Optical text recognition can already be found in many applications. Now Google is also following suit with its Gboard app and lets you scan and save texts directly from the keyboard. You can find out how this works here.
Optical text and character recognition (OCR for short) is a popular feature that can already be found in many apps and services. This makes it possible to recognize individual text passages via the camera and transfer them to your cell phone.
Now Google is also equipping its Gboard keyboard for Android with this helpful function. This means that the OCR function can be used not only on the company’s own Pixel cell phones but also on other smartphones.
The feature has been tested by the tech giant in a beta phase for some time and is now gradually being rolled out for Android devices. Find out how you can use the new tool below.
Text scanner for Gboard: This is what the new function can do.
In order to use the new OCR feature, you must first activate the app permission for the camera in the settings. Additionally, Gboard must be set as the primary keyboard so that the keyboard automatically appears for text entry in various applications.
You can then select either the symbol for the app overview icon or the gear wheel in the menu bar above the keyboard to display Gboard’s various tools.
In the best case scenario, you will find the tool called “Scan Text” at the bottom right. When you select the function, the camera switches on and tries to capture the text in front of you by tapping the scan icon .
If this was successful, you can copy the scanned text and use it on your cell phone for a variety of purposes. However, the new feature is not yet activated for everyone and will only be available on all devices over time.
