Google Pixel 9 could get better reception and battery life — all thanks to this hardware upgrade

Long-time users of Google’s Pixel phones may know that the phones have their fair share of problems. The modem in particular is also something people tend to complain about thanks to poor efficiency and performance. And the last thing you need is a modem that saps your limited battery life and makes your calls sound terrible in the process.

The good news is that the Pixel 9 series has taken one step to try and solve this problem, swapping out the Exynos Modem 5300 for the newer 5400 model. As spotted by Android Authority , the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro XL and Pixel 9 Pro Fold all have the new modem. Presumably the Pixel 9 Pro will as well, but the site wasn’t able to personally verify that particular spec.

The biggest upgrade in the 5400 modem is that it adds Release 17 connectivity to the Pixel 9, which will power the new satellite connectivity features. However, as Android Authority notes, Samsung has also confirmed that this model is a lot more efficient than older Exynos modems.

Considering battery life has consistently been one of the Pixel-series’ biggest failings, anything that will keep the phone running for longer can only be a good thing. While the modem wasn’t the only culprit in the past, it has received a lot of the blame.

The 5400 also promises to have faster download speeds — up to 14.79 Gbps compared to 10Gbps, and faster speeds that take advantage of the FR1 frequency band. In other words, the Pixel 9 series should end up being faster, more efficient and offer improved connectivity compared to older Pixel phones.

Of course, we won’t know for sure until the Pixel 9 is actually available. There’s every chance that the new modem doesn’t actually make as much of an impact as Samsung might have us believe, after all. But once we do some thorough testing of the phone in our labs and the real world, we should be able to see just how much of a difference the new modem makes.

Until then, be sure to check out our early impressions of the entire Pixel 9 series with our Pixel 9 hands-on review , Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL hands-on review review and our Pixel 9 Pro Fold hands-on review.

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