- Google plans to fine-tune its Emergency SOS feature on the Pixel Watch
- Code suggests it plans to introduce an additional gesture to the process
- This appears to be aimed at reducing the frequency of accidental emergency calls.
New code found in the latest Pixel Watch app suggests that Google is working on a tweak to its Emergency SOS feature that will make pocket-calling emergency services less likely in the future.
While the Emergency SOS features on the best iPhones, smartwatches, and devices like the Google Pixel Watch 3 can be indispensable in life-or-death situations, adding easy access to emergency calls from a smart device will inevitably lead to some accidental calls. A quick look at Reddit will show you that both Pixel Watch and Apple Watch users are struggling with the issue.
To that end, Android Authority reports that Google is preparing a new ‘Tap and hold to call’ option that should reduce these accidental calls. Specifically, strings (lines of code) reveal the feature’s name and how it works: “On your watch, quickly press the crown 5 times, then press and hold the screen for 3 seconds to call for help.”
It looks like this new feature will be one of two options for emergency call settings, because there is also an “automatic call” option on the list that will still call 911, 999 or the emergency number no matter where you are, after you have pressed the crown five times.
Combating rogue emergency calls
As mentioned, pocket calls to the emergency services from your smartphone or smartwatch are not a new phenomenon.
When Apple first introduced Crash Detection for the iPhone 14 back in 2022, the company quickly found itself dealing with complaints about calls triggered in non-emergency situations. Notably, a 911 dispatch center near an amusement park in Cincinnati received six such calls from iPhone owners riding the roller coaster.
Later that year, a ski town in Colorado sent out 71 robocalls from iPhones and Apple Watches in a single weekend.
As you can imagine, the problem is a massive drain on emergency resources. The calls fill the airwaves for dispatch centers, and emergency personnel are usually dispatched to accidental calls to verify the location. “We’re not in the practice of ignoring calls,” a dispatch executive told The Colorado Sun in 2022.
In 2021, a sheriff’s office in Wisconsin revealed that it had taken more than 700 accidental 911 calls triggered by iPhones in a single year, revealing in the process the one thing you should never do if you accidentally call 911.
The next time you accidentally call 911, stay on the line and let the dispatcher know you’re okay, don’t hang up.
There’s no timeframe for the release of this leaked feature, but with code present in the latest Pixel Watch app beta, it’s unlikely to be far off.
