Android 12 to bring double-tap gesture for Pixel phones

Android 11 Developer Preview featured a nifty ‘double-tap’ gesture for Pixel phones. The feature, however, never made it to the final version. Now, Google is reportedly planning to bring the feature codenamed ‘Columbus’ on Pixel phones with Android 12.

According to a 9to5Google report, the double-tap could allow Pixel users to summon Google Assistant. It could also be used for different tasks such as dismissing a timer or snoozing an alarm. The report added that the codename Columbus was inspired by a character from Zombieland and his “double-tap” rule.

The double-tap gesture on Android 12 will allow users to activate Google Assistant. Users can also use the gesture to take a screenshot, pause or resume media playback, open the recent apps view, and open the notification panel.

The report further said that the Columbus gesture was earlier believed to succeed the “Active Edge” squeeze gesture on phones such as Pixel 4A, Pixel 4A 5G, and Pixel 5. As said earlier, the Columbus gesture was not part of the official Android 11 release.

That said, Android 12 is still months away from the official rollout. But we have already started to come across some of the upcoming features. For instance, Google is looking to revamp the split-screen feature with Android 12. The update is expected to be available through the updated “App Pairs.”

App Pairs is said to look identical to the split-screen view with a divider to separate the two apps. The divider will allow more options for you to quickly swap the position of the two apps by tapping on it.

We’re likely to find out more about Android 12’s upcoming features as soon as the first developer preview is rolled out.