As far as gimmicks go, this surely is going to be an attention-grabber. You will not need your hands or fingers to make your smartphone do what you want it to. No, there will be no voice control either, something even better than that. All you will need is your face. That's it!

US tech giant Google is arguably one of the biggest competitors in the smartphone market courtesy of its Android software, and is looking to ensure that this dominance does not slip away. It has been reported that Google is working on a new accessibility feature that would let users control their smartphones using nothing but their facial expressions, reports ANI. This will be of help especially to those with disabilities.

Earlier versions of Android have had ‘Voice Access’, which is an accessibility option that allowed users to control their phones using voice commands. It has become a highly polished and helpful feature over the years, and is not just a gimmick anymore. But it seems like Google is going a step further with Android 12 and making our smartphones easier to use than ever before with this feature.

XDADevelopers that says the ‘Camera Switches feature’, which is one of the accessibility services in the Android Accessibility Suite app, will support setting gestures to specific controls.

Smiling, opening the mouth, and looking right, left, or down are reportedly the possible gestures the app will include.

The corresponding camera actions include getting to the homepage, scrolling backward and forward, and selecting. The app will also allow the users to adjust the gesture size and duration.

As per The Verge, the new feature would require the device’s camera to be switched on, and Android 12-enabled devices will show a standing bar indicating the camera is getting used.

The feature will reportedly use an additional battery. It is currently in beta mode.

 - TNS