Google Pixel Phones May Soon Adapt Touch Sensitivity Based on Environment: Report

Google's latest Android 14 QPR3 Beta 1 release reportedly includes a reference to an adaptive touch feature.

Written by Nithya P Nair, Edited by Manas Mitul | Updated: 9 February 2024 17:44 IST

Google Pixel Phones May Soon Adapt Touch Sensitivity Based on Environment: Report

Photo Credit: Google

Google Pixel 8 series was launched in October last year

Highlights

Google Pixel phones might get an adaptive touch sensitivity feature
Pixel might adapt screen touch sensitivity based on usage conditions
The rumoured feature is expected to improve the user experience

Google's last year's Pixel 8 series offers an exclusive screen protector detector feature. This advanced feature detects when a screen protector is put on or taken off from the Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Pro handset and notifies users to enable or disable screen protector mode accordingly. Now, the search giant is reportedly gearing up to introduce a new adaptive touch feature to Pixel handsets. This facility is expected to automatically adjust screen touch sensitivity based on the environmental conditions and activities of users. Reference about the feature was allegedly spotted on Android 14 QPR3 Beta 1.

As per a report by Android Police, evidence of the adaptive touch feature was found in the code strings of the latest Android 14 QPR3 Beta 1 release. According to the strings, the adaptive touch feature will reportedly adjust the touch sensitivity of the handset automatically based on the user's environment, activities, and screen protector.

The strings don't include references to the environmental factors or activities that would trigger a change in touch sensitivity. However, the report speculates that Pixel might adapt screen touch sensitivity automatically based on environmental conditions like rain or cold and activities like swimming. The mention of screen protector could be a reference to the screen protector detection feature which is already available on Pixel 8 devices.

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Further, the report states that once the new feature goes live on Pixels, the Adaptive Touch toggle will be placed in the Settings app under Display > Touch Sensitivity. The feature is expected to improve the user experience.

As mentioned, Google is already offering the screen protector detector feature exclusively for the Pixel 8 series. This functionality detects when the user adds or removes a screen protector from the handset. Upon attaching a screen protector, it will send a notification prompting the user to enable the screen protector mode to increase the touch sensitivity.

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Google I/O 2023 saw the search giant repeatedly tell us that it cares about AI, alongside the launch of its first foldable phone and Pixel-branded tablet. This year, the company is going to supercharge its apps, services, and Android operating system with AI technology. We discuss this and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Google Pixel 8

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Smaller form factor makes it more comfortable to hold
Excellent and bright display
Cameras are still the best
Packed with AI features

Bad
Battery life is still not the best
Expensive
Tends to heat up under heavy load

Read detailed Google Pixel 8 review

Display 6.20-inch

Processor Google Tensor G3

Front Camera 11-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 4575mAh

OS Android 14

Resolution 1080x2400 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

Google Pixel 8 Pro

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Premium design, IP68 rating
Fun AI-infused software experience
Good quality cameras
Quality video recording
Impressive image editing software
Long-term commitment to software updates

Bad
Gets warm under load
Buggy camera app
Not made for gaming
Average battery life
Relatively slow wired charging

Read detailed Google Pixel 8 Pro review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Google Tensor G3

Front Camera 11-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 64-megapixel + 48-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5050mAh

OS Android 14

Resolution 1344x2992 pixels

More Google mobiles Google mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Pixel 8, Google, Pixel 8 Pro, Google Pixel Series, Android, Touch sensitivity

Nithya P Nair

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Nithya P Nair is a journalist with more than five years of experience in digital journalism. She specialises in business and technology beats. A foodie at heart, Nithya loves exploring new places (read cuisines) and sneaking in Malayalam movie dialogues to spice up conversations. More