It wasn’t too long ago that practically every Android phone had a dedicated, multicolor notification LED. Usually placed above the display, the glowing light was surprisingly useful for notifying you of messages, alerts, charging levels, and other things you needed to be aware of. As a self-proclaimed fan of notification LEDs, I loved being able to glance at my phone from a distance and tell if I needed to take action. Always-on displays on phones can replicate some of that functionality, but they’re nowhere near as discreet as a simple light.
No wonder then that Android fans have been clamoring for the return of the notification LED. As we’ve seen time and time again, design innovation tends to be cyclical. And with the Pixel 11 Pro series, Google has listened.
