(Pocket-lint) – Google offers a powerful image recognition feature called Google Lens. Pocket-lint has a separate tutorial on Google Lens that explains how the feature works and what it can do in general, but in this guide we’ll show you how you can start using it right now, specifically in the Chrome web browser on your laptop or desktop computer. and why you should try it.
Why should you try Google Lens?
Starting with why, before we get into how, just know that you can use Google Lens to search any online image and identify anything in the photo – everything from buildings and animals to clothes, plants and art.
On Lens laptops and desktops, Chrome lets you search for an image, find its source, see visual matches, get text or translation, and more. This is an alternative, more visual way to learn more details about the image. For example, you can use a photo of headphones to search for more information about where to buy them, view images with visually similar headphones, or find where the image is used elsewhere.
How Google Lens works in Chrome on a desktop computer
When Google Lens first came to Chrome for laptops and desktops, if you used it for an image on a website, your browser will open a results page in a new tab. In May 2022, Google updated the feature so that it would instead display results in a more modern-looking panel that opens to the right of the page / image you’re viewing. Only when you want to find the image source will Chrome open a new tab in your browser. But you can also expand the experience so that it opens in a new section if you prefer. By default, this will be the panel to the right of your screen.
How to use Google Lens in Chrome on a desktop computer
Google Lens can help you learn more about any image on the web. It has long been available on mobile devices, accessible through Google’s mobile apps on iOS devices or the camera app on some Android phones. In 2021, Google Lens has reached users of laptops and desktops via the Chrome web browser – where it can be accessed by right-clicking on any online image and then selecting “Search for an image with Google Lens”.
Before you get started: Google said to set Google as my default search engine and update to the latest version of Chrome.
- Open a page in Chrome.
- Right-click on an image.
- From the menu, select Google Lens Image Search.
- Search results are displayed on the right side of the screen.
You can click the expand button in the corner to open the results in a new tab.
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Note: If you right-click somewhere outside the image, you can select “Search for images with Google Lens” from the menu. After clicking this option, you can drag to select an image.
Want to know more?
Google offers a Google Lens support page here, which details how to use the feature in the Chrome web browser for laptops and desktops.
Written by Maggie Tillman.
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