Based on the latest Android Canary and Android 17 Beta releases, Google is working on some kind of Pixel “laptop” that will feature the “Pixel Glow” hardware feature.
About APK Insight: In this APK Insight post, we have decompiled the latest version of the app that Google has uploaded to the Play Store. When we decompile these files (called APKs for Android apps), we can see various lines of code that hint at possible future features. Please note that Google may or may not ship these features, and our interpretation of what they are may be imperfect. We’ll try to launch those closer to completion, but just to show you what they’ll look like if they ship. With that in mind, read on.
Android Canary 2604 and Android 17 Beta 4, as well as previous releases, refer to a feature called “orbit”. In the System Settings app, it’s called “light_animations”.
Pixel Glow
Beta 4 today explicitly names and brands this feature as “Pixel Glow”. This hardware capability “uses subtle light and color on the back of your device to notify you of important activity when you face it down.”
There is a clear emphasis on you being able to “Stay in the moment without losing touch”. Pixel Glow will show these “subtle lights” when your favorite contact calls. A specific implementation detail is how using existing flash notifications will override the new capabilities.
Pixel Glow will also activate when talking or “Connecting with Gemini”. It was introduced as a way for “hands-free interaction using visual feedback”.
- Calls from loved ones: Subtle lights when your favorite contacts call you
- It speaks to Gemini: Hands-free interaction using visual feedback
Google will let you enable/disable these features individually, and we’ve enabled early preview on the Settings page. The page warns, “Use Pixel Glow with caution if you are sensitive to light.”
Its inclusion in Android 17 suggests that Pixel Glow will come with the next Pixel phone. said that The Pixel 11 series shows it shows no cutouts for leaky lights. Some possible locations would be the Camera Bar or even the “G” logo.
The integration of Pixel Glow into the Camera Bar will make the signature element of Pixel hardware even more iconic.
Pixel laptop
According to our research, this feature will be available on both Pixel phones and laptops. The aforementioned settings page explicitly checks if the device type is desktop. Compared to the phone implementation, we don’t have as many details on how Pixel Glow will work on laptops.
However, we’re sure Gemini’s visual feedback will be an option on laptops. This week’s Android releases also feature “ic_laptop_light”:
Google developing a new laptop is not surprising in the context of the Android desktop. In modern times, it will follow the Pixelbook and Pixelbook Go.
Before that, there was the Chromebook Pixel (and Pixel C), which featured a “light bar” you could touch to check battery life.
Dylan contributed to this article
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