ELI5: Why did LED notification lights silently got removed from phone?

Their absence encourages you to check your phone more often, which means you'll unlock it and look at some content more often, which means as revenue for someone.

Higher end Smartphones have anyway always on displays. And the led needs screenspace - which should be maximized. That's why the notch on phones etc. was introduced.

I also love notification LEDs.

I'm pretty sure the main reason for them disappearing is the displays extending all the way to to edge. There isn't any room left where to place it.

Also, on phones with always-on display, you can use the display to show notifications, the led is redundant.

But still, I find them really useful and am sad to see them being phased out.

Sony Xperia user here, I recommend your Next phone should be a Sony. Not only does it still have notification LEDs, it also has an SD card slot and a headphone jack...and a 5500mah battery. Will never go back to Samsung again

I gotta say, sometimes I miss my fully customized LED on my blackberry back in the day. It could be in the bottom of a gym bag and I’d still know if I missed a Google Talk message (green) or a Facebook alert (dark blue) or an email (light blue), etc etc etc.

Off topic a little but I stop most of my messaging app to notify me. And my life is so much more peaceful. I told everyone when they connect with me on any messaging app that it'll take time for me to answer. I'll read it when I remember to read it, which I do like once or twice a day. They adapt to that and if it's really important they'll call.

With OLED, your entire screen is an array of possible LED notifications :)

Packaging design, cost, manufacturing complexity, reliability. LEDs require a breach on the case for the lens. This requires a couple components plus sealing plus testing. Affects IP seal rating.

Every physical breach of the case is a reliability, sealing, dust, water, etc issue. Those are the things they fail on phones, after screens and batteries.

The PCB now has LEDs on the edge thdr need special assembly care like the three buttons do.

Most people put protective cases on phones so edges aren't available.

The top is all screen. The bottom sees the desk/table.

Haptics, screen, vibration do so much the loss of the LEDs is pretty minimal.

Don't be surprised if the power and up/down buttons go away sometime soon.

Headphone jacks are a huge problem as is USB and speakers.

iPhone = Settings / Accessibility / Audio Visual "LED Flash for Alerts" (at the bottom)

My guess it is cheaper to do software features rather than a physical led .. cutting costs at every corner

I didn't know I miss those LED notifications until now. Thanks :(

I get so many trash notifications it would just be on all the time and I'd turn it off.

The whole front of modern phone is a display, there's simply no space for a notification LED.

When you have questions like this, the answer is almost always money.

For this particular question, it is money - the cost of the LEDs (which is of course minimal, but multiplied by millions of phones), but also manufacturing (need to have a hole in the case to let the LED shine though which can let water ingress into phone). To make those holes water tight would add more cost so instead they decided to use the screen itself as the notification method. I think Motorola's implementation of this was the best - they had their always on display to show notifications and a single tap would let you see what the message was even if the phone was locked.

I forgot all about notification LEDs when I got a smartwatch

Modern smartphones hardly have any edges and therefore hardly any space for an LED at the notch. In addition, the pixels of AMOLED displays can be controlled individually, which allows displaying notifications well and consumes little power at the same time.

I'm guessing that with everything they cram into those things nowadays, every last nook and cranny is valuable space to be used.
A little blinken light is probably not high on the list of features competing for that space.

I'm pretty sure it's just to cut costs / complexity / part counts in lower end phones, and higher end phones will use an always on display.

Though worth noting that the Nothing Phone 1 & 2 include pretty snazzy LEDs on the back that are used for notifications amongst other things.

On Samsung phones your whole screen flashes in a custom color and and animation, and after that you have your always on display. So they are no longer needed with OLED screens that can display it themselves

The nothing phone has led glyph indicators on the back.

Just bought Galaxy XCover 6pro. Lost many features I had in my previous phone. Kept removable battery and headphone jack. Gained notification led.

Can't say I really missed it tho. I'd trade it for an optical image stabilizer.

what the hell are you talking about

My phone still has the LED but I turned off the feature long ago including the battery low and charge indicators. More annoying than useful.

i am still mad they got rid of it on xiaomi note 10 pro.... i mean yhea you can activate a thing for show notification on the screen but slurp slurp the batery. (and future burn in)