- Out of the box, you can’t squeeze the Pixel 5 to launch Assistant.
- But an app called SideSqueeze Plus allows you to add the functionality back.
If you recently picked up a Pixel 5, you may have noticed Google’s latest premium phone is missing something that’s been a feature of the lineup since the Pixel 2 in 2017. Active Edge, the feature that had allowed you to squeeze your phone to launch Assistant, isn’t present on the Pixel 5. It’s also not available on the Pixel 4a and 4a 5G.
Related: Everything you need to know about the Pixel 5
But it turns out there’s a way you can add something similar back to all three phones using third-party software. As a thread by “TheDogstarLP” on the Android subreddit points out, you can download an app called SideSqueeze Plus to add an Active Edge-like feature to the Pixel 5 and other Android devices. Since SideSqueeze Plus doesn’t have a dedicated hardware component, it won’t work as consistently as Active Edge, but one advantage it does offer is that you’re not limited to only using the gesture to launch Assistant. You can bind both single and double squeeze gestures to several different actions. Best of all, you don’t need root access to your phone.
You can download SideSqueeze Plus from the Google Play Store. When we surveyed Android Authority readers about how they felt about the prospect of Active Edge getting axed, the majority said they wanted Google to keep the feature around. So it’s nice that those who like the feature can get something similar to replace it.
