Credit: Lucas Gouveia / Android Police
By
Jon Gilbert
Published 23 hours ago
Jon has been an author at Android Police since 2021. He primarily writes features and editorials covering the latest Android news, but occasionally reviews hardware and Android apps. His favorite Android device was the Pixel 2 XL, and he regards the three months when he owned an iPhone as a time of the utmost shame. Jon graduated with a History degree in 2018, but quickly realized his writing skills were better put to use writing about tech rather than essays. He started writing and editing for startups shortly after graduating, where he did everything from writing website copy to managing and editing for a group of writers. When he's not sitting at his computer, you can find him working at Warhammer World, reading sci-fi, or turning his speakers up to 11.
Sign in to your Android Police account
Summary
Generate a summary of this story
follow
Follow
followed
Followed
Like
Like
Thread
26
Log in
Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents:
Try something different:
Show me the facts
Explain it like I’m 5
Give me a lighthearted recap
One of the more disappointing features of the Pixel 10 was Magic Cue.
This feature is meant to surface relevant information automatically, saving you time switching between apps and copying details manually.
While some Android users have reported that the feature works as intended, it's inconsistent at best.
AP's Conor Crawley reported that, although Magic Cue worked once, he was unable to consistently reproduce the effect.
It has a lot of potential, but it needs work. Unfortunately, Google seems to be on the wrong track and has inadvertently revealed an inherent flaw with its devices in the process.
Related
Why my Pixel feels smarter after turning off half its AI features
I switched off my Pixel's AI, and it felt brand new
Posts 6 By Ben Khalesi Nov 10, 2025Improved privacy is great, but it highlights a glaring flaw
Tensor chips aren't able to handle the pressure
Amongst the excitement around November's Pixel Feature Drop was an update from Google you might have missed. I wouldn't blame you either.
"Private AI Compute" is not the name of a feature that sounds likely to excite me. Nevertheless, tucked at the bottom of Google's blog post announcing the feature was the following:
Magic Cue now delivers more timely suggestions, powered by our new privacy technology, Private AI Compute, in the cloud.
This intrigued me. How exactly was privacy going to make Private AI Compute faster?
I read through another tedious blog post regarding this feature, and again, hidden at the bottom was another teaser:
Private AI Compute enables on-device features to perform with extended capabilities while retaining their privacy assurance. Using this technology, Magic Cue is getting even more helpful.
I felt like I was on a treasure hunt. Google was gradually revealing a little more of the puzzle with each step.
However, it wasn't until I dug through the technical brief that I discovered the answer and found out why Google was so reluctant to provide a direct answer.
Magic Cue handles a lot of sensitive data, so all processing is done on the device for privacy and security reasons.
However, Private AI Compute's ability to securely process complex AI demands means that now some of Magic Cue's processing can be done in the cloud, thereby improving its performance.
This sounds good on the surface, but it reveals worrying implications.
Firstly, Tensor chips are unable to handle Magic Cue's demands. Secondly, Google isn't fixing Magic Cue's problems.
I thought Tensor chips could handle these requests?
Google didn't tell us that Magic Cue was limited at launch
It's no secret that on-device AI processing is slower than that in the cloud. If you want to utilize advanced Gemini models, you have to be connected to the internet.
However, it's a worrying sign when Google's flagship phone is unable to handle its software.
If Google admitted that Magic Cue was limited by the Pixel 10's hardware at launch, this wouldn't be a problem.
However, the announcement of Private AI Compute indicates that Google intentionally released an exclusive feature that was limited by the Pixel 10's hardware.
It's hard to identify how much impact Private AI Compute had on Magic Cue.
Users have reported Magic Cue working since the feature's launch, but it's impossible to tell from these anecdotes whether the feature is indeed faster.
Google has also not specified just how Magic Cue has improved beyond stating that you will receive "more timely suggestions."
However, disregarding the limits of Tensor chips for a moment, I have to ask: why is Google prioritizing Magic Cue's performance when that wasn't the problem?
Google isn't fixing Magic Cue's biggest problem
Magic Cue needs to be smarter, not faster
Every time I read about situations where Magic Cue works, they usually mention how the prompt appears instantly.
This is, after all, how the feature is intended to work; it wouldn't be helpful if the address you needed appeared after you had finished typing it.
Magic Cue is fast enough. The problem is that it doesn't appear at all in most situations.
I've personally never seen it work despite trying to provoke it deliberately, and AP's reporters have seen it only once or twice each.
It's hard to identify what Magic Cue's problem is.
Users have had wildly different experiences, and even recreating the scenarios shown by Google doesn't work consistently.
The increasingly likely reason is just that it isn't capable of reliably achieving its claims like most AI tools. They work occasionally, but consistency is hard to achieve.
Tensor chips are more limited than we thought, and Magic Cue may never live up to expectations
Private AI Compute is a boring but brilliant innovation from Google. While it's powerful, it doesn't solve the key problems we are experiencing with AI on our devices.
I find it increasingly unlikely that Magic Cue will ever work as intended, and I doubt Daily Hub will impress us when it resurfaces.
What I find most worrying is the unspoken limitations of Tensor chips. Pixel phones are meant to lead the industry in on-device AI processing. If they can't handle demand, no one can.
-
Phones
We want to hear from you! Share your opinions in the thread below and remember to keep it respectful.
Reply / Post Images Attachment(s) Please respect our community guidelines. No links, inappropriate language, or spam.Your comment has not been saved
Send confirmation email Sort by: Popular Oldest Newest- Terms
- Privacy
- Feedback
5 days ago
This phone is a great fit for most people, and it's now even harder to ignore thanks to a steep price drop
5 days ago
The quiet power of Google Wallet's 'Save to phone' button
5 days ago
Your older Google Pixel phone just got an updated device health dashboard
4 days ago
Upgrade your home hydration with Waterdrop Filter this Black Friday
Trending Now
Samsung Galaxy S26 may debut a Perplexity-powered Bixby
5 surprising ways I use Google Maps that have nothing to do with navigation
The one feature Samsung Wallet still can't get right — and probably never will
I don't trust Android Police anymore, and here's why. They need to be smarter not just article creators.
2025-11-23 13:45:29 Upvote 12 Downvote Reply 1 CopyThat's perfect. Some of these "articles" aren't what most would call good journalism, even as low as the bar is today.
2025-11-23 18:50:23 Upvote 6 Downvote Reply CopyCool more pixel phone bashing, is this supposed to be a opinion article or something else just because you don't understand magic cue.
2025-11-23 09:12:51 Upvote 16 Downvote Reply 3 CopyThe Pixel doesn't receive anywhere near enough bashing. Where are the articles about P8P's losing WiFi and Bluetooth permanently for the last year? Where are the articles about P9 series camera bumps falling off? Where are the articles about how buggy PixelOS is compared to other Android versions? Pixel gets away with murder because it's made by Google. If the Pixel was some random Chinese phone it would be absolutely eviscerated in the press.
2025-11-23 10:30:08 Upvote 5 Downvote Reply CopyGoogle Pixel never gets bashed as nearly as iPhone or other Android phones. If Xiaomi released a phone of this price with similarly underwhelming hardware, they'll get mercilessly bashed. Pixel's buggy software is not much of a trophy either
2025-11-23 16:02:46 Upvote 3 Downvote Reply CopySeems like a feature that I would never use.
2025-11-23 08:49:50 Upvote 10 Downvote Reply CopyI don't "read here is why" posts anymore. And not telling you why.
2025-11-23 13:04:48 Upvote 8 Downvote Reply CopyThis is terrible
2025-11-23 10:31:26 Upvote 7 Downvote Reply CopyNot sure why everybody is bashing you. It was a good article pointing out yet another pixel failure. I own the pixel 10 pro xl and I've only seen this magic cue pop up once when I first set up the phone. As a selling point for an AI tool, this was a promise that wasn't delivered. Thanks for giving this issue the attention it deserves.
2025-11-23 11:26:00 Upvote 4 Downvote Reply CopyBought the Pixel 10 Pro XL, and within a month turned it back in for a "Sammy" 25+.... I've owned every Google pixel premium phone that came out, and all of them is just full of bugs and problems. Google needs to just offer a two OPS with their phones; Tensor or Snapdragon..... Eventually the people will go with the Snapdragon, and the Tensor would phase out....just as Samsung offers the "failed" Exynos and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5....snapdragon is just as intelligent, with great performance.....the tech people are not cutting it with Google
2025-11-23 10:45:02 Upvote 3 Downvote Reply CopyMagic Cue is new. It's working about as well as Apple Intelligence so I'm willing to cut Google some slack. Next year you'll be complaining about it being too good.
2025-11-23 11:38:35 Upvote 3 Downvote Reply CopyI don't trust android police anymore.
2025-11-23 15:40:40 Upvote 4 Downvote Reply Copy99.9% of Pixel users will probably never care. I would love to have the ability to get this kind of self important nothing an article published and actually paid for it This kind of work should earn you a month of working in Amazon fulfillment center....
2025-11-23 12:45:33 Upvote 3 Downvote Reply CopySo according to Google themselves, they switched from Qualcomm to Tensor chips to enable powerful on-device AI since "the competition couldn't keep up with Google's technological advancements" (remeber Pixel 6 launch?). And now, after all the hype, all the marketing, their flagship chip isn't future proof for even six months?
My honest opinion: Google just throw in the towel, call Tensor a dead end, and use Mediatek.
2025-11-23 16:09:06 Upvote 2 Downvote Reply CopyNo intelligent person cares about Magic Cue. Furthermore, no intelligent person thinks the Pixel 10 is a bad phone because of any issue with Magic Cue. You seem new.
2025-11-23 14:17:04 Upvote 2 Downvote Reply CopyThe biggest reason I don't trust Pixel phones anymore is the battery. Yes it's not as fast as a Galaxy S series but unless you're a gamer you won't notice it. Yes it is limited in memory because of AI Core sapping a THIRD if the RAM, but that really only affects heavy multitaskers. It's also inferior to Galaxy and iPhone in many other respects, but it can also usually be found much cheaper as well and it's not exactly sluggish. Most "AI" things people don't care about (yet) because they're nowhere near polished and they're going to not be free forever.
The battery, however, is not only small, but Google starts artificially reducing its capacity at 200 cycles, which can easily be a year for many people and less than two years for everyone, because they won't use proper, durable batteries like Samsung and Apple, and you cannot disable this feature. Battery life of even the Pro XL is not amazing, and what's going to happen around the year mark once Battery Health kicks in and starts reducing its life even faster? Will it even make it 10 hours at 2 years without charging? That's the single greatest reason that as much as I loathe Samsung I just cannot bring myself to replace my S23 Ultra with a Pixel 10 Pro XL.
2025-11-23 18:22:01 Upvote 2 Downvote Reply CopyQuit whining. It'll improve over time.
2025-11-23 23:21:39 Upvote 1 Downvote Reply CopyI don't trust Google at all. PostmarketOS all the way.
2025-11-23 15:46:21 Upvote 2 Downvote Reply Copy'I find it increasingly unlikely that Magic Cue will ever work as intended"
That shows how limited your thinking is. Of course it will get better. At some point it will be amazing.
You saying that is like going back to old timee telephones. When they hung on the wall and you had to pick up the receiver and crank the handle to talk to a switchboard operator to have them connect you to someone else and thinking that "man this is way better than Morris code, but this still is annoying and will probably never get any better".
It's narrow minded.
2025-11-23 13:15:44 Upvote 1 Downvote Reply CopyLove Magic Cue. Works great for me.
2025-11-23 08:54:27 Upvote 6 Downvote Reply 2 CopyThis is the standard response from Pixel owners for every single issue. Sad.
2025-11-23 10:28:16 Upvote 8 Downvote Reply CopyThomas
The feature works great for some and that is sad to you.... Thanks for sharing your nothingburger of an opinion. What a waste of time
2025-11-23 12:31:49 Upvote 2 Downvote Reply CopyJust like every article about "a broken thing on pixel" magic cue has always been consistent for me. I really am starting to think you Android police people make shit up just to have something to write about.
2025-11-23 12:20:49 Upvote 1 Downvote Reply CopyI have never trusted Google Pixel Phones. They give me an eerie feeling using them. I beta test new beta releases of Android OS.
2025-11-23 16:11:09 Upvote 1 Downvote Reply CopyNobody cares about your opinion.
2025-11-23 16:01:34 Upvote 1 Downvote Reply CopyCool story bro
2025-11-23 09:47:30 Upvote 4 Downvote Reply Copy