Google Photos Has A Hidden Trick To Tame Its New AI Search Chaos

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Summary

Google’s “Ask Photos” AI feature isn’t as helpful for day-to-day searches as originally intended.
Thankfully, a quick double-tap on the search icon in Google Photos can revert back to the old-school search.
Unfortunately, iOS users don’t have the same shortcut to switch back to the classic search mode.

Google thought it was doing us a favor with its new “Ask Photos” AI feature, which was supposed to make it easier to find stuff without all the endless scrolling. You can now just type what you’re looking for in regular language, and the AI tries to figure it out based on what’s in your photos and the extra details. While it sounds slick, for most day-to-day searches, it hasn’t been all that helpful.

a phone displaying google photos search results on a table next to two red apples

Luckily, Google Photos actually left a backdoor to escape the new setup and jump back to the old-school search. As spotted by 9to5Google, a quick double-tap on the search icon instantly flips you back to the old-school search we all know (and actually miss). Regardless, the tab still says “Ask,” like Google is pretending nothing happened.

Even after February’s Android update promised to clean up this Gemini-powered search mess, 9to5Google noticed most people are still getting stuck with the clunky ‘Ask Photos’ as the default. If you want the old search, you’ll need to hunt down a tiny little button that says “Switch to classic search.”

Android users: double-tap to escape

iOS? Tough luck

Thankfully, this new shortcut gives you a straight shot back to the good old classic search in Google Photos. Sure, double-tapping the search icon is a pretty common move across a bunch of Android apps, but in Google Photos, it’s actually super useful. It drops you right into a classic search interface that a ton of users still swear by.

Unfortunately, iOS users don’t get the same shortcut in Google Photos. Double-tapping still does pull up the search box if you’re already in the search tab, but it just dumps you back into the “Ask Photos” mode every time. So, it’s not super helpful over there.

Even with its flaws, Ask Photos is still a pretty cool and creative way to dig through your photo library. It goes way beyond the usual search tricks, letting you ask super-specific stuff like, “Where did we camp last time at Yosemite?” Sure, you can type natural questions in the classic search too, but Ask Photos definitely brings something new and useful to the table.