Samsung announced many interesting products and features at its latest Galaxy Unpacked event (including the Galaxy S24 series) but one of the more impressive developments isn’t actually unique to the Galaxy brand itself. The feature, Circle to Search, was developed in partnership with Google, which means it’ll live on Google phones, too.
What is Circle to Search?
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In a nutshell, Circle to Search is a new way to search for anything without switching apps. To activate the feature, long press on the home button or navigation bar (if you have gesture navigation enabled). Then, when you see something on your screen that you want to look up, draw a circle around it with your finger, and your phone will return search results. For example, you could use Circle to Search to find an article of clothing you might have seen in a YouTube video, or get more info about a dish in a recipe you’re browsing online.
You don’t have to just circle the item you’re looking to search, either: You can also highlight it, scribble over it, or tap on it. As part of Google’s AI upgrades to search, you can search with text and pictures you’ve circled at the same time using multi-search. Google says that the Circle to Search gesture works on images, text, and videos. Basically, you’re able to find anything and everything using this feature.
These results appear inside the app you’re currently using, so you don’t need to interrupt what you’re doing to search. When you’re done, you can simply swipe the results away to get back to your previous task.
When does Circle to Search launch?
Circle to Search is set to launch globally on Jan. 31 for select premium Android smartphones like the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro and the newly announced Galaxy S24 series. The feature will be coming to more Android devices at a later date.