There is a new update to Android 7.1 coming to some Pixel users that is awakening a couple of dormant features. The Pixels new ‘moves’ are double tap to check phone (wake) and lift phone to check. We’ve known that double tap to wake was buried within the heart of the Pixel just waiting to be set free, and now it’s joined by lift to wake as well.
The rollout seems to have started in Canada and as yet we can’t see any link for the binaries, OTA files or system images on the Google developers site. If you’re the type of person who just has to have the latest in Pixely goodness we’ll let you know when/if we see them go live.
If you want to see the new features in action check out this video.
From what we’ve seen elsewhere, it seems this is somehow a preview build of Android with the build number NPF26J, the P typically indicates a preview build of Android. It’s unclear just how this was deployed in the wild and if it will be rolling out further. If you get a 261 MB update bringing “Security Update + Bug Fixes”, you just may be getting it.
Let us know if you see this update rolling out to your device.
Flashed the OTA, however already had these options with EX Kernel and Ambi-Turner app. 🙂
How reliable is the official implementation of double tap to wake and lift to wake?
No idea. I disabled them as I use EX Kernel and Ambi-Turner.
This is good news as the current implementation of Ambient Display by itself makes little to no sense at all. Currently using Ambi-Turner to resolve this.
Since the Android 7.1 preview build that was released today is NPF26H, I’d say that this could be some A/B testing for the Pixel phones.
Still not coming for me yet.
Google finally acknowledged their fault and bring the good back.
It may not necessarily have been a fault. It probably just wasn’t working well enough to be available at launch. Better to get things working properly than release a buggy implementation.
Finally Google of catching up with other OEMs. One day Pixels will have all the fancy features, and a smaller chin like the Nexus6 to get everyone aboard.
The chin kind of makes sense if you use Daydream headset.
It also kind of makes sense for something you actually hold.
Far out everyone get over the chin size it’s fine!