- A new ‘Circle to Search’ trick is available on Samsung’s latest Galaxy phones
- It allows you to sing or hum songs that you want to identify
- The feature worked well in our first hands-on demos
Sure, Shazam and Google Assistant, or even Gemini, can help you identify a song playing in a coffee shop or while you’re on the go. But what about that song you have in your head that you’re desperate to put a name to?
Suffice it to say, this isn’t a problem I have for anything Springsteen, but it happens for other songs, and Samsung’s latest and greatest – the Galaxy S25, S25 Plus and S25 Ultra – might just solve this problem. That’s thanks to Google’s latest Circle to Search extension on devices.
Launched on the Galaxy S24 last year, then expanded to other devices like Google’s own Pixel family of phones, you can long-press at the bottom and then circle something on the screen to figure out what it is or find out more.
For example, it could be a funny hat in a TikTok or Instagram Reel video, a stylish button or even more information about a concert or a location like San Jose – where Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked had place.
Circle to search for songs
Now, however, when you long-press the home button – or otherwise engage Assistant – you’ll see a musical note icon.
From there you can just start singing as Google will tell you it’s listening. Me and my colleague, Lance UIanoff, editor-in-chief of TechRadar, then hummed two tunes – “Hot To Go” by Chapell Roan, which the Galaxy S25 Ultra tried to correctly identify – and then it got “ Fly Me To.” The Moon” (a classic) from its first try.
Although Lance had to hum a bit, he actually figured out what that song was in our head, which could make the latest facet of Circle to Search a pretty handy feature. Of course, it will also do Shazam’s job and listen to whatever is playing when you select it through your device’s built-in microphone.
Additionally, you can use it to circle a video on screen and determine what was playing – as you can see in the handy embed below, it was able to do this for a TikTok. This ultimately doesn’t seem as useful given that a video on TikTok – or an Instagram Reel – will note the audio it uses. But it could be especially useful for a long YouTube video that uses a variety of background music or if you’re streaming a track and can’t figure out the song.
The latest expansion to Google’s Circle to Search tool will be available on day one on the Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25 Plus and Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it’s worth pointing out that the search giant – turned AI giant – has been teasing this feature for a while. , and some have even found it hidden in existing code. After our demo on the S25 Ultra, we had a feeling it would be coming elsewhere and that it should come to other devices with Circle to Search.
As for when it will come to the Galaxy S24, Z Flip 6, or Z Fold 6, that remains to be seen, and we also wonder the same question for the other new features of Samsung’s Galaxy AI. And if you want to learn more about the Galaxy S25 family, check out our hands-on article and our Galaxy S25 live blog for the event.
@PK Press Club
Samsung is adding a whole new way to “Circle to Search” and it might help you figure out that song that’s stuck in your head.
♬ original sound – TechRadar
