Google Pixel 4

Pixel 4 can ‘Export frames’ from recorded video with new Google Photos editor UI

Abner Li | Nov 2 2019 - 10:50 am PT

The Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL’s video capabilities have mostly been criticized for not supporting 4K 60FPS capture. However, the 2019 Made by Google phones do have a new feature that lets you “Export frames” from any recorded video.

You can easily grab stills from any video shot on the Pixel 4. In Google Photos, there’s a new “Edit” UI where the timeline is now at the very bottom of this screen. The “Stabilize” and “Rotate” actions are now icons, while there’s a new “Export frame” button dead center.

Tapping after selecting a point will save that still to your gallery in 1080×1920 or 2160×3840 resolution. The quality is not as good as an actual image, but this export frames shortcut for Pixel 4 video is convenient nevertheless. This feature would be quite useful on all other devices as part of Google Photos.

If you capture video from the main Camera UI through the new ability to press and hold on the shutter, Pixel 4 will save up to 10 shots in HDR quality. There’s a dedicated “Export HDR shots” button in the new Google Photos UI. When recording through this mode, swiping up to a video’s “Info” sheet has a “Shots in this video” timeline. This capability is reminiscent of Top Shot for Motion Photos introduced on the Pixel 3 last year.

The Pixel 4’s export frames feature for video with the new UI is available on Google Photos 4.28 and later.