Google Now on Tap extends its reach to barcodes, translation, and QR codes
The ability to search by barcodes and QR codes is finally here, which is something that feels a bit overdue. This worked in a few cases already, but Google’s now making it official and pledges you should be able to scan any QR code to get product information.
Additionally, Google is highlighting a few new research tools. There’s a new Discover button that will find related content from a Google search. The example offered shows more details about recent NASA missions.
A new translation feature is available if the default language is set to English. You can get anything on the screen translated into French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian. While translation was built into Chrome, this lets you use it inside of other apps.
The impact on you: Now on Tap has several cool tricks that make your smartphone pretty powerful. The feature is finally becoming more useful in a wider array of situations, which moves it to being an essential Android feature instead of just a novelty.