Tactile feedback on Android phones running the Snapdragon 888 chipset may be noticeably better from the second half of 2021. Qualcomm recently announced (via 9to5Google) who is working independently with a company called Lofelt to improve the feeling of touch through Software, not hardware.
This was initially read as an intriguing decision, since the hardware – not the software – seems to play the most important role in the quality of the vibration. But this actually looks very smart, definitely smarter than Lofelt’s vibrating wearable Basslet that launched on Kickstarter in 2016.
Out of some high-end LG phones, most Android phones offer loud or noisy vibrations that don’t look very good. Even the best cannot compete with Apple’s Taptic Engine, which it builds internally and on Apple Watch iPhones and wearable devices. The tactile and vigorous vibration is probably not at the top of many people’s list in terms of essential features, but it can be surprisingly long to make you feel like you’re using a quality product.
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Image: Qualcomm
Lofelt has developed an open API and framework for phone makers (as well as game controllers “and beyond”, says the press release) that can convert universal tactile data into signals that are tuned and enhanced for that device’s specific hardware.
So, instead of incorporating a standard haptic actuator into the chipset that companies should adopt, it has developed a more scalable software solution that can work on any phone running the necessary Snapdragon hardware. Manufacturers can continue to make phones any way they want, and the Lofelt API can help create a more uniform touch experience across the vast Android ecosystem.
Lofelt CEO and co-founder Daniel Büttner spoke at length about Average in a post called “The Keys to Offering Better Haptics on Android”, and covers everything you’d like to know about why the gap between haptics on Android and Apple devices has been so huge in recent years. Of course, this is about fragmentation.
Apple could set a standard for touch feel at both the hardware and software level, which would obey its small batch of phones. Android, on the other hand, is the Wild West in terms of feel to the touch, just like in most other areas. The post illustrates that virtually the only way to improve the feeling of touch on Android is through software. Hey, if you can’t reverse fragmentation at this point, you might as well lean towards it.