How to Use the Magic Eraser on the Pixel 6

This article explains how to access and use the Magic Eraser function on the Google Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro.

How Do I Use the Magic Eraser Feature on the Pixel 6?

The Magic Eraser feature allows you to excise people and objects from a photo within seconds without expensive photo editing.

The following will explain where to find this unique feature and use it.

Where to Find the Magic Eraser Feature in the Pixel 6 Camera

To use Magic Eraser, you need to have already taken a photo with the Pixel 6. The Magic Eraser cannot remove things from a picture in real-time.

1. Open the picture you want to edit by either tapping on the image preview on the bottom right side of the Camera app or choosing one in the Photos app.
   

2. Once you've selected an image, tap Edit to open the Pixel 6's photo editing suite.

3. You can then find the Magic Eraser feature by swiping over to the Tools folder. There, you will find Magic Eraser, along with color focus and blur adjustments.
   

How to Erase Subjects from an Image Using Magic Eraser

Now that you know how to locate the Magic Eraser tool, the rest is highly intuitive.

1. In some cases, Magic Eraser will generate suggestions for people and things to remove from the photo.

2. If Magic Eraser's suggestions aren't what you want to remove, or you want a more hands-on approach to choosing what to remove, you can draw a circle around the thing you want to remove.

3. Conversely, you can just as easily scribble over the thing you want Magic Eraser to remove.

4. Depending on the photo, you will be left with a decent image no longer containing the object you selected.

How the Magic Eraser Feature Works

Google's Magic Eraser technology is impressive on the Pixel 6. And while that function may produce "oohs" and "ahhs" from your friends and family, it's important to note this feature is rooted in technology that's been around for decades now.

According to Google, Magic Eraser leverages "novel algorithms for confidence, segmentation, and inpainting." Through the phone's Tensor chip, the Pixel 6 leverages machine learning models that run directly on the device.

Through artificial intelligence and machine learning, Magic Eraser can attempt to identify a person or an object's outline and remove it. Then, analyzing the background, it attempts to fill in the missing information. While the technology is impressive, more spartan backdrops tend to yield better results. Hectic backgrounds can lead to splotchy artifacts where the removal took place.

Will Magic Eraser Come to the Pixel 5?

Though there are currently no plans to port Magic Eraser to older Pixel devices, don't think you can't experience the feature for yourself if you're still using a Pixel 5 or older smartphone. That's thanks mainly to the open nature of the Android platform.

If you want to start erasing people from your photos, all you need to do is sideload the Google Photos app found on the Pixel 6. You can do so by installing "Split APKs Installer (SAI)" from the Google Play Store. Then, you must download the Google Photos APK file from Android Police. Once downloaded, select the APK in the Split APKs Installer app and install it on your device.

Following a quick update, you can now open your Google Photos app and use Magic Eraser as much as you want.