Gboard’s New ‘Scan Text’ OCR Tool Is My Favorite New Feature

Gboard is the Swiss Army knife ofAndroid keyboardsas it is loaded with a variety of useful features and customization options. Another fresh addition to Gboard’s feature list is a newOCR-like Scan text featurefound in the app’s latest beta. This makes scanning text from the real world, copying and inserting it into space quite seamless. So read on if you want to learn how to use Gboard’s scan text feature, some practical applications, and a few limitations.

Use the Scan Text Feature in Gboard on Android

Until now, you had to use the Google Lens app to scan text with your camera. Although useful, copying the scanned text, switching to another app, and pasting it into the desired field was a bit inconvenient. This is a major reason I didn’t use Google Lens that often. Now that this feature is available in the Gboard app, scanning and inputting text will be a fluid experience.

The Scan text feature is available in Gboard’s latest beta version 13.6 and higher, which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. If you already have the beta, follow these steps to use it.

Gboard will continue to highlight the text after you have inserted it in case you want to use it again. You can use this feature on any app on your phone where there is a text field.

Use Cases for Scan Text on Gboard

Now there can be various scenarios where I think you might find this feature handy. I can already think of some right off the top of my head, and some I have been using for the last couple of days. I have listed them below:

Limitations of Scan Text on Gboard

While the feature is helpful, it isn’t without its shortcomings. You should know them before getting your expectations too high.

This brings us to the end of this article. As it’s evident from the limitations, this feature is not here to replace Google Lens. In my opinion, this feature should suffice for some basicOCRrequirements.

While translation and search are available on Gboard, the extra steps you have to take don’t make it worth the effort. Still, I am happy to have this feature available, and I know for sure that I am going to be using it more frequently than Lens. What are your thoughts about the new Gboard feature? Let us know in the comments.

Anshuman Jain

As a tech journalist, I dive into the ever-evolving tech landscape with a particular interest for smartphones, apps, and gaming. With a passion for sharing insights, my articles blend expertise with a friendly touch—think of me as your friendly neighborhood tech support.

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