These FAKE photos created with the new Galaxy Z Fold 6 will blow your mind for REAL!
When Google’s Magic Eraser first broke cover and made removing objects from photos possible, I thought this feature was amazing, but at the same time, potentially dangerous – if used for the wrong reasons. I even wrote a whole story on the topic.
But nearly three years later, erasing objects from your photos is one of the most basic AI tricks modern phones can do. On the other hand, adding stuff to your photos to create a whole new image wasn’t really part of the equation until more recently. But this has changed!
But the fun doesn’t stop there… You can also add real-life objects to photos by sketching a rough outline over your own (or someone else’s) pictures. The best part? The results are shockingly (!) realistic. The scary part? The results are… shockingly (!) realistic.
So, let’s talk about “Sketch to Image” – the most exciting new Galaxy AI feature – for now exclusive to Galaxy Z Fold 6.
Sketch to Image: The pros and cons of Samsung’s unbelievable generative AI depend on how you use it
Before I move on to breaking down what excites and what freaks me out about Samsung’s new generative AI, let’s take a second to acknowledge how insanely real these “photos” (shared by X users) look…
Take the photos with “pets” in them. While the one with the guy holding an AI-generated cat at the mall could do with better lighting and shadows (on the cat), I’d bet money most people wouldn’t be able to tell he’s holding a nonexistent cat. And that’s if you think to check the photo for AI in the first place.
However, the other two cat images (eyepatch cat and posing cat) look absolutely indistinguishable from legit photos (to me).
Sure, the fact that (for whatever reason) a cat is wearing an eyepatch is a whole different mystery to be solved, but that’s not the point here.
The focus should be on how realistic Sketch to Image is. And we’re talking high-res images here. Imagine if you looked at a slightly pixelated, slightly noisy version of the same “photo” – you’ll never be able to tell it’s fake.
Apart from the UFO prank (unless you do believe in aliens!), the rest of the Sketch to Image edits are also super realistic. Particularly the one with the fake “Y-A” print on the guy’s shirt, and the freakish “boat on fire” (courtesy of Michael Fisher), which is where Samsung’s AI gets pretty… scary.
Note: I added a little bit of artificial noise to the “burning boat” image just to prove a point. While the original edit looked a bit “too perfect”, the added noise easily makes the imperfections much harder to see.
And again, this is a high-res image you can zoom in and examine closely. But what if it was a low-res screenshot!
The good: Samsung’s Sketch to Image is the most fun and (potentially) most productive new AI feature on Android
Sketch to Image will be incredibly useful for creatives who want to generate original images but don’t have the gift of being good at drawing – it can make a storyboard come to life, and make your workflow faster (as you might not need to search for the perfect image on Google)
The ability to add real-life objects to existing photos can be used in interior design planning, or even fashion – you can draw something on your shirt, or put a clever caption on it
It’s just fun – a lot of fun; as long as you have good intentions, you can create “fake” photos that involve your friends and family, and… get them to believe you’re in Paris, or that you have a French mustache… or a new cat… with a French mustache
Speaking of fun, Sketch to Image must be a nice pastime for young children and students – although I’m not sure young children should be using phones and tablets in the first place (especially with the current version of the AI)
As I wrote in a different story related to the topic, Sketch to Image makes Samsung’s S Pen far more useful and relevant than it’s ever been, and that’s a legitimate reason to buy a Galaxy Z Fold and give Samsung’s generative AI a try
Too powerful: The dangerous and addictive side to Samsung’s wild Sketch to Image feature
Hey, Samsung! Sketch to Image is powerful but a bit too slow
And getting to the not-so-great part about Sketch to Image, as it stands, it seems like Samsung isn’t able to pull off the whole sketching thing using only the power of your Galaxy phone.
