Pixel 11 Pro leak details RGB LED array replacing IR thermometer

With May now upon us, we are in peak Google season: I/O is only a couple weeks away, and then we’ve got just a few more months to go before the new Pixel 11 phones will be here. Thanks to some early CAD renders, we already started putting together our expectations for what changes might impact the new hardware, and now a new source is shining the spotlight on what could be some of the biggest ones we can expect from this year’s models.

As part of a massive Pixel 11 leak, the Mystic Leaks Telegram channel shares that Google is abandoning its infrared thermometer this year. And while we won’t have that sensor on the back of the Pixel 11 Pro, Pro XL, nor Pro Fold, Google’s not leaving this space blank — instead, the camera bar will now house a Nothing Glyph-like RGB LED array.

Both of those are ideas we’ve heard before, but are presented here with more detail and clarity than was previously available. The loss of the thermometer was something we really started anticipating after the publication of those CAD-based renders, with models like Pixel 11 Pro and Pro XL not showing any obvious signs of a thermometer.

Google introduced the thermometer with the Pixel 8 Pro, and it’s managed to stick around these past few generations. While we did find some interesting use cases for it, this probably went tragically underutilized, and we doubt anyone will be too surprised to see it go.

The much more interesting angle is that RGB LED array. We’ve been following evidence of “Pixel Glow” for months now, a new system for “light animations” that Google’s been preparing. The image you see up top isn’t an official rendering, and the source admits it’s AI-generated, but also claims that it “resembles the actual look of the Pixel 11 Pro’s back cover.”

While that does look pretty cool, our excitement for the LED array has already been impacted by a little by possible limitations on what we’re able to do with it. Some evidence, at least, has pointed to it being primarily used by Gemini, and it’s really not yet clear just how flexible it may end up being. Compared to the Nothing Glyph display, this source notes that Google’s version would be smaller.

Even if that’s the case, it’s still no doubt going to attract a lot of attention — and we can’t wait to see it in action for ourselves. While the smallest Pixel 11 could miss out on the array, based on this information it sounds like it should be coming to the Pixel 11 Pro, Pro XL, and Pro Fold models.