Circle to Search may not be available on other Android smartphones for a while

Google announced a very useful new Circle to Search feature in January to coincide with the launch of Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series, but the feature only works on a small number of Android devices so far. And Samsung says that may not change for several months.

In a press release from the Netherlands this week, Samsung discusses the success of the Galaxy S24 series, which has already surpassed the pre-order total for the Galaxy S23 series. But in that post, Samsung also provides the first context about when Circle to Search will expand to more of his Android smartphones.

According to Samsung, Circle to Search will apparently be exclusive to the Google Pixel 8 series and Galaxy S24 series for most of 2024. Specifically, Samsung says it “may” expand to other Android devices “starting October 5th.” The company also claims that it is “not in active development.”

Circle to Search will be available on Google Pixel 8 series and Samsung Galaxy S24 series starting January 2024. Circle to Search may be available on other brands of Android devices starting October 5, 2024, but is not in active development.

Personally, I would argue that the chances of “no active development going on” are very slim, but the timeline here is at least plausible. This feature expansion will occur in early October, around the same time as Google’s Pixel 9 launch. However, it seems unlikely that Samsung will launch its next foldable device in August without enabling Circle to Search. The same logic applies to his Pixel 8a, which will probably arrive much sooner.

To be fair, largely Some of Circle to Search’s features are already present on all Android devices. As Jordan Floyd explained in a recent video, most of the features here aren’t too difficult to recreate through Google Lens. But Circle to Search’s speed and convenience are what make it so useful, so it’s a shame it took so long to make it available on other devices.

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