Samsung Phone Flashing Dots Explained: What They Are and Why They Appear

If a Samsung phone occasionally shows a small flashing dot – or several – on the display, the proximity sensor is almost certainly the cause. These dots typically appear near the top center of the screen and become most visible during phone calls, when the under-display sensor is actively working. It’s worth distinguishing these from the green dot that appears in the top corner of the screen, which is Android’s privacy indicator signaling that an app is using the camera or microphone. These are two different things entirely.

Not every Samsung device shows this behavior, and the history of it stretches back to specific model generations. The Samsung Galaxy S10 series was the first to move the proximity sensor under the display, and the phenomenon has appeared across several subsequent lineups. On the Galaxy S20 and S21 series, users noticed two flashing dots. Some Galaxy S21 FE owners reported seeing two static dots rather than flashing ones. By the time the Galaxy S23 arrived, reports described four dots instead. Galaxy S25 FE owners have also flagged the issue, this time with three green dots visible on the screen.

Samsung’s official position is that these flashing dots are not a defect. They’re described as part of the proximity sensor’s normal operation – which is another way of saying there’s no fix coming, because as far as Samsung is concerned, nothing is broken.

Why do the flashing dots appear?

The under-display proximity sensor works by emitting infrared rays through the screen. A light-receiving component in the sensor detects the reflected rays bouncing back, which allows it to calculate how close an object is to the display. When something – like a face during a call – gets close enough, the sensor triggers the display to turn off, preventing accidental touchscreen inputs like mistouches or unintended taps.

Proximity sensors used to live in the slim gap between the screen and the bezel, but the push toward Samsung’s bezel-free Infinity Displays eliminated that space entirely. The sensor had to move somewhere, and under the display was the answer.

Because the infrared emitter sits behind the screen, the display itself has to allow those rays to pass through. Under certain conditions – a dark room, low screen brightness, during an active call in the Phone app, or when the screen is viewed from a particular angle – that infrared activity becomes faintly visible as small flashing dots or points of light. It looks odd, but it’s a normal side effect of the sensor doing exactly what it’s supposed to do.

Can anything be done about it?

For a problem to get a solution, it first has to be recognized as a problem. Samsung’s own documentation classifies the flashing dots as expected behavior, not a defect, which makes an official fix essentially off the table.

That said, not all Samsung phones are affected. Several flagship models – including the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy S25 Ultra, and Galaxy S26 Ultra – are not confirmed to display these dots. There have been some reports of the issue appearing on foldables like the Galaxy Z Fold 4, and on certain units the proximity sensor is faintly visible through the display, particularly after a screen replacement. Some Galaxy S24 Ultra units have also been reported as showing the dots, though this wasn’t observed on every device tested.

For Samsung owners dealing with this, the honest answer is that a fix isn’t coming. Samsung views it as normal hardware behavior, and short of switching to a different device, there’s little to be done about it.