Google is changing the behavior of Lens, its image search function on smartphones. Now the app immediately activates the device’s camera. A little novelty that makes it much more practical to use on a daily basis.
Google Lens, Google’s image search tool, has been updated. In this new version, the application changes its behavior at startup. As noted by our colleagues from 9to5Google, Google Lens now directly activates the smartphone camera, whereas previously, the device’s image gallery was displayed in the foreground.
Indeed, on the old version of Lens, the screen was split into two parts. In the first third, at the top, we saw a live preview of the image captured by the rear camera of the smartphone. It was then possible for the user to “search” or “translate” the image. As for the remaining two thirds, they were reserved for displaying the device’s image gallery, including the most recent screenshots.
Google Lens: a new feature in the spirit of the Circle to Search function
This update of Google Lens is part of the “Circle to Search” trend carried by the Californian firm. Presented alongside the release of the Samsung Galaxy S24, this innovative function now integrated into many models such as the Pixel makes it significantly easier to search for information on the Internet on an element displayed on the screen with a simple and natural gesture (circle, underline, scribble).
But for now, Google Lens remains the major tool for carrying out a search in the real world, that is to say by capturing an image of the outside world such as a flower, a monument or even an advertising poster.
Google Lens: slight modifications made to the tool
In addition to immediately activating the device’s camera when starting the app, slight changes have been made to Google Lens. Now the viewfinder uses a circular preview of the last image captured. In addition, to access the gallery, it is possible to press the last image captured or slide your finger to the top of the screen.
In 2024, the firm had already simplified Google Lens voice input. As a reminder, it is now possible to long press the camera button and start speaking to add a text query to the photo. In the coming months, video search should also be tested and added to Lens.
You can now find the new Google Lens update in version 16.0.7 of the application, on Android and iOS.