Google is rolling out a curious change to Android’s Circle to Search tool
Android users have an update to Circle to Search to look forward to. Currently only available in the latest beta version of the Google app (version 16.18, specifically) there is a significant change to the way in which the AI-powered search tool works.
Previously, the name of the feature was a perfect description of how it worked -- activate Circle to Search and then draw a circle to perform a web search using selected on-screen data. Now an unannounced change sees the search feature automatically capturing the entire content of the screen. As with most big changes -- and this is a big one -- there are plusses and minuses.
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Plusses first. Automatically capturing everything on the screen can be a huge workflow accelerator, eliminating at least one step. It also introduces the possibility of making searches performed in this way rather more contextual; by factoring everything that is on-screen, Circle to Search can potentially make better suggestions.
But what about the minuses?
Privacy is perhaps the first thing that springs to mind. The previous way in which Circle to Search worked placed the user firmly in control of what was shared with Google -- or the AI model, at least. If everything on the screen is captured, this control is lost. Do you want to have the entire contents of your screen taken into account (that is, analyzed) for the purposes of a search?
For some people this will either be a non-issue, or will be a reasonable price to pay for the convenience and the increased specificity that may come from the added context.
Thankfully it appears that it is possible to opt out of the use of the entire screen, but full-screen capture and analysis is the default setting.
It is perhaps also worth noting that the changed behavior kind of renders the name a misnomer.
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