The Pixel 11 Pro’s Hi Light LED is bafflingly limited out of the box, but a new app removes its shackles | Tech Radar
Overview
News, deals, reviews, guides and more on the newest computing gadgets
Start exploring exclusive deals, expert advice and more
Details
Unlock and manage exclusive Techradar member rewards.
Unlock instant access to exclusive member features.
Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.
The Pixel 11 Pro’s Hi Light LED is bafflingly limited out of the box, but a new app removes its shackles
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
Hi Light on the Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold (Image credit: Future)
The Pixel 11 Pro's Hi Light feature can't do much out of the box, but a new app changes that
Called Hi Light Studio, this lets you use Hi Light with any app and customize the colors and patterns
However, setting it up requires jumping through far more hoops than a typical app
Hi Light seems like it should be the big new addition for the Google Pixel 11 Pro series. This LED on the back of the phone can light up in a selection of colors, alerting you to calls from favorite contacts and letting you know when Gemini is active, but out of the box, that’s all it can do.
It can’t interact with any other app, and even for Gemini and favorite contacts, it’s limited in its customization, leading our Google Pixel 11 Pro Fold review to describe Hi Light as “not a must-have,” while some other publications went even further, with Android Authority calling it “pointless,” and GSMArena describing it as “borderline useless.”
Clearly, then, Hi Light isn’t the headline addition it could and perhaps should have been — but an app developer has taken it into their own hands to change that.
X user @Dhananjay_Tech has created an app called Hi Light Studio that lets you activate the Hi Light LED for notifications from any app, or when launching an app. You can also customize the color or pattern of the LED, and the app is free of both charges and adverts.
Google put a colour LED on the Pixel 11 Pro and limited it to calls and texts. So I made an app, so you can use it with anything 😎Any app, any colour, any effect you want. Whats App green, Slack red, Gmail whatever you like 🚀No ads. No root. Free. Completely open source 🙌… pic.twitter.com/YGx Pf 9o QKv August 20, 2026
Google put a colour LED on the Pixel 11 Pro and limited it to calls and texts. So I made an app, so you can use it with anything 😎Any app, any colour, any effect you want. Whats App green, Slack red, Gmail whatever you like 🚀No ads. No root. Free. Completely open source 🙌… pic.twitter.com/YGx Pf 9o QKv August 20, 2026
That said, there are some potential issues here. For one thing, it was reportedly vibe coded using AI, which doesn’t fully inspire confidence, and it’s also not available as a download from Google Play. Instead, you need to download the app from Git Hub, install the Shizuku app, and then activate Hi Light Studio through that, by finding the downloaded Git Hub file on Shizuku and selecting Setup > Request access.
I tried the new Pixel 11 range, and Google's made improvements all over, with a surprising 'Hi Light'
7 things we learned from the Google Pixel 11 launch
7 biggest Google Pixel 11 rumors rated by likelihood
This isn’t a huge deal, but it’s a lot more hassle than a typical app, and the app also needs restarting manually each time you reboot your phone.
These requirements have led to mixed reactions on Reddit, with one user saying “this is so much better” than the standard Hi Light functionality, while another argued “requires Shizuku... so complete non-starter,” and other comments taking a similar mix of perspectives.
The hope, regardless, is that Google might soon embrace Hi Light’s full potential through an update, so you don’t have to turn to third-party apps. But for now, this at least is a way to get more out of what could have been a really cool feature.
Follow Tech Radar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow Tech Radar on Tik Tok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on Whats App too.
James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at Tech Radar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
The Pixel 11 Pro’s Hi Light LED is bafflingly limited out of the box, but a new app removes its shackles
Logitech sued for keeping US tariff refunds instead of returning them to customers
I tested this game-changing, sub-$100 Godox flash kit — and it’s the best portrait photography upgrade I’ve tried all year
Slack will now let you code as a team to get those tricky tasks done
How to watch Dutch Grand Prix 2026: Live stream F1 race from anywhere
Tech Radar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.
© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.
Key Takeaways
- News, deals, reviews, guides and more on the newest computing gadgets
- Start exploring exclusive deals, expert advice and more
- Unlock and manage exclusive Techradar member rewards
- Unlock instant access to exclusive member features
- Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards
