This one iOS 26 feature makes me envious every time I use my Pixel

After a long time, I’ve been genuinely content with my Pixel experience. The Pixel 10 has held up well over the past month, with both hardware and software performing smoothly.

By contrast, iOS 26’s Liquid Glass UI isn’t something for me. Moreover, Apple hasn’t added any AI features to the mix that would make me want to buy the new iPhone 17 or use an iOS 26-compatible iPhone daily.

On the other hand, as expected, Google has packed even more AI and software features into the Pixel 10 Pro, making it difficult for me to switch to any other device after using it. There are plenty of features, such as the Magic Editor, Circle to Search, and Now Playing, that have become part of my daily routine.

That said, after using iOS 26 on my iPhone 16 Pro for over two weeks, I have come across one feature that I wish my Pixel 10 had: direct ChatGPT integration with the screenshot tool. It may not sound groundbreaking, but it’s something I’d love to see Google add to the Pixel experience. Here’s why.

You can ask questions or visually search for anything in an instant

Apple has redesigned several parts of iOS with the iOS 26 update, including the screenshot tool, which it now calls Screen Capture. Previously, the tool only allowed users to crop, edit, annotate, and share screenshots, but with iOS 26, Apple has introduced a new and useful feature in collaboration with ChatGPT.

Now, by default, when you take a screenshot in iOS 26, you enter a full-screen preview that includes the familiar markup tools, cropping options, and scaling controls. However, there are now two new additions at the bottom of the screen: Ask and Search buttons.

Tapping the Search button performs a visual reverse image search, letting you quickly get more context about the image or its subject. It connects directly to Google or apps like Pinterest, and you can even highlight a specific area of the screenshot to search only within that section.

My favorite addition, however, is the Ask button. When you tap it, ChatGPT instantly analyzes the screenshot and provides information related to it. You can then continue asking follow-up questions right within the screenshot interface. This makes it easy to explore, verify, or understand the content of the screenshot without switching apps.

This feature has turned out to be surprisingly useful in day-to-day situations. For example, if I need to confirm the accuracy of something before sending it to someone, I can simply take a screenshot and ask ChatGPT to verify it. It can check facts, explain concepts, analyze conversations, and even check my grammar before I send a message.

This has been super helpful for me when replying to emails and messages every day. When I don’t have access to tools like Grammarly on the go, especially for official or sensitive conversations, this ChatGPT integration feels like a lifesaver.

Beyond these two new tools, iOS 26 also uses on-device AI to extract important information from screenshots. So, for example, if there’s a date, phone number, or URL in an image, the tool can detect and convert it into a clickable element, allowing you to call, create calendar events, visit links, and more directly from the screenshot preview.

Pixel’s Circle to Search feels similar, but still behind

It’s useful, but not as seamless or smart yet

On the Android side, Google has already introduced a somewhat similar feature called Circle to Search. The feature was previously limited to flagship phones, but has since expanded to even budget and mid-range phones.

Instead of taking a screenshot, the Circle to Search tool works by long-pressing the navigation bar at the bottom and highlighting a specific part of the screen to search.

Just like Apple’s new Screen Capture tool, Circle to Search lets you perform quick actions such as creating calendar events, translating text, or even identifying songs playing nearby. However, what’s missing here is deeper Gemini integration.

You can still search Google about what’s on your screen and even ask questions about an image, but that happens indirectly through the AI-powered summary in Google Search. Gemini is helping in the background, but there’s no direct interface for it in Circle to Search, which makes the experience feel incomplete.

Sure, you can use Circle to Search for quick lookups, but you can’t do more interactive tasks like asking for alternate phrasing of a text, checking grammar in messages, performing calculations from a screenshot, or getting context-specific help — things that Gemini could easily handle.

For a company integrating Gemini into nearly all its products, its omission in Circle to Search feels like a missed opportunity.

Hopefully, it’s only a matter of time before Gemini finds its way into Circle to Search, allowing users to directly start a chat or get a temporary chat overlay related to what’s on their screen. But, until then, Apple’s ChatGPT integration in screenshots feels more useful and easily takes my award.