Skip to main content

Google Lens adding new tools to highlight menus, split checks, translate, more

Google Lens is adding a number of features at I/O 2019, with manual filters at the bottom of the camera interface to enter a specific mode. For example, pointing your camera at a menu will highlight dishes by connecting with Google Maps.

When users enter the restaurant view and point at a menu, Google Lens will highlight the dishes and link to reviews in Google Maps. Snapping a check will bring up a tip calculator, with Lens telling everybody their total.

Say you’re at a restaurant, figuring out what to order. Lens can automatically highlight which dishes are popular–right on the physical menu. When you tap on a dish, you can see what it actually looks like and what people are saying about it, thanks to photos and reviews from Google Maps.

Augmented reality is also coming to print materials. For example, hovering your camera over special magazine pages could overlay a video of step-by-step recipe instructions.
Or if you see a dish you’d like to cook in an upcoming issue of Bon Appetit magazine, you’ll be able to point your camera at a recipe and have the page come to life and show you exactly how to make it.

Users can also point your camera at text and Lens will automatically detect the language and overlay the translation right on top of the original words. This works in more than 100 languages, with Google Lens also coming to the Google Go app for international users and lower-power devices.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

You’re reading 9to5Google — experts who break news about Google and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Google on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Comments

Author

Avatar for Abner Li Abner Li

Editor-in-chief. Interested in the minutiae of Google and Alphabet. Tips/talk: abner@9to5g.com

Manage push notifications

notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications
notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications