How to use the Add Me feature on Pixel 9 phones
The days of having to decide who should take the group photo and who should not be in the photo are over – if you have a Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro or Pixel 9 Pro Fold Device.
Google’s latest flagship phones have a feature called “Add Me” that can stitch two photos together so it looks like everyone is in the same shot. Using augmented reality and AI, it overlays the images so you can take a shot of everyone and then have the photographer swap with someone standing in the frame. After you take the second picture, your phone automatically stitches the two images together so you (seem to) have one shot with everyone in it.
See also: Getting a Pixel 9? How to prepare your old Pixel for trade-in
Of course, you always have the option of asking passersby to just take a photo of everyone, but if you’re a little shy or there’s no one around, “Add Me” can be a handy feature. (If you want to have a bit of fun and channel your inner “Twins Rarely Come Alone,” you can also use the feature to take a picture of the same person twice.)
How to use Add Me.
- First, make sure your Pixel 9 phone has the latest software update. To do so, go to Settings > system > Software updates. Also, make sure your Pixel Camera app is updated by going to the Play Store.
- Once everything is up to date, open the Camera app and select Add me from the photo options below (directly below the shutter button).
- Have everyone except the first photographer stand in the frame, leaving enough room for them to jump in later. Take the photo.
- The first photographer can then pass the phone to someone else and have everyone else leave the frame – their AR versions will step in for them. Use the viewfinder to position the first photographer so it looks like they’ve been there the whole time and shoot the second photo.
- “Add Me” then combines the two images, which you will then automatically find in your Photos app. Done!
Some notes on “Add Me”
While testing this feature on the Pixel 9 Pro XL, my colleagues Faith Chihil and Jessica Fierro and I got creative and tried to see how far we could push it. I played the role of photographer #1 and snapped a shot of the two of them before jumping in for the second shot. We tried a photo of Jessica and I with our arms around each other using AR, but Add Me had trouble overlaying the two images, making it look like we’re just awkwardly reaching out. Even when we limited ourselves to me putting my arm around Jessica’s shoulder, the images still didn’t overlay the way we wanted. But maybe with a little trial and error, you can get the result you want.
That didn’t quite work out.
This was not the case here either.
We also tried to fool Add Me by having Faith stand in the first shot and then staying still for the second shot (because two Faiths are better than one), but Add Me wouldn’t go for it and only showed her once (in this picture you can see that all that’s left of her is one finger next to my arm that wasn’t deleted).
This photo, which shows only Faith’s finger on the left, reminds Peter Pettigrew: “One finger. That’s all that’s left, one finger, nothing else.”
We tried a “disguise” again, but to our surprise, Add Me still didn’t want her. It only wanted a Faith. (Once again, you can see that only her hand is left.)
I still haven’t had any luck tricking Add Me.
However, for some reason it was removed when we tried again Me from the last recording, and Faith was recorded twice. All of this is to say that Add Me will probably be buggy if you try to trick it.
And now I’ve been deleted.
But if you want to have fun and get your picture taken twice, go ahead. We had no problems and got these fun photos of Faith and her evil twin.
The new reboot of “Twins Rarely Come Alone” is coming to a theater near you.
And note that you can only use Add Me with the Pixel’s rear cameras, because… if you’re using the selfie camera, you can just take a selfie! You don’t need AR to get everyone in the picture.
