me wrong thus far.
I also don’t grant all the permissions to the apps I install. There’s no reason the official Reddit app needs to access my contacts and track my precise location. Not allowing these kinds of permissions helps maintain battery life and keeps background processes at a minimum, which keeps my Pixel 6 running like new.
5 Physical care is prevention
Treat the phone like the $1000 investment it is
A little physical care goes a long way in keeping this “old” phone running. My Pixel 6 is an investment, after all. I want it not only to work its best but to look great to boot. A screen protector is a must-have. A good case is essential. These two things have saved my phone from drops and scratches too many times to count. I’m a dad with two little kids, and I’m Canadian. That means I spend a lot of time in the great outdoors with rugrats, so I can’t imagine not protecting my phone.
I also practice regular cleaning. A microfiber cloth keeps smudges at bay and removes dust build-up. I’ll sometimes use a toothpick to remove any lint from the charging port and speaker grills. Somehow, this has all worked because my Pixel 6 looks like new and still sounds great, too!
The longest I’ve had a phone
This aging device lasted longer than I ever thought it would
Following just a few basic steps has kept my Pixel 6 running for three years. I’m not exaggerating here. It’s seriously as snappy as the day I got it back in 2021. It may not be as fast as today’s Tensor 3 and Snapdragon 2 Gen 3 processors, but it is still fast enough.
This will be the year I upgrade, however. It’s time for new camera features and a faster processor. I’m patiently waiting for the Pixel 9. In the meantime, my Pixel 6 will keep ticking far into the future.
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