Android 12 may include a new face-based setting for auto-rotate.

According to 9to5Google, the new auto-rotate option can detect the orientation of the user's head and rotate the screen to maintain the desired orientation. So if you are using the Google Pixel 5 in bed and both your head and phone are in landscape orientation, the existing auto-rotate setting could solve the problem of forcing the screen to be in portrait orientation even though you want it to be in landscape.

Since the Pixel 5 discontinued the face-based unlock feature after the Pixel 4 introduced it, this new version of auto-rotate is likely based on a very simple form of facial recognition.

Still, the Pixel series' front-facing camera can be used to pick up the general shape and orientation of a user's face, allowing for Snapchat filter-like features. Thus, there would be little to worry about from a privacy perspective.

9to5Google reports that the face-based auto-rotate feature may be available on other Android 12 devices, but if the feature launches, it will only start on Pixel phones.

This is apparently also the case for another leaked Android 12 feature, the long-awaited double-tap gesture. Last month, however, it was suggested that double-tap would be included on Pixel phones as part of Android 12.

As for Android 12 itself, Google has been publicly tight-lipped about what the next mobile OS will include. Still, developer previews are expected to begin in the near future, so expect more news to trickle in ahead of a full-scale launch later this year.

We're already seeing what appears to be a radical new Android 12 redesign, with an overhauled color scheme, more rounded UI elements, and added privacy indicators when apps are using sensors such as the camera.