Google Lens could soon become a true Circle to Search alternative (APK teardown)
We've managed to trigger Circle to Search-like features via Google Lens, letting us search on any screen.
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- Google plans to double Circle to Search’s reach from 100 million users to 200 million users by the end of 2024, and it could leverage Google Lens for this goal.
- We’ve managed to activate Circle to Search-like functionality within Google Lens, including the ability to trigger a search on any screen.
- However, the feature appears to be limited to three-button navigation bar, though this could change with future releases.
Circle to Search was one of the highlight launch features of the Galaxy S24 series. It introduced a genuinely quick and easy way to search from your phone, with the context of whatever is present on your screen. Google gradually expanded access to Pixel smartphones, and the company has clearly stated its ambitions of reaching 200 million users by the end of 2024.
While the company has not explicitly stated so, part of this ambition could be fulfilled through Google Lens as a vehicle that brings Circle to Search functionality to more devices. We’ve also seen reports of the feature being tested on iOS and Chrome for Desktop under the Lens branding. With a couple of recent releases of the Google app (beta) on Android, we are further confident that Google Lens could indeed be the way forward for Google in its aim to bring Circle to Search to its next 100 million users.
