gestures
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Zoom's desktop apps now respond to raised hands and thumbs-up gestures
You can now send a reaction in Zoom on PCs just by raising your hand or giving a thumbs-up.
Android 10 phones may have to hide third-party navigation gestures
Are you fond of the custom navigation gestures on your Android phone? You might have to go digging for them in the future. The 9to5Google team says it has obtained the latest Google Mobile Services agreement for device makers, and the terms reportedly require that phones ship using either Android 10's new gestures or the old three-button layout. Third-party gestures can stay, but they have to be hidden at least one level below in the Settings app. Vendors not only can't enable their own gestures by default, they can't even be advertised in the setup process or by a notification.
The Galaxy Note 10 S Pen is also a wand that controls your phone
Today, Samsung confirmed a poorly kept secret. The Galaxy Note 10 S Pen will offer gesture controls, or "Air Actions." This goes one step further than the Note 9 S Pen, which acts as a remote control. Now, you'll be able to control the Note 10 (and Note 10+) with a wave of the stylus. The S Pen will allow you to activate shortcuts and perform specific actions by drawing shapes above the screen. As you can with the Galaxy Tab S6, you'll be able to swish-and-flick to switch between front- and rear-facing cameras and toggle through camera modes.
Google's Pixel 4 could track hand gestures
Project Soli is one of Google's many hardware experiments, one in which a tiny radar is used to track hand gestures. The rumor mill is churning, suggesting that Soli may find itself a home inside the search giant's next phone.
With Android Q, Google is pushing for more elegant, standardized gestures
At last year's developer conference, Google gave us our first taste of Android Pie's gesture-based navigation system. It was, uh, pretty rough: the classic, three-button navigation scheme was replaced with a back button, a "pill" and a handful of swipe gestures that, to me at least, never felt particularly elegant or natural. Thankfully, Allen Huang, Google's product manager for Android's system interface, explained it was always meant to be a transitional step and never meant for it to last "in its current form" for more than a year.
iOS 13 may include system-wide dark mode and undo gesture
With Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference less than two months away, more details about what iOS 13 might have in store are emerging. It could add a system-wide dark mode, deeper multitasking options, an undo gesture and updates for the likes of Safari and Mail, according to 9to5 Mac.
Google's Pixel phones get lift-to-wake and double-tap features
Google's well-reviewed Pixel and Pixel XL are the Android phones to have right now, but they're still missing some much-liked features from the Nexus 6P and 5X. Namely, the models lack the "Moves" that let you double-tap or merely lift the phone to wake it up. However, some Canadians are reporting that those functions are available in the latest OTA update, so folks in other regions should see them soon, too.
Android Wear's latest preview opens gestures to other apps
Are you the sort to treat your wrist as a test bed for Google software? If so, today's a grand day. Google has released its second developer preview of Android Wear 2.0, and it packs more than just some extra spit and polish. It now supports wrist gestures in third-party apps, to start. While you'll need apps to take advantage of this, it raises hope that your favorite fitness or messaging tool won't require a free hand (or your voice) for navigation.
Android Wear update adds new gestures and voice-to-text
Since Android Wear's debut, Google has regularly added new features for the wearable software. Today, those gadgets are getting three more tools -- the stuff we first heard about back in November. First, Android Wear is adding new gestures for navigation through what's on your smartwatch. You can push, lift or shake your wrist to peruse cards, pull up a list of apps or return to the home screen. If you're not exactly sure how the movements work, you can get a tutorial on your Android Wear device from the Settings menu.
Adobe's 'core' design apps are now all touch-friendly on Windows
When the Surface Pro 3 was announced last spring, Adobe revealed that it was working on touch-friendly versions of its design apps for Windows. At today's Max event, the company announced that its collection "core" apps are ready to accept your swipes and taps on compatible devices, like Microsoft's slate, with new Touch Workspaces. Photoshop and Illustrator already had some touch-based features, but now there's an expanded software lineup that'll let you get hands-on with your work across audio, video, motion graphics and graphic design projects. This means that Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, After Effects and Audition all accept input with your fingers, in addition the regular ol' keyboard, trackpad or stylus. And Photoshop's finger-friendly tools have been revamped to improve performance. Adobe's timing couldn't be better either, as Microsoft is poised to announce some new devices in a matter of hours.
A survey of Apple's input innovations
With Force Touch rumored to arrive on the new iPhones next week, let's take a look back at some of Apple's other notable input methods. Cupertino has always offered a unique spin on the norm, whether it's a mouse with no buttons, multi-touch gestures or a trackpad for your desktop. The pressure-sensitive Force Touch tech that debuted earlier this year on the Apple Watch and new MacBook is just the latest in a line of input innovations from Apple, a collection that's sure to grow in the months to come. [Lead image credit: Janitors/Flickr]
Your Android Wear devices will work even when your phone's at home
There's a new kid on the smartwatch block, which means that Google needs to make sure that its own gear is ready for the challenge. That's why the company is pushing out new features to its Android Wear devices in the coming weeks. The biggest addition is probably WiFi support that'll let you connect to your smartphone even if it isn't in your pocket. Should you, for instance, head out to the coffee shop and leave your phone at home, then you'll still receive notifications as long as both are connected to the internet.
Control your Mac by pointing your finger with ControlAir
If you're sitting at your Mac right now, there's a fairly high chance that you'll be listening to music. Normally, if you want to skip between tracks, you'd use the keyboard shortcuts that line the top of your Apple keyboard. But what if you could could control music and movies without touching your Mac? That's what ControlAir does, and let me tell you, it's pretty impressive.
Fujitsu's ring lets you write in the air with your fingertip
Head-mounted displays are frequently supposed to keep your hands free, but they only sometimes live up to that promise. You can't really dictate a message in a noisy warehouse, can you? If Fujitsu gets its way, you won't have to. It just built a smart ring that not only allows for motion control (something we've seen before), but in-air handwriting. All you do is trace letters with your fingertip, and the motion sensor translates those scribbles into usable characters -- supremely helpful if you need to send a quick reply when you don't have access to a keyboard. There's an NFC tag reader in the ring, too, so you can get instructions for working on a device just by tapping it.
Microsoft app lets you take calls on your Lumia just by picking it up
We love the idea of orientation gestures (used by Samsung, HTC and Moto phones and apps like Tasker), but they aren't natively supported on iOS, Android or Windows Phone yet. Microsoft seems ready to buck that trend with the launch of a Gestures Beta app for WP8 Lumia phones. As shown below, it'll let you answer a call by raising the phone to your ear, listen on speakerphone by setting it on a table and mute the mic with a face-down flip. Microsoft planned to launch a similar feature for WP8.1 called "3D Touch" with other features like a grip sensor, possibly alongside the now-defunct McLaren phone. There's no sign that'll come anytime soon, but at least there's now an app -- just bear in mind that it's still in beta, and functionality is "limited" for the Lumia 530, 630 and 635.
Microsoft will borrow Mac-like trackpad gestures for Windows 10
Those of us who try to bring the handy two- and three-finger trackpad gestures from a MacBook over to a PC laptop are usually treated to digitus interruptus. But during TechEd, Microsoft's Joe Belfiore said that Windows 10 will have new three finger gestures (not to be confused with salutes) for PC trackpads. Swiping up and down will bring up the "Task View" to minimize and restore active windows, while left and right gestures will switch between apps. Sound vaguely familiar? On a MacBook, three-fingered left and right swipes let you change virtual desktops and apps, while up and down gestures reveal OSX's Mission Control -- a decidedly similar feature to Task View.
OnTheGo Platforms is bringing gesture recognition to Google Glass apps (video)
Google Glass can hold its own when it comes to voice recognition and touch, but its current software doesn't account for gesture controls. OnTheGo Platforms, however, is looking to fix that. The folks at the Portland, Ore.-based company are baking up an SDK for developers to integrate gesture recognition in apps made for Glass and other Android-based smart glasses, such as the Vuzix M100. We went hands-on with a demo photo-snapping and gallery app to put the software through its paces. In its current form, the solution recognizes swipes from the left and right, a closed fist and an open hand. A fist aimed at Glass' camera will fire off a countdown for a snapshot or take you to the app's home, depending on the current screen. Waving a hand in either direction cycles through pictures in the gallery. This editor was tempted to swipe his hand across the camera's view quickly, but the software is tuned to pick up slower, more deliberate motions about a foot or so away. The detection was often hit or miss, but the developers say they're in the process of refining the recognition and that they've recently eliminated many false positives.
Opera's iPad browser loses navigation buttons, gains lockscreen music controls
Since its launch in September, Opera's iPad-centric browser Coast has struggled to remain as visible as some of its more popular mobile apps. In an attempt to breathe some life into the app, the company today dropped a new update that introduces a number of new customization, navigation and media features that set it apart from Apple and Google's browser offerings. In version 2.0, Opera has ditched the familiar forward and back buttons in favor of the gestures it supported at launch, so expect your swiping finger to get more of a workout. The app now lets you set wallpapers using images from your Photo Roll and gives you the option to select which apps to open PDF files in, whether it be iBooks, Dropbox or another PDF-compatible app. Coast now also features its own media player, which is capable of handling music playback from the iPad lockscreen. The new update is said to make browsing speedier and more secure than before -- very helpful if you need to make a quick escape from some of the nastier corners of the internet.
Google applies for patent on gesture-based car controls
So far, in-car gestures aren't useful for much more than raging at the driver that just cut you off. Google wants these gestures to be more productive, however, and has applied for a patent that uses hand motion to control the car itself. Its proposed system relies on both a ceiling-mounted depth camera and a laser scanner to trigger actions based on an occupant's hand positions and movements. Swipe near the window and you'll roll it down; point to the radio and you'll turn the volume up. While there's no guarantee that we'll see the technology in a car, the USPTO is publishing the patent filing just a day after Google has acquired a motion control company. If nothing else, the concept of a Google-powered, gesture-controlled car isn't as far fetched as it used to be.
Daily Update for September 3, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
