Why Use This Circle To Search App?
The Problem with Google's CTS Version
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Forced Cloud Syncing: Uploads your selection to servers even when you just want to copy text.
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Get's accidentally triggerd frequently, exposing sensitive data instantly to google
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Ecosystem Lock-in: Restricted to Google Search—no support for Bing, Yandex, or AI models.
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Locked to Google ecosystem—no choice of search engine
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Missing Features: Useful features like "Share" and "Save" have been stripped out.
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Hardware Exclusivity: Only available on expensive flagship devices (Pixel 8, Galaxy S24+).
What We Do Differently
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Only what you circle gets processed—nothing else
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True Offline OCR: Text recognition works 100% locally on your device—no internet needed.
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QR detection offline, Smart Scan offline—no unnecessary servers
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Universal Compatibility: Works with any search engine (Google, Bing, Yandex, TinEye,).
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Restored Utility: We brought back the "Share" and "Save" features Google removed.
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Works on any Android device, not just expensive flagships
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Works on De-Googled Devices no google programs needed.
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And has many other useful features
100% Independent: Works on any Android phone (Android 10+), without requiring Google Play Services or OEM-specific software.
Privacy-First: No background tracking or logs—just pure on-device selection.
➥ Download:
- github
It still needs a lot of improvements and isn't polished yet, as I am a solo developer working on it. You can download it from GitHub for now, as the new update is yet to be released on F-Droid.
You can disable the native Google CTS long-press gesture from your device’s navigation or launcher settings—it depends on your device or ROM.
As for replacing the native Google gesture, it’s reserved for Google only, so third-party apps can’t override it directly.
That’s why apps use workarounds like a bottom overlay to trigger CTS or other actions. This app already supports that—you just need to set it up manually.