The most underrated new Android feature is held hostage by Google.
Many say it’s a gimmick, and I couldn’t disagree more… Google’s new “Circle to search” feature technically doesn’t do anything new but the way it does it is the simple, yet magical bit of innovation all phones need. But not all phones get.
Having debuted on the Galaxy S24 series, Circle to Search has now made its way on to the Galaxy S23, Galaxy Z Flip/Fold 5 series, and of course, Google’s own Pixel 8, Pixel 7, and Pixel 6 phones.
But there’s a small problem… It seems like Google and Samsung’s strong relationship is building up to a familiar “walled garden”, where other Android phones aren’t allowed to play. More about that in a bit, but first – here’s why “Circle to Search” is the coolest new Android feature Google won’t let your Android phone have…
The best new Android feature is the most simple Android feature ever; changes the way you “Google”
As Google puts it, you can already ask your Android phone questions using your voice, thanks to the Google Assistant; you can search images with Google Lens (an early version of “Circle to Search”), or even search for the name of a song by humming it.
But “Circle to Search” might just be the most intuitive way to search on your Android phone ever. For example, running an image search/looking up photos used to be a pain in the rear for me, and I wouldn’t even bother doing it… until now.
With Circle to Search, all I need to do is hold down the home “key” on my Pixel to immediately find a location I’ve seen online, or identify all sorts of things like shops, streets, animals, plants, cars is pretty magical.
