I’ve tried and tested many AI eraser tools on smartphones over the years, but the one on the new Samsung Galaxy S25 series might just be the best I’ve ever used.
Having debuted way back in 2021 on the Galaxy S21 Ultra, Object Eraser isn’t one of the most exciting ‘new’ features of Samsung’s AI-packed smartphone lineup, but it’s one that’s been so well refined in the years since its launch – and quietly so – that it genuinely had me returning to the Galaxy S25 demo area at Samsung’s UK HQ to try it again, as I couldn’t quite believe what I was seeing.
On a more personal note, this improved version of Object Eraser means Samsung has finally fulfilled a technological promise made to me* by Google eight years ago. Allow me to explain.
A dream finally realized
The year is 2017. I’m sitting in one of Google’s London campus offices, watching the I/O developer conference keynote. Nestled among the announcements of Android O, Android Automotive, and Daydream VR was a quick, three-second video that gave me – and many of those watching in the same room – a jaw-dropping moment.
Google shows us the future of image editing. There’s a photograph of a young kid standing on the plate, baseball bat in hand ready to swing for the fences. Trouble is, the parent taking the photo is standing behind said chain link fence, which is ruining the shot.
But then, with a PowerPoint-esque screenwipe, the chain link fence is removed from the image, leaving us with a perfectly uninterrupted shot of Lil’ Slugger. Check it out below:
It was one of those moments that seemed too good to be true, and for years after it absolutely was. It haunted me. I was given a tantalizing glimpse of the future, yet year after year went by with no obvious signs of progress.
I was left waiting, yearning for more until 2021 when Google announced Magic Eraser. At last, light at the end of the tunnel. While impressive, this first iteration wasn’t capable of generating the fence-free image we had been shown years before.
In the years since, we’ve seen phone manufacturers tout various AI tools, with eraser functions always front and center. But the post-removal results still left me a little disappointed. That is until I picked up the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.
Samsung focused heavily on Galaxy AI during the Galaxy S25 launch event, and while Object Eraser – Samsung’s version of Google’s Magic Eraser – may have taken more of a back seat during the presentation compared to Now Brief, Audio Eraser, and Sketch to Image, Samsung definitely hasn’t ignored it – unlike the poor S Pen. Object Eraser has been further improved for the S25 series, and the results are remarkable.
You’ll need to access this generative AI feature through Samsung’s Gallery app, rather than Google Photos, and a quick tap of the Galaxy AI icon under the image you’re viewing takes you to the editor.
From there, you can select the people, objects, and obstructions you wish to have removed from your snap. Once you’re happy with the selections, tapping the large Generate button starts the magic.
And magic it is. Even in the crowded post-launch demo area, thronging with people, uneven lighting, and lots of furniture and textures, the Galaxy S25 Ultra was still able to impress. Take a look at these examples:
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It does a brilliant job at not only removing people and objects, which most eraser tools have mastered by now, but also filling in the unknown backgrounds behind these objects; it’s truly on another level.
I tried Object Eraser on the S25 Ultra side by side with Magic Eraser on the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, and the generated fill on Samsung’s phone came out on top every time.
Get me a chain link fence, stat
I first tried the S25’s improved Object Eraser tool a week before Galaxy Unpacked at a separate Samsung pre-brief event. I was so impressed by its performance that I held off pitching this article as I wanted to return to the phone at launch to make sure I hadn’t experienced a one-off fluke.
And thankfully, I hadn’t, as the S25 Ultra continued to deliver fantastic images with people erased and backgrounds smartly filled in.
Once the phone has generated the new image, a button appears in the corner allowing you to view the original photo when held down. I found myself flicking between the original and AI-generated versions a lot, looking at all the clever ways blank spaces had been neatly stitched with the original.
I wasn’t able to get in front of a chain link fence, but the Galaxy S25 series has me believing, for the first time since that day in 2017, that Google’s vision is now possible. For me, this is the realization of the promise made eight years ago.
*okay, so Google didn’t make the promise directly to me – but it’s felt personal over the last eight years
