Google Pixel 4’s Motion Sense list of countries, supported apps revealed: What about India?

The Motion Sense feature on Google Pixel 4 phones will use Soli’s radar technology to allow users to control the phone by simply waving their hands to carry out actions like silencing phone calls, alarms, control music

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Google Pixel 4 will have a Motion Sense app, but India is mentioned in the list of countries where it will work. However, Indian music apps will support the gestures, which causes some confusion.

Google’s Pixel 4 phones will be revealed on October 15 at an event in New York, and while the camera is expected to get an upgrade with another ultra-wide sensor, another awaited feature is the Motion Sense app for gestures. The Motion Sense gestures will work in conjunction with the radar chip on the front of the phone which is powered by Google’s Project Soli. But the latest leaks indicate that the feature might not work in India, at least when the phones are released.

XDA-Developers took a look at the Motion Sense app and found a list of 53 countries where Google Pixel 4’s Motion Sense can be used as the app’s APK or software file has been leaked online. While the initial list was limited to 38 countries, XDA-Developers found that a server-side update was already available, and there were 13 new additions to the list bring the total to 53, but India is still not on the list.

The Motion Sense feature on Google Pixel 4 phones will use Soli’s radar technology to allow users to control the phone by simply waving their hands to carry out actions like silencing phone calls, alarms, control music, etc. Google itself has already confirmed the Motion Sense feature in a detailed blog earlier.

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While India is missing from the list, a separate list of apps compatible with the Motion Sense feature has also been revealed, and this includes apps from India like Gaana Music, Hungama Music, JioSaavn and Wynk Music. The original list of countries was discovered hardcoded in the APK file for the Motion Sense apps by 9to5Google.

XDA-Developers mentioned that the list of supported media apps was found in a class called “SkipMediaTrack” in the app’s APK file. The fact that Indian apps are mentioned, but India is not in the list of countries where the Motion Sense feature will work does cause some confusion.

It could be that the feature will get activated in India later, because Google might still be getting the regulatory approval for the Soli radar chip, which will be inside the phone. Other apps which are on the list are popular music apps like Amazon Music, Apple Music, TIDAL Music, YouTube Music, Google Play Music, Pandora, Shazam and Spotify to outline a few.

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The Motion Sense app is not the only that has leaked for the Pixel 4. APK file for a Pixel Themes app, which will have Live wallpapers for the phone has also leaked, according to a separate report on 9to5Google. The report said the app is a redesign of the wallpaper picker option on the Pixel phones. It will also let users customise other features like overall colour palette and the app will offer four themes by default when it is launched.

Google Pixel 4 will also be getting a Face Unlock feature, similar to the Apple iPhone. In the Pixel’s case, the Face Unlock will work even if the phone is lying flat on a table and a user picks up the device.