Android Receives Next-Gen AI Upgrade While iPhone Misses Out

Google’s Free Android AI Upgrade

• Android users now have free access to Google’s game-changing camera and screen sharing features in Gemini Live, the company’s AI chatbot.
• These features were previously only available on the Pixel 9-series, Samsung Galaxy S25-series, or with a paid Gemini Advanced subscription, but are now accessible to all compatible Android devices via Google’s Gemini app.
• The new features require Android 10 or later and at least 2GB of RAM, which covers nearly all Android smartphones in use today.
• This is an unusual move from Google, as the features were released as a Pixel 9-series exclusive just days ago.
• There’s no support for iOS yet.

April 22 Update below: Google implements new controls to make Gemini Live screen sharing quicker and easier. This article was originally published on April 19

Pixel Drop Free For All — No Pixel Required

Google just leveled up Android with a powerful free AI camera feature, leaving iPhone users behind.

Just under two weeks ago, Google surprised us with an unexpected “April 2025 Pixel Drop” that added live camera and screen sharing capabilities to the company’s Gemini Live chatbot for free. This free update was first made available exclusively to Pixel 9 series and Galaxy S25 Series owners.

Now, Google has lifted this exclusivity by bringing these futuristic features to all compatible Android devices without the need for a paid subscription.

How To Use Gemini Live With Camera And Screen Sharing

I’ve explained these new features previously, but in short, the update allows Google’s Gemini AI chatbot to engage in a back-and-forth conversation about the view through your smartphone’s camera or what’s displayed on your screen. You can use it for anything from getting help with picking an outfit for the day to getting feedback on your latest DIY efforts.

You can access Gemini Live with camera and screen sharing by launching the Gemini App and tapping the Live icon in the bottom-right of the screen. The new camera and screen sharing activities are then available from the two icons at the bottom left.

Google’s Indecisive Gemini Live Update

While the April 2025 Pixel Drop gave Pixel 9-series owners a powerful new free tool, it excluded users of other Android devices, including Google’s own Pixel 8 series, who had to pay for Gemini Advanced to gain access.

Pixel Drops, also known as Pixel Feature Drops, are regular feature updates that Google offers exclusively to Pixel owners every few months. They play a key role in how the company markets its devices as “getting better over time” by keeping them up to date with fresh new features.

The April 2025 Pixel Drop was unusual in that it contained only one new feature and remained exclusive for only a few days before rolling out to all Android devices.

Why It Matters

Google’s decision to backtrack on this restriction is a big deal because it brings one of the company’s most powerful and exciting AI features to billions of users, potentially boosting the perception of Android devices against the iPhone.

While this is great news for Android users in general, the short timespan between the release of this update as a Pixel 9-series exclusive and Google making it available free to all Android users risks angering customers who purchased a Pixel 9-series device or Gemini Advanced on the strength of these new features.

Furthermore, rolling out these AI features to all Android devices so soon causes the Pixel 9 series to lose its short-lived exclusivity in this area, which could have served as a compelling selling point for the company’s latest device. However, the benefits this upgrade brings to Android in general may be seen to outweigh the limited advantages of making it exclusive to Pixel and Samsung.

Free Gemini Live Camera Update — Which Devices Are Compatible?

According to Google, all devices with at least 2GB of RAM and running Android 10 or later are compatible with Gemini Live with camera and screen sharing. That covers the vast majority of Android devices in use today, making the features available to nearly all Android users. These new features are being rolled out gradually, so you may have to wait a while before they become available on your Android device. You’ll also need to be aged 18 or over.

Unfortunately, iPhone users will have to wait for now, as Google hasn’t yet announced compatibility with iOS. Follow Google’s official support pages for the latest updates.

April 22 Update: New Gemini Live update tests improved notifications and seamless screen sharing

Gemini Live screen sharing feature is still relatively new to most users, but Google is already hard at work making small adjustments to improve the experience.

As recently reported by Android Authority, the latest update to the Google app on Android brings a simple but important change to how screen sharing is handled during a Gemini Live conversation.

The latest update adds a new “screen” button to the call-style notification that appears when you’re using Gemini Live. This button lets you turn screen sharing on and off from within any app without having to restart your conversation.

With the update in place, you can simply pull down on the Gemini Live notification and tap the “screen” button to begin sharing your screen immediately, regardless of what app you’re currently using. Similarly, you can choose to stop screen sharing at any time without interrupting your conversation.

Gemini Live lets you switch to other apps while your conversation continues, but the current implementation is rather clumsy. If you’ve already started a Gemini Live conversation without screen sharing, and then decide afterward that you want to begin sharing your screen, you have to navigate back to the Gemini Live app to enable screen sharing and then navigate back again to your original app.

Alternatively, if you have Gemini configured as your default assistant, you can invoke it (long-press the power button on many Android devices) from your current screen and activate screen sharing from there. However, this will start a new conversation, losing all the context from your previous chat.

The new button gets around all of this by letting you just swipe down on your notifications and hit the Screen button instead. Gemini should then adjust the screen sharing mode accordingly without interrupting your ongoing conversation.

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