Google is testing double-tap gesture on back of Pixel phones

The double-tap gesture allows you to launch the camera, Google Assistant and more

Google may soon introduce double-tap gestures on the back of its Pixel phones.

At present, Google offers fingerprint gestures on its older Pixel phones and Motion Sense gestures on the Pixel 4 series. The company is now testing another gesture-related feature.

XDA-Developers has discovered a new gesture system code-named “Columbus” in the Android 11 developer preview for Pixel phones which allows users double-tap on the back of a Pixel phone to launch various features.



The double-tap gesture allows you to dismiss timers, snooze alarms, launch the camera/Google Assistant, play or pause media, collapse the status bar, silence incoming calls, unpin notifications, and start a “user-selected action,” according to the outlet.

Google is working on preventing accidental activation of the feature. Moreover, XDA-Developers also discovered a reference to gesture training associated with the Settings app, indicating there may be a setup process for the feature.



The good news is that the double-tap gesture is confirmed to work on older Pixels in addition to the Pixel 4 series.

This article originally appeared on AndroidAuthority.