Several research groups have demonstrated advantages of extending a mobile device's input vocabulary with in-air gestures. Such gestures show promise but are not yet being integrated onto commercial devices. One reason for this might be the uncertainty about users' perceptions regarding the social acceptance of such around-device gestures.

In this project, we conduct three studies to explore users' and spectators' attitudes about using around-device gestures in public. Results show that acceptance and comfort are strongly linked to gesture characteristics, such as, gesture size, duration and in-air position.