Some of the Pixel-exclusive photo editing tools of Google Photos are now available for all Android users. However, there’s a catch – Google is pushing these features as part of a Google One subscription. So you’ll have to pay to use them in a non-Pixel Android smartphone.
A new update for Google Photos on Android brings these editing features that were previously exclusive to Pixel phones. Specifically, Google One subscribers are getting some of the machine-learning powered editing tools that were introduced with the launch of the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 in September last year.
There’s a new Portrait Blur that lets you blur the background of an image after capture. A Portrait Light feature, meanwhile, improves the lighting on faces in portraits. Both these features work on all images irrespective of whether they were captured in Portrait mode.
The existing versions of these features will continue to remain free for all Google Photos users. However, with the latest update, Google One subscribers will also be able to apply these effects to images that don’t have depth information. Without a Google One subscription, the existing Blur and Color Pop features will only work on Portrait mode pictures.
With the latest update, Google One subscribers are also getting new machine learning-powered effects on Google photos. There are those “super filters that apply complex edits with just one tap”. The new Dynamic suggestion lets you enhance brightness and contrast on a photo where it’s needed for a dramatic effect.
With new sky suggestions, you can make your “golden hour images pop by boosting and adjusting the color and contrast in the sky with one of several palettes inspired by breathtaking sunrises and sunsets”. Google introduced this feature with the December Pixel Feature Drop.
Google One subscribers get Pixel-exclusive photo editing tools on Google Photos
A Google One membership starts at $1.99 per month for 100GB of additional storage space in the US. Although the program primarily serves as additional storage on your Android device, it also brings some other exclusive benefits. Those include Premium support from Google experts, Google Store rewards, and extended free trials to YouTube Premium.
In October last year, Google added a VPN service to the 2TB tier of Google One, which costs $9.99 monthly or $99.99 annually. Now, all Google One subscribers are getting Pixel-exclusive photo editing tools as well. Needless to say, these editing features are available to Pixel users for free, whether or not they have a Google One subscription.
The latest update for Google Photos also adds a new video editor. You can now crop, change perspective, add filters, and apply granular edits to your videos. Google Photos on Android now has more than 30 controls in total.
