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How to Set Up HiLight on Pixel 11 Pro for Face-Down Alerts

Turn on Pixel 11 Pro HiLight, assign favorite-call colors, and use Gemini glow cues when the phone sits face down.

September 25, 2026 Yum News

A face-down Pixel keeps the table quiet. It also hides the screen that would tell you who is calling. HiLight on Pixel 11 Pro, Pixel 11 Pro XL, and Pixel 11 Pro Fold adds a soft glow on the camera bar so you can leave the phone down and still catch the calls that matter.

Google documents two launch uses: incoming calls from favorite contacts, and visual cues while you talk to Gemini. The feature works with Phone by Google and WhatsApp. Message alerts for close contacts are promised later, not shipping as a full launch toggle.

This guide follows the official Pixel Help steps: turn the system switch on, pick colors in Contacts, and keep HiLight working inside Flip to Shhh, Bedtime, and Do Not Disturb.

Smartphone lying face down on a wooden table

What HiLight actually is

HiLight is a small array of ambient LEDs around the camera flash. On Pixel 11 Pro and Pro XL it sits on the camera bar. On Pixel 11 Pro Fold it sits in a corner of the rear camera module.

When the phone is face down, the LEDs can:

Glow in a color you assign when a favorite contact calls
Pulse with a softer pattern while Gemini listens, thinks, or replies

Google designed the colors to stay visible in a room without lighting the whole table. Official Help says the glow still works if modes such as Flip to Shhh, Bedtime, or Do Not Disturb are on, unless you turn people and calls off inside that mode.

HiLight is not on the base Pixel 11. If Settings search returns nothing for HiLight, you are on a model that lacks the hardware.

Check the hardware and apps first

Do this once before hunting menus.

Confirm the model is Pixel 11 Pro, 11 Pro XL, or 11 Pro Fold.
Update Contacts from Play Store. Help requires the latest Contacts build before the color picker appears.
Update Phone by Google if you use it for cellular calls.
Mark the people you care about as favorites in Contacts. HiLight for calls only fires for favorites.
Turn flash notifications off if you want HiLight on incoming calls. Official Help states flash notifications block the HiLight call glow.

Favorites live in Google Contacts. Open a person, tap the star, then keep that same Google Account signed in on Phone and WhatsApp.

Turn HiLight on in Settings

Google’s path is short.

Open Settings.
Tap System, then HiLight.
Turn Use HiLight on.
Enable the two sub-toggles you want: Speaking with Gemini and Calls from favorites.

Leave Gemini off if you only want the call color and find the thinking glow distracting at a dinner table. Leave calls off if you only want a hands-free Gemini cue while the phone sits camera-up on a desk.

When a favorite calls and the phone is face down, the bar glows. A tap on the power button dismisses the glow in Google’s launch demos. The call itself still follows your usual silent, vibrate, or Flip to Shhh rules.

Assign a color to each favorite

The system default color covers every favorite until you override it in Contacts.

Open Contacts.
Open a starred contact.
Under Contact settings, tap HiLight.
Pick a color.
Tap Preview to see the glow on the hardware.
Tap Done.

Launch coverage and Google’s Made by Google demo describe a small set of colors chosen for visibility, including teal, yellow, pink, purple, and white. Contacts strings earlier in 2026 listed a longer palette; use whatever picker your current Contacts build shows, and rely on Preview instead of guessing on a bright table.

A practical map:

One color for family
A second color for a partner or roommate
A third color for a work lead you always pick up

Do not assign a unique color to twenty people. You will not remember the mapping when the phone is face down and the room is dark.

Two people talking while a phone rests on a cafe table

Use HiLight with Gemini

The Gemini path does not need a favorite contact. Enable Speaking with Gemini on the HiLight page, then talk as you already do: “Hey Google,” power-button hold, or the Gemini app Live session.

Help describes a soft visual cue while Gemini thinks and responds. That is useful when the phone sits face up on a counter and you are not watching the screen. It is less useful if you already stare at the Gemini overlay.

If you also use other Gemini features on Android, pair this with habits that already keep the assistant quiet in public. For motion-sickness overlays on Android 17 rides, see How to Use Motion Assist on Android 17. HiLight and Motion Assist solve different problems: one is a rear LED cue, the other is an on-screen passenger overlay.

Keep the glow inside quiet modes

By default, HiLight still glows during Flip to Shhh, Bedtime, and Do Not Disturb. That is the point of the hardware: silent table, visible cue.

To stop the glow in a mode:

Open Settings → Modes.
Select the mode.
Tap People, then Calls.
Choose None. Help notes this also turns off ring and vibrate for calls while the mode is active.
Turn off Allow repeat callers if you do not want a second call from the same person to break through.

Use this only when you truly want zero call signals, such as a stage or a film. For a weeknight dinner, leave the default so a starred contact still lights the camera bar.

What HiLight will not do yet

It will not mark SMS, RCS, or WhatsApp messages at launch. Google said message notifications for close contacts are planned.
It will not glow for unknown numbers or non-favorite contacts.
It will not place the call for you. That is a separate Gemini experiment on Pixel 11, with its own eligibility list.
It will not work if flash notifications are on.
It will not appear on Pixel 11 (non-Pro) or older Pixels.

Treat the LED as a filter, not a second Always-On Display. Unknown spam stays dark. The people you starred get a color.

Troubleshooting

No HiLight menu. You are not on Pro, Pro XL, or Pro Fold, or the system app that owns the page has not updated. Search Settings for “HiLight” after a reboot.

No color picker. Update Contacts, confirm the person is a favorite, then open Contact settings again.

No glow on a call. Confirm Calls from favorites, confirm the caller is starred, turn off flash notifications, and place the phone face down. Test with Phone by Google or WhatsApp, the two apps Help lists.

Glow during Bedtime when you want silence. Edit that mode’s People → Calls setting and set it to None.

Gemini glow never appears. Enable Speaking with Gemini on the HiLight page and start a Live session or a “Hey Google” request with the phone in view of the camera bar.

A short setup you can finish in five minutes

Settings → System → HiLight → Use HiLight on.
Enable Calls from favorites. Add Speaking with Gemini only if you talk to the assistant with the phone on the table.
Star five people in Contacts. Assign colors. Preview each one.
Leave Flip to Shhh as you already use it. Do not set Calls to None unless you want the LED dark too.
Place the phone face down and have one favorite call you from another line.

If the teal or purple bar lights and you know who it is without flipping the phone, the feature is doing the job Google described at Made by Google 2026.