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After months of waiting, Google’s AI-powered editing tools are finally rolling out to all Google Photos users on eligible mobile devices for free. The company has taken its time, but there’s a reason behind it. Either way, millions can now enjoy the power of generative AI to edit images.
Google’s powerful AI image editing tools now available to everyone via Photos app
In April, Google surprised everyone by confirming that many of the Pixel device’s exclusive AI image editing tools would be available to everyone on Google Photos. Since then, the company has been working hard to fulfill its promise, starting with gradual rollouts. That is, users have been receiving the tools one by one over the past few months instead of all at once.
For instance, in June, I noticed that Magic Eraser was available on my device but not Magic Editor. Currently, Magic Editor is available alongside options that were previously missing, like Photo Unblur and Portrait Light. So, it seems that Google is finally completing the rollout of all the tools. Recently, the company also explained the differences between Magic Eraser and Magic Editor, so you know when it’s best to use each option.
Hard months of work
The company claims that making all of its AI editing tools compatible with tens of millions of different Android devices was a tall order. Google had to make sure everything worked properly across multiple hardware and software configurations. This caused the delay in the mass rollout, but thankfully, it seems to have all gone well.
The decision to make its powerful AI editing tools free for everyone is a laudable move by Google. The company could have kept them as exclusive features for Pixel devices and made them even more attractive. However, Google’s commitment to making the power of generative AI accessible to as many people as possible is a reality.
Lastly, there are hardware requirements to receive the features, although they are low. They will be available on devices with at least 3GB of RAM and running Android 8.0+/iOS 15+.