As a relatively new invention, the use of AI on smartphones is still limited. Currently, the option to remove unwanted objects from images is one of the most popular and highly rated. To see which solution performs better, let's compare Apple's Clean Up feature on the iPhone with Google's Magic Editor.
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Since the launch of the Google Pixel 6 series in 2021, object removal photo editing tools have become incredibly popular. Major smartphone brands like Samsung, OnePlus, Oppo, and even services like Canva now offer the feature. In fact, Magic Editor is accessible on any device using the Google Photos app. However, most implementations rely on cloud-based AI, and uploading photos to the cloud understandably raises privacy concerns.
One standout feature of both the Google Pixel 9 series and Apple's iPhone 16 series is that they offer this functionality on-device. Google's Magic Editor and Apple's Clean Up work offline, meaning your photos never leave your device.
It’s worth noting that while Apple Intelligence has been improved in iOS 18.2, the feature is still in beta. However, for the purposes of this comparison, we’ve used the same version of Apple Clean Up that’s included in the latest stable version of iOS 18.2.
Note : In the galleries below, the first photo is the original, followed by the iPhone Clean Up photo, and the Google Magic Editor photo at the bottom.
Let’s start with something simple: A scene from a Christmas market in Mumbai, India, featuring a Christmas-themed ice cream stall. However, a fire extinguisher in the background ruins the festive atmosphere. We used Magic Editor and Clean Up to remove the fire extinguisher, and found that Google’s Magic Eraser did a better job.
Magic Editor effectively removed the fire extinguisher while preserving the shadows and details of the wood wall. Clean Up, on the other hand, struggled, blending parts of the concrete floor into the wood wall area.
These object removal tools are often used to remove unwanted or side objects from a frame, but what if you need to remove the main subject? This demo explores that situation. In this image, an owl figurine is placed on a white sofa with a pink cushion behind it. The task is to remove the owl figurine. The results from Magic Editor and Apple Clean Up are stunning.
In this case, Apple’s Clean Up tool does a better job. The removal is clean, with better blending and fewer visible artifacts—but it still leaves some shadows on the left side. Magic Editor, on the other hand, struggles, leaving the padding and the area where the owl statue is located smudged.
In this photo of a boat on a lake, Magic Editor produced significantly better results. While Apple's Clean Up successfully removed the boat, Magic Editor not only removed it, but also seamlessly blended the area and removed the lake's shadow.
This photo was taken on a street in Pescara, Italy, and shows the architecture of a historic church. The original image shows a fairly busy street with a few people standing in front of the entrance, some people on the sides, and a few bicycles. After comparing the results, Magic Editor does a better job here.
While the iPhone produced clearer results, it missed key details, such as completely erasing the stairs in front of the church, leaving the man on the left, and cutting out the bottom of the street lamp on the right. Magic Editor also struggled with the stairs, but kept the bottom of the street lamp and erased the man on the left.
On a case-by-case basis, Google's Magic Editor comes out on top. While Apple's Clean Up tool is a little easier to use—you'll need to search through the photo editor's tools section in Google Photos to find Magic Editor—and often produces aesthetically pleasing results, its accuracy isn't always consistent.
Magic Editor's results are generally better (its object removal is great) because it takes into account the surroundings of the object being removed. However, for a beta tool, Apple Clean Up does a great job. It's impressive to see Apple catching up so quickly with such impressive results.
However, like most AI tools, the object removal tools still have a lot of room for improvement – results will vary each time you use Clean Up or Magic Editor on either device. But most importantly, it’s great to have these tools at your fingertips – something that would have been completely unthinkable not so long ago.
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