If the new reports are to be believed, then Google is working on to bring the pressure-sensitive actions as standard in the upcoming major Android release — Android Q.
Google previously introduced such feature with Android Oreo but it doesn’t require a pressure-sensitive screen. However, the usage wasn’t as smooth and fluid as the Apple’s 3D Touch which was first introduced in 2015.
While defining Motion events through a dedicated document on the Android Developers portal, Google has showcased the Deep press classification constant. This hints towards the development of an experience that could be similar to the 3D Touch that Apple has implemented on its iPhone models.
At this time, it is not yet known whether the new experience will be available on all the existing devices compatible with Android Q or will it require specific hardware to detect the pressure being applied on the screen.
The description in the documents reads “it should be used to accelerate the long press behavior,” suggesting that it might be replacing the existing long press. It remains to be seen if Android manufacturers will need to add press-sensing hardware to their devices, or will the tech instead use machine learning to calculate the force being applied.
While not much is known about the ‘Deep Press’ at this time, we expect to learn more about this feature next month at Google I/O, which is scheduled to take place from 7th May to 9th May.
