How to use Android’s Motion Assist feature to combat motion sickness

If you tend to get motion sickness, looking at your phone while driving a car definitely won’t help you. However, Google has rolled out some exciting new features, one of which is called Motion Assist. With this new option enabled, Android users have a better chance of scrolling without getting motion sickness.

While the technology itself isn’t necessarily revolutionary, since Apple unveiled its version in 2024 as part of iOS 18, the feature has finally made its way to Android devices. It can only be found on Android devices running Android 17 or later and updated Google Play Services, but those who can access it will find enabling Motion Assist a breeze. So if you’ve just purchased one of the new Pixel 11 models, you can test it out at any time. Samsung phones must run One UI 9.

This article explains how to enable and customize Motion Assist on Pixel phones. Therefore, if your phone is of another brand, the menus may vary. Searching for “Motion Assist” in Settings may be your most direct route to this feature.

Motion sickness comes down to a battle of the senses. When you’re in a car, your inner ear tracks every turn, every stop, and every sudden explosion, which tells your brain that you’re moving. So if your eyes are fixed on a static screen, your brain is receiving conflicting signals, since your eyes are essentially telling it that you are still.

This imbalance is what makes people nauseous, and it’s exactly the conflict that Google’s new feature is designed to resolve.

Thanks to your device’s motion sensors, the little shapes on your screen move according to each maneuver the car makes, which Google says helps “your brain synchronize what your eyes see with what your body feels.” And while the shapes float and move in real time, they stick to the edges of the screen, so anything you read or watch in the middle isn’t obscured. Of course, Google says this feature is for passengers, so don’t try to use it if you’re driving.

You can easily enable Motion Assist in your device settings. On your Pixel, go to Settings app, then tap your profile and select All services. From here you can activate Motion Assist from the Safety of people and devices menu.

To avoid motion sickness on your next trips, you can also adjust your phone’s settings to automatically activate Motion Assist when it detects that you are in a moving vehicle. In the Movement assistance settings, simply turn on Automatic start in a moving vehicle. Even with this option enabled, your phone’s motion sensors may have trouble knowing when you’re in a moving car. So Google recommends adding it to your Quick Settings menu to ensure it’s always a few clicks away.

Similar to Apple’s Vehicle Motion Cues, Google lets you customize the colors, opacity, and shapes that appear when Motion Assist is activated, so you can fine-tune details as you see fit. Access these options in the Personalize menu, which you can operate from the Motion Assist settings. There is also a Randomization option that changes colors and shapes as you use it.