Google Photos, over the course of past couple of years, has been adding a slew of AI based photo editing tools such as Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser and more. However, all of these were a part of Google One subscription until now, when Google has announced that some of them will be available for everyone without any subscription or fee starting next month.
In a blog post, Google detailed that starting on May 15, some of its AI-powered editing tools — like Magic Eraser, Photo Unblur and Portrait light — will be available to anyone using Google Photos for free. In other words, there’ll be no subscription required to access those, like how it does now. You’ll also be able to access these features on more devices, including Pixel tablets.
Aside from these, Google will also be expanding Magic Editor support to all the Pixel devices and not just Pixel 8 and 8 Pro, with which the Editor launched last year and was an exclusive to these devices. Not only that, but all Google Photos users on Android and iOS will get 10 Magic Editor saves per month, meaning you’ll be able to make edits to only 10 photos with the Magic Editor if you are not using a Pixel device. To get unlimited access, you’ll either need a Pixel device or a Premium Google One 2TB subscription plan (or above).
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For those unaware about what Magic Editor is, using generative AI, this editor makes it easy to do complex photo edits with simple and intuitive actions, like repositioning your subject or turning the sky from grey to blue.
To sum it all up, tools like Magic Eraser, Photo Unblur and Portrait Light will have no cap on the amount of saves you do but the edits made with Magic Editor tools will do.
What’s The Catch?
The catch is that the Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser and Portrait Light features require a minimum set of system requirements to work on your phones. Your device must be a Chromebook Plus with ChromeOS version 118+ or have at least 3 GB RAM and Android 8.0/iOS 15 or higher for the full set of features to work without any hiccups.
In addition, Google says that Magic Editor will not be available on certain devices that do not meet minimum system requirements. This includes that your device must have a 64-bit Chipset with at least 4 GB RAM and Android 8.0 and up and on iPhones, you should have have a 64-bit chipset with at least 4 GB RAM and iOS 15 and up.
Finally, the features will begin rolling out from May 15 but may take a few weeks to reach all supported devices as it’s a gradual rollout.