14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has just announced a new feature for iPhone users that allows them to scan any printed text with the device’s camera and then perform a search online.
If you’re a long-time Microsoft user who owns an iPhone, you probably noticed how committed the software giant is to improving its apps on Android and iOS.
So today, the company rolled out a new app update for iPhones that essentially makes it possible for users to scan text with their cameras and then send the output to Bing for a quick search.
This functionality is part of the most recent version of Bing Search on iOS (6.31), and the update also brings other camera enhancements, performance improvements, and bug fixes, as the company itself explained.
Probably on its way to Android too
Needless to say, this is quite a handy feature for those who want to quickly look for information from a poster, for example, but as many people know, the Bing Search app isn’t really the most popular project that Microsoft developed for mobile devices.
So while it’s indeed useful, it would be much more than that if it was released as part of a different application, like Microsoft Launcher, for instance. Truth be told, Microsoft’s options on iOS are a lot more limited given Apple’s walled garden, but there’s no doubt such an improvement has a lot more potential and being part of a different app would guarantee more exposure.
For now, you can download the most recent Bing Search for iOS from the App Store on iOS, and expect similar improvements to be released for Android users too.
In case you’re wondering, all 2018 iPhones are supported by the Bing Search app for iOS, as the previous update to version 6.30 included official support for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR.