The Galaxy S8 Reminded Me Of A Very Useful But Almost Abandoned Android Feature

Today’s top Android phones all have in-display fingerprint sensors, and this tech has made major strides over the years. In fact, many modern high-end phones have ultrasonic in-display sensors with fast, accurate unlocking and the ability to scan wet fingers.

However, I recently went back to the Samsung Galaxy S8 while working on a different article, and I realized that I really missed fingerprint scanner gestures on old smartphones.

Not just a biometric unlocking option

Many phones in the mid to late 2010s offered rear fingerprint scanners, such as the Galaxy S8 and S9, the LG G6, and the HUAWEI P9. However, HUAWEI’s Mate S was the first phone to actually offer gestures via these scanners, and I quickly fell in love with the concept at the time.

My favorite action was easily the ability to swipe down on the scanner to activate the notification shade. This was particularly handy on “phablets” back in the day, allowing you to easily check your notifications or access quick setting toggles without performing hand gymnastics. And, of course, a quick swipe up on the fingerprint scanner would dismiss the notification shade. Simple but effective stuff.

HUAWEI also used the fingerprint scanner for other actions, with a tap-and-hold gesture letting you take photos, turn off alarms, and answer calls. You could even swipe laterally to scroll through photos in a gallery. I appreciated the ability to take selfies via the scanner, as tapping the on-screen shutter key can be tricky, but I didn’t really care about swiping through photos with the scanner.

It’s no wonder Google copied HUAWEI in 2016 and brought rear fingerprint scanner gestures to the original Pixel and Pixel XL. In fact, this feature was a fixture on most Pixels until 2020’s Pixel 5 — in-display fingerprint readers in today’s Pixel 9 don’t support it, sadly. Unlike HUAWEI, Google only let you use the fingerprint scanner to toggle the notification shade, but I thought this was far and away the best use of that gesture anyway.

It didn’t take long for Samsung to follow suit, too, with the Galaxy S8, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S9, and Galaxy Note 9 all letting you swipe down on the scanner to view notifications. Once again, Samsung didn’t let us customize this gesture, but as I swiped up and down on my Galaxy S8 over the last week, I realized that I don’t need more. The sensor’s placement on the back aligns perfectly with my index when I’m holding the phone, and it’s so much easier and more fluid for me to perform a small swipe on it than to raise my thumb across the display and swipe down.

The gesture made so much sense that even LG and Motorola later adopted this option on their phones with rear scanners.

A relic of a bygone era, but a great feature nonetheless

Robert Triggs / Android Authority

Rear fingerprint scanner gestures fell by the wayside as the industry embraced in-display sensors in 2018 and 2019, but fingerprint scanner gestures haven’t disappeared altogether.

Companies like Xiaomi let you hold and swipe on the in-display scanner for app shortcuts, although I don’t like that these shortcuts can’t be customized. We’ve also seen realme and Xiaomi using the under-display fingerprint sensor for heart rate measurements. Furthermore, the realme GT7 Pro‘s ultrasonic scanner can be used to take pictures underwater.

It’s clear that companies are still working on some interesting ways to use biometrics beyond authentication. Nevertheless, I miss rear fingerprint scanner gestures on today’s narrow and tall phones. So let’s pour one out for a feature that time forgot.