It was way back in 2017 that Google Lens was first launched in Google I/O 2017 keynote and since then it slumped into oblivion. The reason was obvious, it was only available on Pixel phones and that too in a handful of models. Fast forward to Google I/O 2018, the Google Lens is back in all new avatar with more features and advantages and most importantly as a standalone app. Yes, you read that right, Google lens is now available to download from Google Play Store on any mobile handsets and tablets that runs on Android Marshmallow and up.

What is Google Lens?

Imagine it as a third eye, a feature once downloaded joins hand with your camera app and helps you recognize, find, and copy paste anything that is presented before it. For example, you see a food picture and want to know where to get it. Google Lens will give you possible restaurants or markets with reviews to find the food you are looking for. Or, you are looking at an object, say a flower, Google Lens can do the knowledge digging for you and present you with information.

Google Lens works with Google Assistant, Google maps, search engine and other third-party apps to present actionable information before you. Google Lens can also identify barcodes, passwords and any real-world objects. This year Google added another feature to Lens, it can now copy and paste text from the real world into your phone or desktop.

How to use Google Lens?

Finding information about photos and smart text selection are two of the key features of Google Lens and comes immensely handy in copying study notes from textbooks or blackboards. Google lens has now been embedded into Google Photos app. This means you can use smart-text selection and real-world copy and paste through:

  1. Android mobiles and tablets
  2. iPhones and iPads
  3. Chromebooks

If you are using Google Lens from your phone, then you directly launch it form your camera app; if using Chromebooks then you need the Google Lens app.

How to use Google Lens in Google Photos?

  1. Take a snap of the object you want information about
  2. Open Google Photos app and select the object
  3. Select the Google Lens icon in the bottom of the screen

So what kind of information do you get? If you take picture of a person, Google lens open search engine to show you information related to that individual. If it is text photo in other language, then it shows a translation. But don’t except Lens to churn up information about anything and everything yet. It needs way more data training before it can actually do the impossible of recognizing anything under the sun.

Now the next most important thing is copy and pasting text.

Here are the steps to copy and paste text through Google Lens

  1. Open Google Lens either form the app or from your camera.
  2. Tap Continue.
  3. Hold the phone right on top of the text you want to copy and select it. You can drag the blue circle till the end of the text you want to select.

    Image: Android Central
  4. Now select Copy from the menu.
  5. Open an app or document where you wish to paste the selected text. Press anywhere to access the selection menu and tap Paste.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here