If you read our full Google Pixel 9 review, you'll know that we're very impressed with Google's flagship smartphone, but we're still discovering new features the device has to offer, such as the Adaptive Touch technology on the display.
As spotted by Android Authority, if you head into the Display section of settings, you'll find a new Adaptive Touch entry in the Touch Sensitivity menu: According to the official description, once you enable the feature, your touchscreen sensitivity will “automatically adjust to your environment, activity, and screen protector.”
In other words, Adaptive Touch is a feature that makes the display easier to use even with wet fingers, a screen protector, or even when wearing gloves, and it appears to be enabled by default on the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, and Pixel 9 Pro XL.
Back in March, there were rumors that Pixel 9 devices would have Adaptive Touch thanks to code hidden in the beta version of Android 14. Now, that code has apparently been made public and enabled.
More to come
Pixel 9 Pro (Image source: Philip Berne/Future)
Google hasn't said anything official about Adaptive Touch, which is probably not surprising, as the Pixel 9 series was unveiled at the “Made by Google 2024” event a few weeks ago and was packed with tons of information.
The feature appears to require some sort of hardware support – there's no sign of Adaptive Touch on the older Google Pixel 8 phone – so if you think it's useful then you should consider upgrading to the 2024 model phone. Prices for the Pixel 9 start from $799 / £799 / AU$1,349.
This isn't the first time unannounced features have been spotted on these devices: We've known for some time that the Pixel 9 phones will have an improved upgrade process (with Google commenting on it), but the new Pixel 9 Pro Fold also comes with a significant upgrade in terms of hardware security.
These improvements weren't officially announced at the Pixel 9's launch, but they do make the phone more appealing, and of course Google has spent plenty of time talking about other new features, including various AI tricks.
