Remap Google Pixel 4 Motion Sense gestures to do other stuff, no root needed

Motion Sense on the Google Pixel 4 uses radar to allow you to perform actions on your phone without needing to touch it. Although out-of-the-box the Pixel 4 only has a small set of actions you can do with the radar system, there is now a way to remap Motion Sense gestures to do a whole lot more.

To do this, you only need to install an app called Button Mapper. There is both good news and bad news when it comes to this remapping, though. The good news is that you don’t need to have a rooted Pixel 4 to make it work. The bad news is that you will need the premium version of Button Mapper, which costs at least $4.29.

With that out of the way, there are some huge advantages to using the Button Mapper app to remap Motion Sense gestures. For example, Button Mapper adds in some tweaks such as playing a sound when your Pixel 4 monitors a gesture, which is a simple change that could have a big effect on your own interactions with the phone.

Related: Google Pixel 4 Motion Sense explained: What it can (and can’t) do for now

To get started with Button Mapper and get to remapping Motion Sense gestures on your Pixel 4, you first need to download and install the latest version of the app. You can do that through the Google Play Store but just be sure the app is version 1.40 or later. If for whatever reason it’s not, you can always sideload the APK from XDA Labs. Once installed, you need to upgrade to Button Mapper Pro from within the app itself.

Once you have the app installed and upgraded, un-rooted users will need to perform a command through ADB. The app will give you detailed instructions on how to do this, so don’t worry. Rooted users will be ready to go as soon as the app is installed and upgraded.

Once you have Button Mapper all set up, you can start mapping actions to gestures. For now, there is only one gesture: a swipe of your hand from left to right or right to left. You can customize your Pixel 4 to perform a variety of actions whenever you do this. For example, you could turn the flashlight on or off, open a specific app, set your phone into silent mode, and more.

If you’re concerned about Button Mapper conflicting with the pre-configured Motion Sense gestures, don’t worry: you can tell Button Mapper to temporarily stop while you are listening to music which will allow you to use swipe gestures to change tracks.

It’s early days yet for us having the ability to remap Motion Sense getures, so expect more feautres and options to arrive on Button Mapper soon. In the meantime, it’s worth spending the $4.29 to give this a shot!