Google's answer to 3D Touch on iOS, 'deep press,' could come to Android Q

In our review for the Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, we referred to the newest Google devices as “the Android iPhone.” In breaking down Android 9 Pie, we found some features clearly lifted from iOS, and we’re finding even more in Android Q.

As first spotted by 9to5Google, it seems we can add another feature to the list of items that continue to blur the line between Android and iOS. According to documentation related to the “MotionEvent” function of Android Q, there will be support for something called “deep press” in the future version of the mobile operating system.

The documentation says that “the current event stream represents the user intentionally pressing harder on the screen,” and that deep press should “be used to accelerate the long press behavior.” In other words, deep press is a function which allows unique responses to occur when a user presses down on the display harder than usual.

If this sounds familiar, that’s because it is essentially Force Touch — also known as 3D Touch — which showed up first on the original Apple Watch in 2014.

However, just because Android Q supports deep press doesn’t really mean too much for now, as you would also need specialized hardware to implement something like this. If Android Q supports it right out of the box, though, it’s a very good bet that hardware manufacturers will respond to that.

It’s also possible deep press could make its debut in the Google Pixel 4, which is expected in October, a few months after we expect the stable version of Android Q to land.

NEXT: Everything new in the second Android Q developer preview