Google enables Circle to Search feature on Android, workaround available for iOS

Published: 08 May 2024 at 20:20

Technology

Google introduced Circle to Search on Pixel 8 and Galaxy S24 series, allowing users to highlight items on their screen for quick search results. While this feature is exclusive to Android, iPhone users can create a workaround using the Google app to trigger Google Lens' visual search by taking a screenshot. The workaround is accessible even on older iPhone models without the Action button.

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New Google Lens-like features bring AI Search to Android phones

The modern generation of Android phones, including the Samsung Galaxy S24 and Pixel 8 models, are getting new Google Lens-like features that enable users to generate search results by highlighting parts of images or text. The Circle to Search feature allows users to highlight objects with gestures like taps, swipes, or circles, and a search bar pops up at the bottom providing relevant information or search results. The feature is exclusive to the Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, and the Samsung Galaxy S24 series for now. It requires the Google app to be enabled and up to date.

Google Lens (Wikipedia)

Google Lens is an image recognition technology developed by Google, designed to bring up relevant information related to objects it identifies using visual analysis based on a neural network. First announced during Google I/O 2017, it was first provided as a standalone app, later being integrated into Google Camera but was reportedly removed in October 2022. It has also been integrated with the Google Photos and Google Assistant app and with Bard as of 2023.

Google Images (Wikipedia)

Google Images (previously Google Image Search) is a search engine owned by Google that allows users to search the World Wide Web for images. It was introduced on July 12, 2001, due to a demand for pictures of the green Versace dress of Jennifer Lopez worn in February 2000. In 2011, reverse image search functionality was added.When searching for an image, a thumbnail of each matching image is displayed. When the user clicks on a thumbnail, the image is displayed in a larger size, and users may visit the webpage on which the image is used.