Google unveils PhotoScan; a new way to convert physical photos to digital memories

Google has revealed PhotoScan; a new app for Android and iOS which allows users to convert physical photographs into digital files.

If you’re like many people, you have a collection of physical photos which are steadily gathering dust while your digital photo library blooms. To solve that problem, Google has unveiled PhotoScan; a new app designed to transfer physical images into digital ones with just four taps of a smartphone’s shutter button.
To use PhotoScan, users will need to take a preliminary photograph of the physical image they which to recapture, after which PhotoScan will identify four to five target areas. Once those areas have been captured again, the app will compile all captured images to form a complete view of the original photograph, which will be saved in a high-resolution file.
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While many such scanning apps exist already, PhotoScan is unique in that the application will require users to take several snaps of a photograph, whereafter the app will automatically detect and remove edges, straighten the image, and remove glare all before converting the image into a high-res file.

If a user already makes use of Google Photos, the final image will be automatically uploaded to the service and categorized thanks to Google’s deep-learning-based AI.
PhotoScan itself is joined by several new updates to Google Photos, which includes an improved Auto Enhance feature as well as several new editing tools. Twelve new filters add to the equation, which are calibrated for optimal effect by machine intelligence.
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What are your thoughts on Google’s new PhotoScan app? Would you use the service to convert your physical memories to digital ones, or would you pass on the idea altogether? Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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Download PhotoScan (Android | iOS)