Microsoft today announced a new AI-powered Visual Search function for its Bing search engine that will pretty much directly compete with Google Lens. Visual Search will let users search the web and shop online through pictures they have taken or selected from their camera roll.
For example, you can find out more about a landmark or flower by capturing it through the Bing app or uploading it from your device memory. Visual Search will then identify the object in question and provide web links you can explore further.
In the same way, you can shop for fashion items or furniture. If you see an object you like, take or upload a photo of it and the system will reply with shopping options and pricing for similar-looking items.
The Bing team says Visual Search will be continuously improved and expanded but the current version is available today in the Bing app for iOS and Android as well as Microsoft Launcher and the Microsoft Edge browser for Android. It'll also be soon available in Microsoft Edge for iOS and on Bing.com.
For identifying landmarks, hope it'll be better than that of Google.
As the maintainer of a 8mm film scan archive (see https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4_1cuziVtq8J3leMItMtr708Va6CKFsE ), I very often search for a specific location in the scanned footage. In only about 10% of the cases have I got a hit with Google - mostly with tourits stuff in Italy and the likes.
As I've saved all my "negative hit" 8mm framegrabs as well, I'll try to identify those locations with Bing too.
Hmmm.. sounds at first glance like it could be useful for someone wanting to identify e.g. a bird, butterfly, flower or animal that they've photographed. The problem is whether the AI software could accurately recognise it, and even expert biologists have problems distinguishing some species. Obviously this will takes several decades before it is able to identify wildlife accurately.
So, what can it actually do reliably? I'm not convinced it would recognise many landmarks unaided. Presumably then, the initial intention is to be able to "remember" a particular family member or model's face, so that once the first image is labelled, it can then locate and label all other images of the same person.
One would think that it could be programmed to classify things like beak shape, feather patterns, etc. perhaps at this point it has not been specifically adapted for such cases, and is going in more broad patterns only. Once an open “language” has been created for object classifation, researchers can contribute their knowledge to the algorithm. This could be applied to any subject matter where the identification can be made by inspecting certain features.
There are several apps that do identify wildlife, birds, and plants. Merlin identifies many birds and is adding more all the time. Audubon has an app that identifies many plant species.
desertsp & Nojo - Yes there are apps that can recognise a limited number of the more readily identifiable species of birds, animals, butterflies etc, but a high percentage of identifications require at the very least several photographs taken from different angles.
Many amphibians, reptiles and insects exhibit extreme intraspecific (within species) and geographical variation. Insects, except for a small number of veryy strongly patterned creatures, are particularly difficult, and many require microscopic examination.
So while current/near future apps may cope with a few common and easily recognisable creatures, it will be many years before they are able to reliably recognise a high enough percentage of creatures to fulfil the needs of scientists or anyone who needs/wants accurate identifications.
Did that really say "Bing app for Android"? Since it arrived, I have never seen anyone use Bing, and why is anyone going to want Bing on a Google Android device? Microsoft should have called it Zune Search, to indicate its relevance.
They ain't. The operating systems existed before even Bill Gates was born, even far more existed before Microsoft was founded! Heck, Bill Gates even bought their first OS to sell it to IBM, after they had made deal with IBM to provide them the OS.
Microsoft Office is nothing else than a copying others like Wordstar and WordPerfect, decade before Office and before Microsoft was founded even.
So who had the original thought? Not the Microsoft. Microsoft is not where it is now because they were creative, but because Bill Gates was shady and hard business dealer who just made it.
The Sony RX100 VI is a spectacularly capable travel camera, combining a flexible zoom range with impressive autofocus. But there's no getting around the fact that it's an expensive camera, and a longer lens comes with certain trade-offs. Read on for our full analysis.
The Tamron 70-210mm F4 Di VC USD is a lightweight telephoto zoom lens for DSLR cameras that comes in at an MSRP of $799. How does it perform? Find out in our full review.
Samsung's flagship Galaxy S9+ comes with comprehensive photography features like dual optically stabilized rear cameras, smooth 4K video and of course, beauty filters for your selfies. But is it the best smartphone camera for you? Find out how it compares against the likes of Apple's iPhone X and Google's Pixel 2 in our full review.
The Domke F-6, also known as the 'Little Bit Smaller' bag shares a lot of characteristics with the venerable (and a Little Bit Bigger) F-2. Senior Editor Barnaby Britton has been using one for several years.
The instant camera market is heating up, and with four formats and 15+ cameras to choose from, we felt it was high time to examine them all and pick our favorite.
Whether you're hitting the beach in the Northern Hemisphere or the ski slopes in the Southern, a rugged compact camera makes a great companion. In this buying guide we've taken a look at seven current models and chosen our favorites.
What's the best camera for a parent? The best cameras for shooting kids and family must have fast autofocus, good low-light image quality and great video. In this buying guide we've rounded-up several great cameras for parents, and recommended the best.
What's the best camera for shooting landscapes? High resolution, weather-sealed bodies and wide dynamic range are all important. In this buying guide we've rounded-up several great cameras for shooting landscapes, and recommended the best.
What’s the best camera costing over $2000? The best high-end camera costing more than $2000 should have plenty of resolution, exceptional build quality, good 4K video capture and top-notch autofocus for advanced and professional users. In this buying guide we’ve rounded up all the current interchangeable lens cameras costing over $2000 and recommended the best.
The iPhone Photography Awards (IPPAWARDS), was founded in 2007, making it the longest running iPhone photo competition in the world. Now in its 11th year, the winners of the IPPAWARDS have just been announced.
Our technical evaluation of the Panasonic GX9 has included a trip to the studio, where we put its 20MP Four Thirds sensor in front of our standard test scene.
The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VI earned high marks in our recent review, and we've revisited our collection of buying guides to reflect our final conclusions. Click through for links to our updated guides covering the best pocketable and long zoom compacts as well as the best choices for travel and video.
Fujifilm has announced the XF 200mm F2 R LM OIS WR telephoto lens along with a matching 1.4x teleconverter. This weather-sealed lens - 'matte silver' in color with a bold green hood - has a total of 19 elements, a nine-blade aperture and five stops of shake reduction according to Fujifilm. The lens and teleconverter kit will be available in late October for $6000.
Fujifilm's widest X-series zoom lens to-date, the XF 8-16mm F2.8 R LM WR, will hit the market in late November for $2000. The weather-sealed lens features ED, Super ED and aspherical elements along with a Nano GI coating.
We've seen different flavors of 360° cameras over the past couple of years, but the Vuze XR may be the first one that's designed to shoot both 360° spherical and 180° stereoscopic video in a single unit.
Huawei has launched the world's first photography contest with both AI and human judges. The contest began on July 12 and will run for 8 weeks. During this time, photographers can submit their images via a Facebook Messenger chatbot.
Fujifilm has announced the XF10, a premium compact camera with a fast 28mm equivalent F2.8 lens and 24MP APS-C sensor. This replacement for the X70 will ship in August for $500.
It won't come as a surprise to anyone that there are some unpleasant, predatory men within the photography industry. However, a long-form, extensively researched special report in the Columbia Journalism Review about sexual harassment is still a depressing, eye-opening read.
Leica Camera AG is now an investor in Light, the makers of the innovative L16 camera. According to the company, the funding will allow Light to 'expand the reach of its imaging platform beyond consumer photography'
YouTuber ZY Productions has a video wherein he provides a succinct summary of how phase detection autofocus systems work, their benefits and their shortcomings.
The X-U is Leica's first ruggedized compact camera and is still the only waterproof camera on the market with a large APS-C sensor. That sensor sits behind a 35mm-equivalent, F1.7 lens, and we've taken it to the mountains and back to see just what it's capable of.
There have now been seven variants of the Sony RX100 series, and at least six of them are still current models. Confused? Here's an updated look at their differences, and our recommendations among them now that we've tested the Mark VI.
The Kodak-branded 'Kashminer' Bitcoin mining scheme announced at CES has apparently collapsed, with Eastman Kodak distancing itself from the company behind it.
As part of a promotional giveaway, Fujifilm Korea has released kimchi-flavored instant noodles wrapped in branding inspired by Fujifilm Provia 100 color reversal film.
The Leica Noctilux-M 75mm F1.25 ASPH is a fast, high-quality and decidedly heavyweight short telephoto prime lens, designed for use with Leica's digital M-series rangefinders. We've been grappling with it for a little while - take a look at our sample images.
70-200mm F4 zoom lenses may not get as much attention as their faster F2.8 siblings, but for many photographers these lenses hit the perfect sweet spot of price, performance, and weight. This week, we shoot the new Tamron 70-210mm F4 alongside the equivalent Canon and Nikon models to see how they stack up.
Blackmagic recently worked with Apple to develop Blackmagic eGPU, an external GPU that brings "desktop-class graphics performance" to the new MacBook Pro laptops with Thunderbolt 3 ports.
Lightroom alternative Luminar has received numerous updates across both its Mac and Windows versions, primarily improvements to existing features, as well as support for additional cameras from Fujifilm, Sony, Olympus, Panasonic, Canon, and Pentax.
Sony has quietly updated its RX100 V, bringing a couple of the goodies from the RX100 VI travel zoom. The updated RX100 VA gains a new processor and various firmware tweaks but misses out on the VI's other hardware improvements.
Apple has updated its MacBook Pro series of notebooks with 15in and 13in models that are claimed to be better for intense image and video editing. The company says the new models are the most advanced ever, and that they feature 8th generation Intel Core processors for faster performance.
Manfrotto has launched its new Noreg camera bag series with the Backpack-30 and Messenger-30 models. Both bags are designed for premium mirrorless camera systems, each featuring internal camera units that can be removed and used independently of the larger bags.
Industrial designer Thomas Müller has created a concept device that attempts to democratize film development using an all-in-one device that sits on your countertop.
The Sony RX100 VI is a spectacularly capable travel camera, combining a flexible zoom range with impressive autofocus. But there's no getting around the fact that it's an expensive camera, and a longer lens comes with certain trade-offs. Read on for our full analysis.
Comments