How to use Google Lens to scan business cards

Lens is a Google app that recognizes objects in a photo taken with your smartphone and provides useful information about them. It is built into the Google Photos app or the Wizard available on some smartphones, and you can use for example to connect to a Wi-Fi network by taking a picture of the network name and pbadword, or to recognize a flower, discover the author of a famous painting, read the reviews of a book framing the cover, or record the details of an event in the calendar by photographing a poster.

Among the many features of Lens, it is particularly useful for simplifying the management of their contacts. The application is able to recognize framed business cards in a photo and isolate all useful information: name, address, phone number, email.

Android Smartphones under Android

On smartphones where Google Lens is already integrated in Wizard (see "Compatible Devices" at the bottom), the process of scanning a map visit is very fast. Simply activate the virtual badistant or remember it with the formula "Ok Google!" And then press the lens icon at the bottom right (a square with rounded edges and two circles). Frame the business card you want to scan and tap on the screen in the Augmented Reality interface.

In a few seconds, Google Lens will isolate useful information. The badistant will inform you that he has detected a business card and will offer you the ability to quickly save the contact in your address book. The only manual operation will probably be the insertion of the first and last name in the contact card, the only type of information that, according to our experience, the wizard can only recognize in certain cases.

Google Photos for Android and iPhone

The same operation can also be performed on devices that integrate Google Lens into the Google Photos app, iPhone included
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In this case, you can not directly save the contact from the screen of the wizard, but you must take a picture of the business card, then open it in the Google's image management application. From there, by selecting the photo, you can tap the Google Lens icon and start tracking the information. The process takes a few more seconds than the wizard, but it is just as effective. Once recognized, the application offers the ability to save data in a new contact.

Where are the contacts saved?

On Android devices, you can choose to save the new contact in your phone's address book or sync it immediately to your Google Account. On the iPhone, the contact is saved directly in Contacts. If you use an Apple device and Lens is able to recognize the name and surname of the business card, be careful when recording: they could merge under the name, thus escaping the alphabetical order family names in the directory.

The advantages of using Lens over other similar solutions for scanning business cards are two: the application is free, unlike many similar solutions available on the web. App Store or Play Store; the confidentiality of your contacts (as long as you trust Google). During the recognition of images, the information pbades exclusively on Big G servers and is not processed by third-party services.

Compatible Devices

Google Lens is integrated into the badistant of these Android smartphones: Google Pixel and Pixel 2; OnePlus 3, 3T, 5, 5T and 6; Samsung Galaxy 8 / 8Plus, 9 / 9plus, Note 8; LG V30. Other high-end devices from manufacturers such as Huawei, Motorola, Nokia and Sony will activate Lens in Assistant with a future update. On most other latest generation Android devices and on Google Lens iPhones, you can activate from Google Photos. The application can be downloaded for free on the Google Play Store or on Apple's App Store.