- Google could revive Android 11's double-tap functionality for Pixel phones.
- Code-named Columbus, the gesture could be directed to Android 12.
When Google released the first developer preview for Android 11, it introduced a double-tap feature for Pixel phones. Essentially, you can double-tap the back of your Pixel to perform actions like starting the camera, snoozing alarms, controlling media playback, and more. Unfortunately, the gesture never made it to the stable Android 11 version. Now it looks like Google is ready to revive it and release an improved version.
According to data from 9to5Google, Google is working to include the double-click gesture, code-named Columbus, in Android 12. The publication reports that you can use it to do the following:
- Activate the Google Assistant
- Take a screenshot
- Control media playback
- Open the notification shadow
- Open the recently used apps view
It looks like Columbus is a handy feature for Pixel users, and it would be great if Google could make it programmable for more actions. The good news is that the feature is said to be better than it did on Android 11. Apparently only fixed taps are registered to avoid wrong touches. You should also be able to turn it off entirely if you don't want to tap the back of your phone.
You can expect to find out more about Double-Tap and other Android 12 features soon. Google released the first developer preview for Android 11 in February last year, so we should hear about the new operating system in a few weeks. Until then, you can also check out our article on how to do the double tap gesture on any Android phone.
