Google quietly resurrects a Pixel gesture we first spotted over a year ago

Google may finally be getting ready to give Pixel users a much better way to turn off their phone’s screen without reaching for the power button.

We first spotted a double-tap-to-lock feature in Android 16 QPR1 Beta 1 back in June 2025. It was meant to help Pixel users double-tap an empty area of the lock screen to turn off the display. While the feature still hasn’t made its way to Pixel phones, it now looks like Google didn’t forget about it afetrall.

In fact, our latest findings suggest that the company is making the feature even more useful.

While digging through the latest Android 17 QPR2 Beta 3 build, we found that Google has updated some previously dormant strings related to the double-tap-to-sleep feature. It also looks like Google has added the home screen to the feature’s description.

The original string described the feature like this:

Essentially, the feature was designed to double-tap an empty space on the lock screen to turn off the screen. Now, its definition seems to have evolved in the latest QPR update, with code strings now saying:

The additon of “Home” in this description suggests that when Google eventually enables the gesture, Pixel users may be able to double-tap an empty area on either the home screen or lock screen to turn off the display.

Google has also added or updated strings that point to a dedicated settings page for the feature. One says the system will allow users to locate the settings page for the double-tap-to-sleep gesture, while another describes an option to enable or disable the feature when double-tapping an empty area on the lock or home screen.

Essentially, this doesn’t look like a feature that Google has abandoned. The updated strings suggest that Google is still working on it and, at least based on what we’ve found, could be expanding its functionality beyond what we originally spotted in Android 16.