You need to use a lot of quotation when discussing AI. There’s “intelligence,” of course, but also “thinking,” which these days usually refers to a specific type of model that breaks requests into multiple steps and takes longer to process (or “think through”) them. Thinking models are nothing new, but if you use Gemini, you do have new thinking “levels” to choose from when using non-thinking models. Here’s how it works.
As spotted by 9to5Google, there’s a new “Thinking level” option at the bottom of the model selector in Google’s Gemini app for iOS and Android. To be clear, this isn’t the “Thinking” model listed under “Gemini 3,” as this model has been available for some time. Instead, “Thinking level” appears when using either Fast (which uses Gemini 3 Flash), or Gemini 3.1 Pro, when you aren’t using Thinking. When “Thinking level” does show up on your end, you’ll see two options: “Standard” and “Extended.” Google says that Standard is best for most problems, while Extended offers more time for “complex topics.”
It seems that Google is giving users more processing options when using non-thinking models in Gemini. If you’re using the Fast option, for example, you might not get the answer (or the quality of answer) you’re looking for, since the model is designed to produce a response as quickly as possible. Therefore, you may want to dive into the Thinking level menu to switch to Extended: It may take a bit longer than usual, but you may boost your chance of getting the response you’re expecting—all without having to use the actual Thinking model, which may take too long altogether.
Per 9to5Google’s coverage, this doesn’t appear to be exclusive to Google AI Plus subscribers. In the outlet’s screenshots showing the feature, there’s still an option to upgrade to the subscription plan, so free users should see “Thinking level” rolling out on their end. (As of this article, I don’t see it yet.)
What do you think so far?
These changes come on the eve of Google I/O, where Google will undoubtedly announce many new Gemini features and AI updates in general. Last week, the company hosted The Android Show: I/O Edition, which ran through a number of Android announcements ahead of I/O. This was the second year in a row Google decided to break out Android news into its own segment, likely because it wants to dedicate so much of I/O to AI.
