Summary
- Google is testing a new left/right swipe gesture to answer or decline calls in its Phone app.
- The updated call screen aims to make declining calls easier by balancing the button layout.
- Google recently added real-time scam detection and call filters to improve the Phone app.
Google’s stock Phone app on Pixel smartphones is pretty minimal, focusing on the basics with an easy-to-use UI. While the Phone app still lacks some useful features found in competing dialer apps, it looks like Google is at least working on a redesigned call screen.
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First spotted by Android Authority, Google is testing a new way to answer calls in Phone app version 166.0.735169223 beta. Instead of the familiar swipe up/down gesture, the new UI ditches that method in favor of a left-right sliding gesture.
Currently, if you’re using Google’s Phone app — whether on a Pixel or a device from manufacturers like Xiaomi, OnePlus, Oppo, or Honor that have adopted the stock Phone app — you have to swipe up to answer and swipe down to reject calls. But it looks like Google is switching things up.
The way you answer calls on Android is about to look very different
New vs. current incoming call screen UI
In the upcoming Phone app update, the new incoming call UI will feature a slide-to-answer system, where users will swipe right to pick up and left to decline calls. This is similar to the call UI seen in some custom Android ROMs and even on Apple’s iPhone, which already uses a swipe-right gesture to answer calls.
To be fair, I actually like this new call screen design. It makes declining calls easier, as the current swipe-down gesture feels a bit awkward, especially with the button placed so low in the UI. The new UI evens out the layout, making calls easier to accept or decline.
Beyond this call screen redesign, Google has been steadily improving the Phone app. The March 2025 Pixel Feature Drop recently introduced real-time scam detection, and Google is also testing call filters for easier call sorting. We’re not seeing the new call UI on our devices just yet, but if Google rolls it out widely, it could change how Android users interact with calls — whether that’s for better or worse remains to be seen.
