Google Pixel 8 Pro update: Feature Drop brings Circle to Search
Google has released updates to a number of Pixel phones, including the AI-powered Circle to Search feature for the Pixel 8 series and the ability to measure a person’s body temperature with the Pixel 8 Pro’s thermometer app. Google also announced Photomoji for the Pixel 3A and newer models. This allows you to turn a photo into a sticker and use it to react in messaging threads.
Circle to Search, an AI tool that was introduced last week at the Samsung Unpacked event for the Galaxy S24 series, should now also be available for the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro. The tool was developed in collaboration with Samsung. It searches for almost any content that you circle around on your phone’s display.
With the latest feature drop for January, the Google Pixel 8 Pro can also measure a person’s body temperature. However, this only applies to the Pro model, the only Google smartphone with an integrated temperature sensor. You simply open the app and scan someone’s forehead. The results can even be saved to a Fitbit profile. When the Pixel 8 Pro launched in October, it couldn’t measure a person’s body temperature. Instead, it only provided the temperature of food and objects.
Additionally, another generative AI feature, Magic Compose, is coming to several Pixel phones. Magic Compose can rewrite a draft message in different styles to make it sound more professional, concise, or even Shakespearean. The feature is available in US English for the Pixel 8 Pro and in Spanish, French, German, Korean and Italian for the Pixel 6 and newer models. There’s also a new color option – Google now offers the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro in Mint. However, only in the Google Store and via Google Fi Wireless.
