Samsung tries adding Apple-style Back Tap to Galaxy S and Flip devices

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AppleInsiderAppleInsider
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The iPhone's Back Tap feature is now available for Samsung Galaxy S and Flip devices, although making it work means digging through several layers of abstraction.

Samsung Galaxy S22
Samsung Galaxy S22


Back Tap is the feature on iPhone that lets users assign different actions to a double tap, or triple tap, on the back of the phone. Meant for accessibility, it's become popular with many users for how it means you can quickly turn on the torch, or launch applications, and so on.

The capability for Back Tap was added to Pixel devices with Android 12, but Samsung didn't then introduce the feature to its custom One UI.

According to a report from Android Police, now that is changing as Back Tap is finally coming to Samsung Galaxy phones via a new tool within its Good Lock system. That's "good lock," not "good luck."

In it, a module called RegiStar gives users the ability to customize and re-arrange the Settings menu and change device gestures. Through this, users can add their own back-tap-style gesture that performs actions once the device is double-tapped. It can launch Google Assistant, open an app, change system settings, or more.

Samsung introduced the whole Good Lock app as a method to customize the device's UI without installing a custom ROM. Users can add modules that perform specific actions, and it is all built by Samsung and officially endorsed.

This is very different from the interaction on iOS, where back tap is a feature found in accessibility settings. RegiStar is currently in beta and can be downloaded from the Galaxy Store or side loaded.

Read on AppleInsider

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    racerhomie3racerhomie3 Posts: 1,264member
    I was a very frequent user of backtap on my iPhone 10 ,but since this iOS 16.1 update,it broke it. I am patiently waiting for a fix with the next iOS release
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  • Reply 2 of 12
    DAalsethdaalseth Posts: 3,283member
    How many people use this? Not being snarky, it’s just that AI is the only place I run across any mention of it. It’s been so far below my radar, I thought it had been dropped. I tried it for about five minutes when it first came out and realized it wasn’t for me. Since then I haven’t heard anything about it, other than the occasional mention on AI.
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 3 of 12
    waveparticlewaveparticle Posts: 1,497member
    Is this intellectual property theft? 
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 4 of 12
    Japheyjaphey Posts: 1,773member
    DAalseth said:
    How many people use this? Not being snarky, it’s just that AI is the only place I run across any mention of it. It’s been so far below my radar, I thought it had been dropped. I tried it for about five minutes when it first came out and realized it wasn’t for me. Since then I haven’t heard anything about it, other than the occasional mention on AI.
    That was my question too. I completely forgot the feature existed until I read this article. It still works the same way it did when I performed my own 5 minute experiment, I just never use it. Or think about it. It’s a totally valid question and not snarky at all…
    DAalsethwatto_cobra
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  • Reply 5 of 12
    appleinsideruserappleinsideruser Posts: 737member
    I found it activated too often accidentally. I turned it off.
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 6 of 12
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,982member
    waveparticle said:
    Is this intellectual property theft? 
    Since when has that stopped Samsung before? 


    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 7 of 12
    waveparticlewaveparticle Posts: 1,497member
    macxpress said:
    waveparticle said:
    Is this intellectual property theft? 
    Since when has that stopped Samsung before? 


    Cook decided not to pursue Samsung. I think it is due to Samsung is both a competitor and a supplier. 
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  • Reply 8 of 12
    coolfactorcoolfactor Posts: 2,379member
    I've tried to read this article three times and I still can't follow it. What an awkward flow to the story. Guess that's par for the course with anything Android and Samsung. 
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 9 of 12
    citpekscitpeks Posts: 259member
    I have set it to invoke Control Center.

    Never been a fan of gestures that require reaching to the top of the screen and pulling down, or reaching up to the top of the screen in general.
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 10 of 12
    adybadyb Posts: 205member
    appleinsideruser said:
    I found it activated too often accidentally. I turned it off.
    Same here!
    appleinsideruserwatto_cobra
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  • Reply 11 of 12
    appleinsideruserappleinsideruser Posts: 737member
    JP234 said:
    Like a lot of iPhone users, I wondered why my phone would turn on the flashlight seemingly by itself. Now I know.

    As for what use is it? For me, it's not. For people with certain disabilities, I can see great utility in some of the custom configs.
    I suspect that is due to accidentally holding that Lock Screen button, as the back tap feature doesn't default to on. It has to be configured in Accessibility and an action chosen.
    watto_cobra
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