Tech guide · June 2026
How to use AI on your phone — the features you're probably not using.
Your phone has AI features that can write your emails, translate phone calls in real-time, edit photos like a professional, and answer complex questions. Most people don't know they're there. Here's what Apple Intelligence, Samsung Galaxy AI, and Google Gemini can actually do — and how to turn them on.
Apple Intelligence (iPhone 15 Pro and newer)
Apple Intelligence launched with iOS 18 and is available on iPhone 17, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 16 series. It runs on-device using Apple's own neural engine, with more complex tasks processed via Apple's Private Cloud Compute servers. Here are the features worth using daily:
Writing Tools — rewrite anything, anywhere
Select any text in any app (Messages, Mail, Notes, Safari, even third-party apps) → tap the Writing Tools button. You get: Rewrite (rephrase in a different tone — friendly, professional, concise), Proofread (fix grammar and spelling with explanations), and Summarise (condense long text into key points). This works in every text field on the phone. Most useful in: email drafts, long messages, and meeting notes.
Siri with ChatGPT — actually useful now
Siri can now hand off complex questions to ChatGPT (with your permission per-request). Ask Siri things like "write me a meal plan for the week," "explain this contract clause in simple terms," or "help me plan a weekend trip to the Blue Mountains." Siri handles simple queries locally; complex ones go to ChatGPT. How to enable: Settings → Apple Intelligence & Siri → ChatGPT → toggle on. Free tier included; ChatGPT Plus subscribers get enhanced features.
Photo editing — Clean Up and Memory Movies
Clean Up: Open any photo → Edit → Clean Up → tap or circle an object to remove it. Works for photobombers, power lines, signs, and background clutter. Memory Movies: Type a description like "our trip to Sydney last summer" and Apple Intelligence creates a highlight reel with music from your photo library. These are genuinely impressive — the AI selects the best shots, sequences them narratively, and adds transitions.
Notification Summaries
Instead of showing every notification, Apple Intelligence groups and summarises them. A burst of 15 messages in a group chat becomes "Sarah shared photos of the dinner, Mike confirmed he's coming Saturday, 3 people reacted to your message." How to enable: Settings → Notifications → Summarise Notifications → toggle on per app. Most useful for: group chats, email, and news apps.
Visual Intelligence (iPhone 16+ with Camera Control button)
Point your camera at anything and press the Camera Control button. Apple Intelligence identifies it: a restaurant shows reviews and hours, a plant shows species information, a product shows pricing, a sign in another language gets translated. This is like Google Lens but integrated into the camera hardware. Works on iPhone 17 and iPhone 16 series.
Samsung Galaxy AI (Galaxy S24 and newer)
Samsung Galaxy AI runs on Galaxy S24, S25, and S26 series (also backported to S23 series via update). Samsung's approach is feature-specific — each AI feature is purpose-built rather than a general assistant. The standout features:
Live Translate — real-time phone call translation
This is Samsung's killer feature and no other brand matches it. During a phone call, Live Translate listens in both languages and provides real-time translation — you speak English, the other person hears their language, and vice versa. Supports 16+ languages including Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, French, German, and Hindi. How to use: During a call, tap the Live Translate icon in the call screen. Works with regular phone calls — no app needed. Runs on-device, so it works without internet.
Circle to Search
Long-press the home button or navigation bar anywhere on screen. Draw a circle around anything — a product in an Instagram post, a landmark in a video, text in a screenshot — and Google searches for it instantly. This replaces the awkward process of screenshotting, cropping, and reverse-image-searching. Also available on Pixel 8+.
Chat Assist — AI-powered messaging
In Samsung Messages or Samsung Keyboard, Chat Assist rewrites your messages in different tones (professional, casual, polite, social media style) and translates in real-time. Useful for: responding to formal emails from your phone, translating messages before sending, and adjusting tone when you're not sure how something reads.
Generative Edit — AI photo editing
Open Gallery → Edit → tap the AI button. You can: move objects to different positions in the photo, remove objects (like Clean Up on iPhone), resize elements, and fill in backgrounds that the AI generates. Samsung's implementation is more flexible than Apple's — you can literally drag a person to a different spot in the photo and the AI fills the original position realistically.
Note Assist and Transcript Assist
Note Assist: Samsung Notes can auto-format handwritten notes, summarise typed notes, and translate entire notes between languages. Transcript Assist: Record a meeting or lecture, and Samsung generates a full transcript with speaker labels and a summary. Both run through Samsung's on-device AI for privacy.
Google Gemini (Pixel 8 and newer)
Google replaced Google Assistant with Gemini on Pixel 8 and newer. Gemini is the most capable conversational AI on any phone — it can see your screen, understand context across apps, and take multi-step actions. The Pixel-exclusive features:
Gemini as your default assistant
Long-press the power button or say "Hey Google" to activate Gemini. Unlike old Google Assistant, Gemini can: see what's on your screen and answer questions about it ("summarise this article," "draft a reply to this email"), hold multi-turn conversations with context ("now make it more formal," "add a section about pricing"), and take actions across apps ("book a table at that restaurant for 7pm Saturday"). Also available on Samsung and other Android phones via the Gemini app, but Pixel gets the deepest integration.
Magic Eraser and Best Take
Magic Eraser: Google Photos → Edit → Magic Eraser. Tap or circle any object to remove it. Google's version is slightly better than Apple's for complex removals. Best Take: In group photos, AI analyses multiple shots and lets you swap individual faces to give everyone their best expression. Solves the "someone always blinks" problem.
Call Screen — AI answers your phone
Pixel-exclusive. When an unknown number calls, tap "Screen Call." Gemini answers, asks why they're calling, and transcribes the response in real-time on your screen. You decide whether to pick up, send a quick reply, or mark as spam — all without answering. This is the single best spam-call solution on any phone.
Audio Magic and Photo Unblur
Audio Magic: In Google Photos video editor, AI separates audio into layers (speech, music, wind, crowd noise) and lets you adjust each independently. Turn down wind noise, boost speech. Photo Unblur: AI sharpens old blurry photos — even photos taken on other phones years ago that you've uploaded to Google Photos.
AI features on other brands
OnePlus / OPPO (AI Eraser, AI Summary): ColorOS includes AI photo erasing (similar to Magic Eraser) and document summarisation. Available on OnePlus 13 and OPPO Find X8 series.
Xiaomi (AI Film, AI Subtitles): HyperOS includes AI-generated short films from photos and real-time AI subtitle translation for videos. Available on Xiaomi 14 series and newer.
Nothing (ChatGPT widget): Nothing OS has a dedicated ChatGPT home screen widget for quick AI access without opening an app.
Which AI features need newer hardware?
Most AI features require recent processors with dedicated neural processing units (NPUs). Here's the minimum hardware for each brand:
Apple Intelligence: A17 Pro chip or newer (iPhone 15 Pro, 16 series, 17 series). Older iPhones get basic Siri only.
Samsung Galaxy AI: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or Exynos 2400+ (Galaxy S24 and newer). S23 series gets a partial subset via software update.
Google Gemini (full): Tensor G3 or newer (Pixel 8 and newer). Gemini app works on older Androids but without on-device processing or screen-aware features.
The repair angle: If your phone is too old for AI features and you're considering upgrading — check the repair vs replace guide first. If your current phone just needs a new battery or screen replacement, a $89-$249 repair might give you another 2 years of use while AI features mature on the next generation of phones.
For repair pricing on any model mentioned in this guide, use the repair calculator or browse all 75+ models.