This feature joins the new ability to restore data from an old phone at any time.

One of the most annoying things about getting a new Android phone has traditionally been transferring data from an old device. This can take a long time, but it turns out the Pixel 9 phones speed things up with a nifty approach.

Analyst Max Weinbach noted on X that you can simultaneously use Wi-Fi and a cable when transferring data from an old phone to the Pixel 9 series. He also observed that you can plug in the cable "at any point" and the phones will take advantage of the wired connection.

This is good news as it should deliver a significant speed boost on paper for data migration. This is also an improvement over the previous method of using a wired connection, which required you to first tap the image on the "copy apps and data" screen five times.

It's not the first time we've heard Google was working on simultaneous wired/wireless data migration, either. We first discovered evidence of this feature via an APK teardown in May, so this has clearly been in the works for a while.

This isn't the only data migration improvement available on the Pixel 9 series. You can now choose to restore data from your old phone to the Pixel 9 series at any time. By contrast, previous Pixels only let you restore data during the initial setup process.