We wanted all-screen phones, we got all-screen phones. And with them came some fundamental changes to how a device is to be handled and used. For example, the user interface needed to get a revamp — since there is no more room for physical navigational buttons on the front of our phones, and a virtual navigation bar kind of ruins the look of an all-screen device — gestures became a thing.
Apple’s iPhone X most notably did a complete overhaul of how iOS is to be navigated by utilizing a number of then-new swipe controls. Others followed suit quite rapidly.
Of course, every manufacturer chooses to put their own spin on hoe their gestures will work. While the iPhone utilizes swipes from the bottom for “home” and “recent apps”, some Android manufacturers — like OnePlus and Samsung — will only use bottom frame of the device. Swipe from the bottom center for home, or swipe from the bottom-left and bottom-right for back (and / or recent apps).
If you own a OnePlus 7 Pro and would much rather be able to swipe from the sides of the screen for back, since that feels more natural and intuitive, there’s a way to do that! Let’s explore.
First things first — activate Navigation gestures. To do that, go to Settings -> Buttons & gestures -> Navigation bar & gestures. The bottom-most option is Navigation gestures — choose that. You will see in the quick tutorial on this page that swiping from the bottom center is now “Hone”, swiping from the same spot and holding for a bit is “Recent apps” and swiping from the bottom-left or bottom-right is “Back”.
Upon entering the Fluid NG app, you will be greeted by a message stating that “Back action doesn’t work with OnePlus gestures enabled”. However, for our needs, we will have no troubles. So, let’s just move on.
As soon as you try to “Enable” Fluid NG, you will be taken to a menu which shows you some requirements. The app needs permissions to “Draw over other apps” and be activated as an “Accessibility service”. It’s pretty straightforward — just tap on these suggestions and they will take you to their respective settings.
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Now that we can actually turn Fluid NG on, let’s tell it what to do, shall we? Go into “Actions”. Here, you can program the functions you want to access with a swipe. For our objective, we went ahead and cleared all of the actions from the bottom swipes. Then, we left the sideways swipes to be a “back” action. This is how your setup should look:
Now, when you swipe from the bottom center on your OnePlus 7 Pro, you get “home”. Do the same but hold and you will get recent apps. Swipe in from the sides and you get “back”. Take note that swiping up from the bottom-left or bottom-right will still be “back” since that’s on system level.
Bonus: you can dig through the Fluid NG settings and add extra functions. For example, swiping in from the side and holding can activate a favorite app or quickly switch to your previous app. Still, you can’t customize the bottom swipes, sorry.
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Preslav, a member of the PhoneArena team since 2014, is a mobile technology enthusiast with a penchant for integrating tech into his hobbies and work. Whether it's writing articles on an iPad Pro, recording band rehearsals with multiple phones, or exploring the potential of mobile gaming through services like GeForce Now and Steam Link, Preslav's approach is hands-on and innovative. His balanced perspective allows him to appreciate both Android and iOS ecosystems, focusing on performance, camera quality, and user experience over brand loyalty.
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