<uses-feature>

In this document

Google Play and Feature-Based Filtering
Features Reference

Google Play Filtering

Google Play uses the <uses-feature> elements declared in your app manifest to filter your app from devices that do not meet its hardware and software feature requirements.

By specifying the features that your application requires, you enable Google Play to present your application only to users whose devices meet the application's feature requirements, rather than presenting it to all users.

For important information about how Google Play uses features as the basis for filtering, please read Google Play and Feature-Based Filtering, below.

syntax:

<uses-feature
  android:name="string"
  android:required=["true" | "false"]
  android:glEsVersion="integer" />

contained in:

<manifest>

description:

Declares a single hardware or software feature that is used by the application.

The purpose of a <uses-feature> declaration is to inform any external entity of the set of hardware and software features on which your application depends. The element offers a required attribute that lets you specify whether your application requires and cannot function without the declared feature, or whether it prefers to have the feature but can function without it. Because feature support can vary across Android devices, the <uses-feature> element serves an important role in letting an application describe the device-variable features that it uses.

The set of available features that your application declares corresponds to the set of feature constants made available by the Android PackageManager, which are listed for convenience in the Features Reference sections at the bottom of this document.

You must specify each feature in a separate <uses-feature> element, so if your application requires multiple features, it would declare multiple <uses-feature> elements. For example, an application that requires both Bluetooth and camera features in the device would declare these two elements:

<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.bluetooth" />
<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.camera" />

In general, you should always make sure to declare <uses-feature> elements for all of the features that your application requires.

Declared <uses-feature> elements are informational only, meaning that the Android system itself does not check for matching feature support on the device before installing an application. However, other services (such as Google Play) or applications may check your application's <uses-feature> declarations as part of handling or interacting with your application. For this reason, it's very important that you declare all of the features (from the list below) that your application uses.

For some features, there may exist a specific attribute that allows you to define a version of the feature, such as the version of Open GL used (declared with glEsVersion). Other features that either do or do not exist for a device, such as a camera, are declared using the name attribute.

Although the <uses-feature> element is only activated for devices running API Level 4 or higher, it is recommended to include these elements for all applications, even if the minSdkVersion is "3" or lower. Devices running older versions of the platform will simply ignore the element.

Note: When declaring a feature, remember that you must also request permissions as appropriate. For example, you must still request the CAMERA permission before your application can access the camera API. Requesting the permission grants your application access to the appropriate hardware and software, while declaring the features used by your application ensures proper device compatibility.

attributes:

android:name

Specifies a single hardware or software feature used by the application, as a descriptor string. Valid attribute values are listed in the Hardware features and Software features sections. These attribute values are case-sensitive.

android:required

Boolean value that indicates whether the application requires the feature specified in android:name.

When you declare android:required="true" for a feature, you are specifying that the application cannot function, or is not designed to function, when the specified feature is not present on the device.
When you declare android:required="false" for a feature, it means that the application prefers to use the feature if present on the device, but that it is designed to function without the specified feature, if necessary.

The default value for android:required if not declared is "true".

android:glEsVersion

The OpenGL ES version required by the application. The higher 16 bits represent the major number and the lower 16 bits represent the minor number. For example, to specify OpenGL ES version 2.0, you would set the value as "0x00020000", or to specify OpenGL ES 3.2, you would set the value as "0x00030002".

An application should specify at most one android:glEsVersion attribute in its manifest. If it specifies more than one, the android:glEsVersion with the numerically highest value is used and any other values are ignored.

If an application does not specify an android:glEsVersion attribute, then it is assumed that the application requires only OpenGL ES 1.0, which is supported by all Android-powered devices.

An application can assume that if a platform supports a given OpenGL ES version, it also supports all numerically lower OpenGL ES versions. Therefore, an application that requires both OpenGL ES 1.0 and OpenGL ES 2.0 must specify that it requires OpenGL ES 2.0.

An application that can work with any of several OpenGL ES versions should only specify the numerically lowest version of OpenGL ES that it requires. (It can check at run-time whether a higher level of OpenGL ES is available.)

For more information about using OpenGL ES, including how to check the supported OpenGL ES version at runtime, see the OpenGL ES API guide.

introduced in:

API Level 4

see also:

Google Play and Feature-Based Filtering

Google Play filters the applications that are visible to users, so that users can see and download only those applications that are compatible with their devices. One of the ways it filters applications is by feature compatibility.

To determine an application's feature compatibility with a given user's device, Google Play compares:

Features required by the application — an application declares features in <uses-feature> elements in its manifest
with...
Features available on the device, in hardware or software — a device reports the features it supports as read-only system properties.

To ensure an accurate comparison of features, the Android Package Manager provides a shared set of feature constants that both applications and devices use to declare feature requirements and support. The available feature constants are listed in the Features Reference sections at the bottom of this document, and in the class documentation for PackageManager.

When the user launches Google Play, the application queries the Package Manager for the list of features available on the device by calling getSystemAvailableFeatures(). The Store application then passes the features list up to Google Play when establishing the session for the user.

Each time you upload an application to the Google Play Developer Console, Google Play scans the application's manifest file. It looks for <uses-feature> elements and evaluates them in combination with other elements, in some cases, such as <uses-sdk> and <uses-permission> elements. After establishing the application's set of required features, it stores that list internally as metadata associated with the application .apk and the application version.

When a user searches or browses for applications using the Google Play application, the service compares the features needed by each application with the features available on the user's device. If all of an application's required features are present on the device, Google Play allows the user to see the application and potentially download it. If any required feature is not supported by the device, Google Play filters the application so that it is not visible to the user and not available for download.

Because the features you declare in <uses-feature> elements directly affect how Google Play filters your application, it's important to understand how Google Play evaluates the application's manifest and establishes the set of required features. The sections below provide more information.

Filtering based on explicitly declared features

An explicitly declared feature is one that your application declares in a <uses-feature> element. The feature declaration can include an android:required=["true" | "false"] attribute (if you are compiling against API level 5 or higher), which lets you specify whether the application absolutely requires the feature and cannot function properly without it ("true"), or whether the application prefers to use the feature if available, but is designed to run without it ("false").

Google Play handles explicitly declared features in this way:

If a feature is explicitly declared as being required, Google Play adds the feature to the list of required features for the application. It then filters the application from users on devices that do not provide that feature. For example:
```
<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.camera" android:required="true" />
```
If a feature is explicitly declared as not being required, Google Play does not add the feature to the list of required features. For that reason, an explicitly declared non-required feature is never considered when filtering the application. Even if the device does not provide the declared feature, Google Play will still consider the application compatible with the device and will show it to the user, unless other filtering rules apply. For example:
```
<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.camera" android:required="false" />
```
If a feature is explicitly declared, but without an android:required attribute, Google Play assumes that the feature is required and sets up filtering on it.

In general, if your application is designed to run on Android 1.6 and earlier versions, the android:required attribute is not available in the API and Google Play assumes that any and all <uses-feature> declarations are required.

Note: By declaring a feature explicitly and including an android:required="false" attribute, you can effectively disable all filtering on Google Play for the specified feature.

Filtering based on implicit features

An implicit feature is one that an application requires in order to function properly, but which is not declared in a <uses-feature> element in the manifest file. Strictly speaking, every application should always declare all features that it uses or requires, so the absence of a declaration for a feature used by an application should be considered an error. However, as a safeguard for users and developers, Google Play looks for implicit features in each application and sets up filters for those features, just as it would do for an explicitly declared feature.

An application might require a feature but not declare it because:

The application was compiled against an older version of the Android library (Android 1.5 or earlier) and the <uses-feature> element was not available.
The developer incorrectly assumed that the feature would be present on all devices and a declaration was unnecessary.
The developer omitted the feature declaration accidentally.
The developer declared the feature explicitly, but the declaration was not valid. For example, a spelling error in the <uses-feature> element name or an unrecognized string value for the android:name attribute would invalidate the feature declaration.

To account for the cases above, Google Play attempts to discover an application's implied feature requirements by examining other elements declared in the manifest file, specifically, <uses-permission> elements.

If an application requests hardware-related permissions, Google Play assumes that the application uses the underlying hardware features and therefore requires those features, even though there might be no corresponding to <uses-feature> declarations. For such permissions, Google Play adds the underlying hardware features to the metadata that it stores for the application and sets up filters for them.

For example, if an application requests the CAMERA permission but does not declare a <uses-feature> element for android.hardware.camera, Google Play considers that the application requires a camera and should not be shown to users whose devices do not offer a camera.

If you don't want Google Play to filter based on a specific implied feature, you can disable that behavior. To do so, declare the feature explicitly in a <uses-feature> element and include an android:required="false" attribute. For example, to disable filtering derived from the CAMERA permission, you would declare the feature as shown below.

<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.camera" android:required="false" />

It's important to understand that the permissions that you request in <uses-permission> elements can directly affect how Google Play filters your application. The reference section Permissions that Imply Feature Requirements lists the full set of permissions that imply feature requirements and therefore trigger filtering.

Special handling for Bluetooth feature

Google Play applies slightly different rules than described above, when determining filtering for Bluetooth.

If an application declares a Bluetooth permission in a <uses-permission> element, but does not explicitly declare the Bluetooth feature in a <uses-feature> element, Google Play checks the version(s) of the Android platform on which the application is designed to run, as specified in the <uses-sdk> element.

As shown in the table below, Google Play enables filtering for the Bluetooth feature only if the application declares its lowest or targeted platform as Android 2.0 (API level 5) or higher. However, note that Google Play applies the normal rules for filtering when the application explicitly declares the Bluetooth feature in a <uses-feature> element.

Table 1. How Google Play determines the Bluetooth feature requirement for an application that requests a Bluetooth permission but does not declare the Bluetooth feature in a <uses-feature> element.

If `minSdkVersion` is ...	or `targetSdkVersion` is	Result
<=4 (or uses-sdk is not declared)	<=4	Google Play will not filter the application from any devices based on their reported support for the `android.hardware.bluetooth` feature.
<=4	>=5	Google Play filters the application from any devices that do not support the `android.hardware.bluetooth` feature (including older releases).
>=5	>=5

The examples below illustrate the different filtering effects, based on how Google Play handles the Bluetooth feature.

In first example, an application that is designed to run on older API levels declares a Bluetooth permission, but does not declare the Bluetooth feature in a <uses-feature> element.: Result: Google Play does not filter the application from any device.

<manifest ...>
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN" />
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" />
    ...
</manifest>

In the second example, below, the same application also declares a target API level of "5".: Result: Google Play now assumes that the feature is required and will filter the application from all devices that do not report Bluetooth support, including devices running older versions of the platform.

<manifest ...>
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN" />
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" android:targetSdkVersion="5" />
    ...
</manifest>

Here the same application now specifically declares the Bluetooth feature.: Result: Identical to the previous example (filtering is applied).

<manifest ...>
    <uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.bluetooth" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN" />
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" android:targetSdkVersion="5" />
    ...
</manifest>

Finally, in the case below, the same application adds an android:required="false" attribute.: Result: Google Play disables filtering based on Bluetooth feature support, for all devices.

<manifest ...>
    <uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.bluetooth" android:required="false" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN" />
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="3" android:targetSdkVersion="5" />
    ...
</manifest>

Testing the features required by your application

You can use the aapt tool, included in the Android SDK, to determine how Google Play will filter your application, based on its declared features and permissions. To do so, run aapt with the dump badging command. This causes aapt to parse your application's manifest and apply the same rules as used by Google Play to determine the features that your application requires.

To use the tool, follow these steps:

First, build and export your application as an unsigned .apk. If you are developing in Android Studio, build your application with Gradle:
1. Open the project and select Run > Edit Configurations.
2. Select the plus sign near the top-left corner of the Run/Debug Configurations window.
3. Select Gradle.
4. Enter Unsigned APK in Name.
5. Choose your module from the Gradle project section.
6. Enter assemble in Tasks.
7. Select OK to complete the new configuration.
8. Make sure the Unsigned APK run configuration is selected in the toolbar and select Run > Run 'Unsigned APK'.
You can find your unsigned .apk in the <ProjectName>/app/build/outputs/apk/ directory.
Next, locate the aapt tool, if it is not already in your PATH. If you are using SDK Tools r8 or higher, you can find aapt in the <SDK>/platform-tools/ directory.
Note: You must use the version of aapt that is provided for the latest Platform-Tools component available. If you do not have the latest Platform-Tools component, download it using the Android SDK Manager.
Run aapt using this syntax:

$ aapt dump badging <path_to_exported_.apk>

Here's an example of the command output for the second Bluetooth example, above:

$ ./aapt dump badging BTExample.apk
package: name='com.example.android.btexample' versionCode='' versionName=''
uses-permission:'android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN'
uses-feature:'android.hardware.bluetooth'
sdkVersion:'3'
targetSdkVersion:'5'
application: label='BT Example' icon='res/drawable/app_bt_ex.png'
launchable activity name='com.example.android.btexample.MyActivity'label='' icon=''
uses-feature:'android.hardware.touchscreen'
main
supports-screens: 'small' 'normal' 'large'
locales: '--_--'
densities: '160'

Features Reference

The following sections provide reference information about hardware features, software features, and sets of permissions that imply specific feature requirements.

Hardware features

This section presents the hardware features supported by the most current platform release. To indicate that your app uses or requires a hardware feature, declare the corresponding value (beginning with "android.hardware") in an android:name attribute. Each time you declare a hardware feature, use a separate <uses-feature> element.

Audio hardware features

android.hardware.audio.low_latency: The app uses the device's low-latency audio pipeline, which reduces lag and delays when processing sound input or output.
android.hardware.audio.output: The app transmits sound using the device's speakers, audio jack, Bluetooth streaming capabilities, or a similar mechanism.
android.hardware.audio.pro: The app uses the device's high-end audio functionality and performance capabilities.
android.hardware.microphone: The app records audio using the device's microphone.

Bluetooth hardware features

android.hardware.bluetooth: The app uses the device's Bluetooth features, usually to communicate with other Bluetooth-enabled devices.
android.hardware.bluetooth_le: The app uses the device's Bluetooth Low Energy radio features.

Camera hardware features

android.hardware.camera

The app uses the device's back-facing camera. Devices with only a front-facing camera do not list this feature, so use the android.hardware.camera.any feature instead if your app can communicate with any camera, regardless of which direction the camera faces.

android.hardware.camera.any

The app uses one of the device's cameras, or an external camera that the user connects to the device. Use this value instead of android.hardware.camera if your app does not require the camera to be a back-facing one.

android.hardware.camera.autofocus

The app uses the autofocus feature that the device's camera supports.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.camera feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.camera.capability.manual_post_processing

The app uses the MANUAL_POST_PROCESSING feature that the device's camera supports.

This feature allows your app to override the camera's auto white balance functionality. Use android.colorCorrection.transform, android.colorCorrection.gains, and an android.colorCorrection.mode of TRANSFORM_MATRIX.

android.hardware.camera.capability.manual_sensor

The app uses the MANUAL_SENSOR feature that the device's camera supports.

This feature implies support for auto-exposure locking (android.control.aeLock), which allows the camera's exposure time and sensitivity to remain fixed at specific values.

android.hardware.camera.capability.raw

The app uses the RAW feature that the device's camera supports.

This feature implies that the device can save DNG (raw) files and that the device's camera provides the DNG-related metadata necessary for your app to process these raw images directly.

android.hardware.camera.external

The app communicates with an external camera that the user connects to the device. This feature does not guarantee, however, that the external camera is available for your app to use.

android.hardware.camera.flash

The app uses the flash feature that the device's camera supports.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.camera feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.camera.front

The app uses the device's front-facing camera.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.camera feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.camera.level.full

The app uses the FULL-level image-capturing support that at least one of the device's cameras provides. Cameras with FULL support provide burst-capture capabilities, per-frame control, and manual post-processing control.

Device UI hardware features

android.hardware.type.automotive

The app is designed to show its UI on a set of screens inside a vehicle. The user interacts with the app using hard buttons, touch, rotary controllers, and mouse-like interfaces. The vehicle's screens usually appear in the center console or the instrument cluster of a vehicle. These screens usually have limited size and resolution.

Note: It's important to keep in mind that, since the user is driving while using this type of app UI, the app must minimize driver distraction.

android.hardware.type.television

(Deprecated; use android.software.leanback instead.)

The app is designed to show its UI on a television. This feature defines "television" to be a typical living room television experience: displayed on a big screen, where the user is sitting far away and the dominant form of input is something like a d-pad, and generally not using a mouse, pointer, or touch device.

android.hardware.type.watch

The app is designed to show its UI on a watch. A watch is worn on the body, such as on the wrist. The user is very close to the device while interacting with it.

Fingerprint hardware features

android.hardware.fingerprint: The app reads fingerprints using the device's biometric hardware.

Gamepad hardware features

android.hardware.gamepad: The app captures game controller input, either from the device itself or from a connected gamepad.

Infrared hardware features

android.hardware.consumerir: The app uses the device's infrared (IR) capabilities, usually to communicate with other consumer IR devices.

Location hardware features

android.hardware.location

The app uses one or more features on the device for determining location, such as GPS location, network location, or cell location.

android.hardware.location.gps

The app uses precise location coordinates obtained from a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver on the device.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.location feature, unless this parent feature is declared with the attribute android:required="false".

android.hardware.location.network

The app uses coarse location coordinates obtained from a network-based geolocation system supported on the device.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.location feature, unless this parent feature is declared with the attribute android:required="false".

NFC hardware features

android.hardware.nfc

The app uses the device's Near-Field Communication (NFC) radio features.

android.hardware.nfc.hce

(Deprecated.)

The app uses NFC card emulation that is hosted on the device.

OpenGL ES hardware features

android.hardware.opengles.aep: The app uses the OpenGL ES Android Extension Packthat is installed on the device.

Sensor hardware features

android.hardware.sensor.accelerometer: The app uses motion readings from the device's accelerometer to detect the device's current orientation. For example, an app could use accelerometer readings to determine when to switch between portrait and landscape orientations.
android.hardware.sensor.ambient_temperature: The app uses the device's ambient (environmental) temperature sensor. For example, a weather app could report indoor or outdoor temperature.
android.hardware.sensor.barometer: The app uses the device's barometer. For example, a weather app could report air pressure.
android.hardware.sensor.compass: The app uses the device's magnetometer (compass). For example, a navigation app could show the current direction a user faces.
android.hardware.sensor.gyroscope: The app uses the device's gyroscope to detect rotation and twist, creating a six-axis orientation system. By using this sensor, an app can detect more smoothly whether it needs to switch between portrait and landscape orientations.
android.hardware.sensor.hifi_sensors: The app uses the device's high fidelity (Hi-Fi) sensors. For example, a gaming app could detect the user's high-precision movements.
android.hardware.sensor.heartrate: The app uses the device's heart rate monitor. For example, a fitness app could report trends in a user's heart rate over time.
android.hardware.sensor.heartrate.ecg: The app uses the device's elcardiogram (ECG) heart rate sensor. For example, a fitness app could report more detailed information about a user's heart rate.
android.hardware.sensor.light: The app uses the device's light sensor. For example, an app could display one of two different color schemes based on the ambient lighting conditions.
android.hardware.sensor.proximity: The app uses the device's proximity sensor. For example, a telephony app could turn off the device's screen when the app detects that the user is holding the device close to their body.
android.hardware.sensor.relative_humidity: The app uses the device's relative humidity sensor. For example, a weather app could use the humidity to calculate and report the current dewpoint.
android.hardware.sensor.stepcounter: The app uses the device's step counter. For example, a fitness app could report the number of steps a user needs to take to achieve their daily step count goal.
android.hardware.sensor.stepdetector: The app uses the device's step detector. For example, a fitness app could use the time interval between steps to infer the type of exercise that the user is doing.

Screen hardware features

android.hardware.screen.landscape

android.hardware.screen.portrait

The app requires the device to use the portrait or landscape orientation. If your app supports both orientations, then you don't need to declare either feature.

For example, if your app requires portrait orientation, you should declare the following feature so that only the devices that support portrait orientation (always or by user choice) can run your app:

<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.screen.portrait" />

Both orientations are assumed not required by default, so your app may be installed on devices that support one or both orientations. However, if any of your activities request that they run in a specific orientation, using the android:screenOrientation attribute, then this declaration implies that your app requires that orientation. For example, if you declare android:screenOrientation with either "landscape", "reverseLandscape", or "sensorLandscape", then your app will be available only on devices that support landscape orientation.

As a best practice, you should still declare your requirement for this orientation using a <uses-feature> element. If you declare an orientation for your activity using android:screenOrientation, but don't actually require it, you can disable the requirement by declaring the orientation with a <uses-feature> element and include android:required="false".

For backward compatibility, any device running Android 3.1 (API level 12) or lower supports both landscape and portrait orientations.

Telephony hardware features

android.hardware.telephony

The app uses the device's telephony features, such as telephony radio with data communication services.

android.hardware.telephony.cdma

The app uses the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) telephony radio system.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.telephony feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.telephony.gsm

The app uses the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) telephony radio system.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.telephony feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

Touchscreen hardware features

android.hardware.faketouch

The app uses basic touch interaction events, such as tapping and dragging.

When declared as required, this feature indicates that the app is compatible with a device only if that device emulates a touchscreen ("fake touch" interface) or has an actual touchscreen.

A device that offers a fake touch interface provides a user input system that emulates a subset of a touchscreen's capabilities. For example, a mouse or remote control could drive an on-screen cursor. If your app requires basic point and click interaction (in other words, it won't work with only a d-pad controller), you should declare this feature. Because this is the minimum level of touch interaction, you can also use an app that declares this feature on devices that offer more complex touch interfaces.

Note: Apps require the android.hardware.touchscreen feature by default. If you want your app to be available to devices that provide a fake touch interface, you must also explicitly declare that a touchscreen is not required as follows:

<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.touchscreen" android:required="false" />

android.hardware.faketouch.multitouch.distinct

The app tracks two or more distinct "fingers" on a fake touch interface. This is a superset of the android.hardware.faketouch feature. When declared as required, this feature indicates that the app is compatible with a device only if that device emulates distinct tracking of two or more fingers or has an actual touchscreen.

Unlike the distinct multitouch defined by android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch.distinct, input devices that support distinct multitouch with a fake touch interface don't support all two-finger gestures because the input in transformed to cursor movement on the screen. That is, single-finger gestures on such a device move a cursor, two-finger swipes cause single-finger touch events to occur, and other two-finger gestures trigger the corresponding two-finger touch events.

A device that provides a two-finger touch trackpad for cursor movement can support this feature.

android.hardware.faketouch.multitouch.jazzhand

The app tracks five or more distinct "fingers" on a fake touch interface. This is a superset of the android.hardware.faketouch feature. When declared as required, this feature indicates that the app is compatible with a device only if that device emulates distinct tracking of five or more fingers or has an actual touchscreen.

Unlike the distinct multitouch defined by android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch.jazzhand, input devices that support jazzhand multitouch with a fake touch interface don't support all five-finger gestures because the input in transformed to cursor movement on the screen. That is, single-finger gestures on such a device move a cursor, multi-finger gestures cause single-finger touch events to occur, and other multi-finger gestures trigger the corresponding multi-finger touch events.

A device that provides a five-finger touch trackpad for cursor movement can support this feature.

android.hardware.touchscreen

The app uses the device's touchscreen capabilities for gestures that are more interactive than basic touch events, such as a fling. This is a superset of the android.hardware.faketouch feature.

By default, your app requires this feature. As such, your app is not available to devices that provide only an emulated touch interface ("fake touch") by default. If you want to make your app available on devices that provide a fake touch interface (or even on devices that provide only a d-pad controller), you must explicitly declare that a touchscreen is not required by declaring android.hardware.touchscreen with android:required="false". You should add this declaration if your app uses—but does not require—a real touchscreen interface.

If your app in fact requires a touch interface (to perform more advanced touch gestures such as fling), then you don't need to declare any touch interface features because they're required by default. However, it's best if you explicitly declare all features that your app uses.

If you require more complex touch interaction, such as multi-finger gestures, you should declare that your app uses advanced touchscreen features.

android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch

The app uses the device's basic two-point multitouch capabilities, such as for pinch gestures, but the app does not need to track touches independently. This is a superset of the android.hardware.touchscreen feature.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.touchscreen feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch.distinct

The app uses the device's advanced multitouch capabilities for tracking two or more points independently. This feature is a superset of the android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch feature.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch.jazzhand

The app uses the device's advanced multitouch capabilities for tracking five or more points independently. This feature is a superset of the android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch feature.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

USB hardware features

android.hardware.usb.accessory: The app behaves as the USB device and connects to USB hosts.
android.hardware.usb.host: The app uses the USB accessories that are connected to the device. The device serves as the USB host.

Wi-Fi hardware features

android.hardware.wifi: The app uses 802.11 networking (Wi-Fi) features on the device.
android.hardware.wifi.direct: The app uses the Wi-Fi Direct networking features on the device.

Software features

This section presents the software features supported by the most current platform release. To indicate that your app uses or requires a software feature, declare the corresponding value (beginning with "android.software") in an android:name attribute. Each time you declare a software feature, use a separate <uses-feature> element.

Communication software features

android.software.sip

The app uses Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) services. By using SIP, the app can support internet telephony operations, such as video conferencing and instant messaging.

android.software.sip.voip

The app uses SIP-based Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services. By using VoIP, the app can support real-time internet telephony operations, such as two-way video conferencing.

By using this feature, an app implies that it also uses the android.software.sip feature, unless this parent feature is declared with android:required="false".

android.software.webview

The app displays content from the internet.

Custom input software features

android.software.input_methods: The app uses a new input method, which the developer defines in an InputMethodService.

Device management software features

android.software.backup: The app includes logic to handle a backup and restore operation.
android.software.device_admin: The app uses device administrators to enforce a device policy.
android.software.managed_users: The app supports secondary users and managed profiles.
android.software.securely_removes_users: The app can permanently remove users and their associated data.
android.software.verified_boot: The app includes logic to handle results from the device's verified boot feature, which detects whether the device's configuration changes during a restart operation.

Media software features

android.software.midi: The app connects to musical instruments or outputs sound using the Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) protocol.
android.software.print: The app includes commands for printing documents displayed on the device.
android.software.leanback: The app presents a UI that is designed for viewing on a large screen, such as a television.
android.software.live_tv: The app streams live television programs.

Screen interface software features

android.software.app_widgets: The app uses or provides App Widgets and should be installed only on devices that include a Home screen or similar location where users can embed App Widgets.
android.software.home_screen: The app behaves as a replacement to the device's Home screen.
android.software.live_wallpaper: The app uses or provides wallpapers that include animation.

Permissions that Imply Feature Requirements

Some of the hardware and software feature constants were made available to applications after the corresponding API; for example, the android.hardware.bluetooth feature was added in Android 2.2 (API level 8), but the Bluetooth API that it refers to was added in Android 2.0 (API level 5). Because of this, some apps were able to use the API before they had the ability to declare that they require the API using the <uses-feature> system.

To prevent those apps from being made available unintentionally, Google Play assumes that certain hardware-related permissions indicate that the underlying hardware features are required by default. For instance, applications that use Bluetooth must request the BLUETOOTH permission in a <uses-permission> element — for legacy apps, Google Play assumes that the permission declaration means that the underlying android.hardware.bluetooth feature is required by the application and sets up filtering based on that feature. Table 2 lists permissions that imply feature requirements equivalent to those declared in <uses-feature> elements.

Note that <uses-feature> declarations, including any declared android:required attribute, always take precedence over features implied by the permissions in table 2. For any of these permissions, you can disable filtering based on the implied feature by explicitly declaring the implied feature explicitly, in a <uses-feature> element, with an android:required="false" attribute. For example, to disable any filtering based on the CAMERA permission, you would add this <uses-feature> declaration to the manifest file:

<uses-feature android:name="android.hardware.camera" android:required="false" />

Table 2. Device permissions that imply device hardware use.

Category	This Permission...	...Implies This Feature Requirement
Bluetooth	`BLUETOOTH`	`android.hardware.bluetooth` (See Special handling for Bluetooth feature for details.)
Bluetooth	`BLUETOOTH_ADMIN`	`android.hardware.bluetooth`
Camera	`CAMERA`	`android.hardware.camera` and `android.hardware.camera.autofocus`
Location	`ACCESS_MOCK_LOCATION`	`android.hardware.location`
	`ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS`	`android.hardware.location`
	`INSTALL_LOCATION_PROVIDER`	`android.hardware.location`
	`ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION`	`android.hardware.location.network` and `android.hardware.location`
	`ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION`	`android.hardware.location.gps` and `android.hardware.location`
Microphone	`RECORD_AUDIO`	`android.hardware.microphone`
Telephony	`CALL_PHONE`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`CALL_PRIVILEGED`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`MODIFY_PHONE_STATE`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`PROCESS_OUTGOING_CALLS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`READ_SMS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`RECEIVE_SMS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`RECEIVE_MMS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`RECEIVE_WAP_PUSH`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`SEND_SMS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`WRITE_APN_SETTINGS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
	`WRITE_SMS`	`android.hardware.telephony`
Wi-Fi	`ACCESS_WIFI_STATE`	`android.hardware.wifi`
	`CHANGE_WIFI_STATE`	`android.hardware.wifi`
	`CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE`	`android.hardware.wifi`

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In this document

Google Play and Feature-Based Filtering

Filtering based on explicitly declared features

Filtering based on implicit features

Special handling for Bluetooth feature

Testing the features required by your application

Features Reference

Hardware features

Audio hardware features

Bluetooth hardware features

Camera hardware features

Device UI hardware features

Fingerprint hardware features

Gamepad hardware features

Infrared hardware features

Location hardware features

NFC hardware features

OpenGL ES hardware features

Sensor hardware features

Screen hardware features

Telephony hardware features

Touchscreen hardware features

USB hardware features

Wi-Fi hardware features

Software features

Communication software features

Custom input software features

Device management software features

Media software features

Screen interface software features

Permissions that Imply Feature Requirements