Google’s team loves working on new accessibility features that get added with every new version of Android. This time around for Android 12, Google is planning to let users control their phone using facial expressions.
As per a statement by folks over at XDADevelopers, the Camera Switches feature, which is one of the accessibility services in the Android Accessibility Suite app, will support setting gestures to specific controls. For example, the app can detect when users will open their mouth and then map that to open the notifications panel. Alternatively, users can raise their eyebrows to return to their home screen, XDADevelopers noted.
Possible face gestures include smiling, opening the mouth, and looking out right, left, or down. Corresponding camera actions involve getting to the homepage, scrolling backward and forward, and selecting. Users will also be ready to determine how sensitive the gesture will be while recognizing the countenance by adjusting the gesture size and duration.
The feature would require the device’s camera to be switched on, and Android 12-enabled devices will show a vertical bar indicating the camera is getting used.
However, the feature will use an additional battery, and users are advised to keep their device plugged into an influence source, consistent with a screenshot taken by the tech website.
The new feature is currently in beta mode and is claimed to be handy for users with disabilities, additionally to many features introduced by Google’s Android within the past, including improved voice controls and Google Assistant-powered Action Blocks.