Several Google Pixel 6a Phones Are Catching Fire: Indian Users Recommended To Do This Immediately
Multiple incidents of the Google Pixel 6a spontaneously catching fire have surfaced on Reddit, raising safety concerns among users. At least three separate users have posted detailed accounts of their devices combusting without warning.
One Reddit user shared, “My Pixel 6a just caught fire in the middle of the night. It was charging on my nightstand. Thankfully, I'm a pretty light sleeper and woke up when I heard the battery begin to shoot out hot gas. About 2 seconds later, there was a fireball on my nightstand. I banged up my knee jumping out of bed. Luckily, I was able to smother the fire, then throw the still-smoking phone into the toilet before the fire spread. My wife and I are pretty shook up about it.” The post, shared under the handle u/thirdeyemindscape, included images of a scorched device and damage to surrounding objects.
Another user, u/zombiesky, reported a similar incident: “I got woken up with a horrible smell and a loud noise. Fire had already started and i managed to throw the phone on the tile floor pulling it by the cord. The phone was sitting less than 40 cms away from my head on my nightstand. Sheets caught on fire. My air conditioner (a floor unit) had damages on its surface from the fire. My throat hurt the whole day from the fumes i inhaled (My room door was closed because of the ac being on so i basically breathed the smoke for a longer time than i would want trying to stop a fire from spreading).”
These reports have sparked concern among the Pixel community, particularly because of the consistent model and nature of the incidents. Furthermore, these happened even after Google nerfed the battery performance with its latest update to prevent the phone from overheating.
Earlier this month, Google acknowledged that there were some issues with the Google Pixel 6a, specifically with the battery, and it issued an urgent software update to throttle the battery performance and charging capacity. This prevented, Google claims, the phone from overheating and eliminating potential safety hazards.
It is unclear whether the affected users had updated their software or not, and whether the fires occured even after the throttling of battery. Google mentions that the update is a forced update, so the phones may have likely been nerfed already.
What should Indian Pixel 6a users do?
For those unaware, Google is offering free battery replacements for users in affected regions, including India. This means Pixel 6a users in India are also at risk of a potential fire in their devices. The company has listed eligible countries as India, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and Singapore. Users experiencing similar issues are encouraged to visit their local service center or contact Google support to initiate the battery replacement process.
Certain immediate measures inlcude updating the Pixel 6a to the latest software version, if not aready. Head to Settings > Software Update to check for the latest update. In India, Google recently also introduced same-day repair service and added more offline support centres as well.
You can visit the Google registration page to find a Pixel 6a battery replacement option near you.
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