Don’t forget to turn your Pixel 10 Pro’s flashlight off — it might damage the phone

• Some Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL owners claim their flashlight has caused damage to their phones
• This appears to happen when the flashlight is left on for too long
• So far, there are only a few reports

You probably assumed that your Google Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL’s flashlight was a harmless feature — a secondary use for the LED camera flash that allows you to light up dark rooms. But it seems leaving it on too long could cause real problems.

According to various Reddit threads spotted by Android Police, some users are finding that the flashlight module on their phone has burned or melted after extended use, with other users saying that marks have been left on the module, or simply that it has gotten worryingly hot.

You can see one of the more dramatic examples of this in the image below, shared by Reddit user Public-Sun-6034.

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This is a concerning issue, since it affects not just the flashlight function but the camera’s flash, as it’s the same module.

A rare occurrence

However, it’s unclear how widespread this problem actually is. So far, only a fairly small number of users seem to be reporting issues, and as Android Police points out, some of these reports may be incorrect, as the LED emitter in the module makes a small dot visible on the glass, which some users may mistake for damage.

Still, based on the image shared above, it seems at least a few users are experiencing genuine issues, so our advice would be not to leave the flashlight on for more than a few minutes, just to be on the safe side.

And while it’s so far only Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL owners that are reporting this issue, we’d suggest applying the same advice to other Pixel models — and perhaps other handset brands too.

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James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. 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.