Apart from the dual rear camera setup, the Soli radar chip is the USP of the upcoming Google Pixel 4 devices. The tech giant made Motion Sense official a few weeks back, and it revealed that this feature may not work in all Pixel countries. Thanks to US-based retailer Best Buy, we now know in what regions will get the Motion Sense feature. As per the landing page for the Pixel 4 on Best Buy, the feature will only work in the US, Canada, Singapore, Australia, Taiwan, and a few countries in the Europe region. This development is ‘bummer’ for people in India as it is likely that the feature won’t debut in the country.
When we visited the page in question, the description was already updated. It read, ‘Motion Sense may not be functional in all Pixel countries. Not all phone features are controlled by Motion Sense.’ XDADevelopers, however, posted the original description which noted, ‘Wave hello to Motion Sense* — You no longer have to touch your phone to make things happen. Motion Sense is a new technology in Pixel 4 that can detect your gestures without you having to touch the screen.’
The asterisk after ‘Motion Sense’ implied that there is more information related to it. Below the description, a fine print read, ‘Not functional in Japan. Motion Sense functional in the US, Canada, Singapore, Australia, Taiwan, and most European countries. Not all phone features are controlled by Motion Sense. For more information see g.co/pixel/motionsense.’ This link does not delve out further information related to the feature’s availability.
The news comes a few hours after the alleged Pixel 4 phones got the FCC certification. In the FCC listing, Google sought a band of 5G connectivity (58-63.5 GHz) from the agency that resonates with the frequency needed by Soli radar chip to work seamlessly. Tech affectionados around the globe were skeptical about it because these bands may not be available in all the countries, including where the Pixel phones are sold. Since, there was no confirmation that the ‘phones’ that passed the FCC were Pixel 4 devices, commenting on it wouldn’t have had a powerful impact in the tech world. The latest development could provide a way in understanding, or predicting what Google has it in its kitty for the launch event.
For those who do not know, Soli is a radar chip that will enable hands-free motion in the upcoming Pixel devices. Users will be able to use hand movements to complete tasks like skip songs, snooze alarms, or silence the phone during incoming calls. The radar will be placed in the top bezel of the phone alongside an infrared camera, which will be used for Face Unlock. You can click here to read more about the feature.
