Google's AI-Powered Photo Editing Features Expanding to Older Pixel Phones

This powerful Google Photos tool is finally arriving for older Pixels

Access appears limited for now, so not everyone on the same version will see it. Last September, we spotted early evidence that the Google Photos Reimagine feature, previously exclusive to the Pixel 9 series, might be coming to older Pixels. It took longer than we expected, but it finally looks like it may now be happening. A user on the Android beta subreddit shared screenshots showing the new Google Photos editor and access to Reimagine on their Pixel 6 running Android 16 QPR1 Beta 3. Another report in the Gapps Leaks Telegram group shows the feature appearing on a Pixel 8 as well. These examples suggest Google is slowly enabling the Magic Editor upgrade across the Pixel 6, 7, and 8 series, as our teardown hinted it would. That doesn't mean everyone on the latest app and OS builds will see it. Multiple users running the same Photos version (7.37.0.782944147) report still having the old UI or being unable to use Reimagine. As the Reddit thread points out, this suggests a classic server-side rollout, meaning Google is toggling access remotely rather than tying it to app updates or Android versions. Reimagine is part of Google's generative AI push within Magic Editor. It allows users to make dramatic edits, like those seen in the tornado sky above, simply by describing what they want to see. While the Pixel 9 series launched with the feature last year, the code for Reimagine and its sibling feature Auto Frame was what we found in builds for earlier Pixel models, suggesting broader support was planned. For now, availability seems sporadic and possibly limited to users in Google's test group. But if you're running a supported Pixel and the latest Photos beta, it's worth checking to see if you've made the cut.

Some of the exclusive Pixel 9 AI photo-editing features could be heading to older phones

Handsets from the Pixel 6 onwards are tipped to get the upgrade The Google Pixel 9 series launched with a stack of AI photo-editing features that were exclusive to those devices - but now it looks like Google is preparing to push some of these features out to older Pixel handsets. As spotted by @AssembleDebug and Android Authority, the latest version of the Google Photos app for Android features code that suggests both Auto Frame and Reimagine are going to be made available to the Pixel 6 and newer phones. Auto Frame lets you make sure the primary subject of your photo is well placed within that photo - that might involve cropping the image, or expanding the background using some AI magic. There's also a similar feature on the best Samsung phones. As for Reimagine, this lets you tweak parts of your photo using a text prompt and AI image generation. You might want to add a car to a street scene, for example, or a tree to a nature landscape - if you can imagine it, Reimagine in Google Photos can do it. Google hasn't said anything officially yet, so it's not clear when these new features will reach handsets such as the Google Pixel 8 - that is, assuming Google goes through with this - but the rollout shouldn't be far away. It makes sense that Google would want to make as many of its AI photo editing features available to as many people as possible, assuming that their phones have the necessary processing power to cope with the extra demands. While keeping features exclusive to newer handsets can drive sales, it's not clear just how many users were upgrading to the Pixel 9 just to use the AI image features - though we've been largely impressed by what they're capable of. In less than a month, we'll do it all again when the Google Pixel 10 series gets its grand unveiling on Wednesday, August 20: expect a lot more talk about the power of AI, and perhaps some features that are only available on the new Pixel 10.