What are the gyroscope and accelerometer for on a cell phone? What are their differences?

Many people have the latest technology in their hands and are fascinated by all that they can do with the sensors of the Android smartphone or mobile. You rarely wonder what certain features of your device are used for, but if you've ever heard of the gyroscope and accelerometer, continue your reading.

What are the gyroscope and accelerometer for on a mobile phone?

We rarely investigate the internal systems of our electronic devices, but we have used its functions, for example measure our calories while jogging . Maybe this didn't allow us to adequately or fully utilize the sensors they have, so we'll walk you through how the two electronic sensors work.

However, in order for you to better understand its function, we will show you in what are a gyroscope and an accelerometer , what they are used for and how they are different. It is important to understand that without these sensors, many of the apps you use on a daily basis would not work, and these are dependent on the Android model. 

What is a gyroscope?

It is a sensor that is found on the motherboard of the mobile and which transforms the information transmitted by another sensor, which we know as the accelerometer. Then this sensor gyroscopic measures the non-gravitational acceleration of the device , allowing us to give the exact location of our position, as well as to specify our movements.

Functions of a gyroscope

These basic functions can be used after having activated ou activated the gyroscope of your smartphone or mobile device . So that you get the most out of your mobile device, they know what the gyroscope is for and that in the future they will probably be better every day.

• Detect the speed of the focus of the mobile.
• Allows you to do rotate screen .
• It helps the accelerometer to record the direction of the turn.

• If it is a photo, with this sensor, you can apply filters to your photos , create super real effects.
• Control the movements during the process of a virtual reality game.
• You can calculate the distance of a place in order to adapt an object to this space, for example to want to locate a large object.
• You can project on a real image, a simulated image, this is called augmented reality .
• Virtual reality games where we use headsets use this sensor which makes something feel like something is real.
• It allows you to form a 360 ° projection, both for images and videos, and several applications have this option. It is worth check if your device can use 360 ​​° function for videos , before trying to use it, and not get frustrated.

What is an accelerometer?

This small internal sensor of our device will capture in which direction it has been moved, whether in a vertical or horizontal direction. As we mentioned before, this sensor works in combination with the Gyroscope sensor , detecting the different acceleration movements.

Functions of an accelerometer

Below we show you the functions or to quoi sert an accelerometer on your mobile , chances are you can identify them because you used them.

• It measures the acceleration of gravity weight and its changes.
• Detect vibrations depending on the application you are using.
• Calculate the distances.
• If you are on the move like running or jogging, it allows you to calculate how fast you are taking and even how many calories you have consumed.
• You can measure a slight to medium impact, 
• This usually makes the alarms work that we badly need.
• Go to screen unlock.
• Access your music with one touch.

What are their differences?

Maybe we could think that the gyroscope and the accelerometer are the same, but they are not different electronic components, but that they work as a team. 

1. The gyroscope receives rotation and the accelerometer does not .
2. The accelerometer does not have the electronic capacity to differentiate the origin of movements.
3. The Gyroscope can determine the orientation on a point.
4. The accelerometer is linear, while the gyroscope is angular

These sensors vary depending on the Android device model, and as new versions come out they will include the Gyroscope and Accelerometer sensors. When using the applications that require a gyroscope and an accelerometer, you will reflect on what you read here and it will encourage you to find out about other sensors on your mobile.