Pinterest recently introduced a new visual search tool – ‘Lens’. The experimental feature (currently in beta mode) lets users use the camera in their smartphone app and capture real life objects for finding similar ‘ideas’ on the Pinterest app.
Sounds similar? This is exactly what ‘Shazam’ does, an app that lets users search for music by recording the song which is playing at the time.
Using ‘Lens’, one can capture an image of shoes and see the related styles or ideas for what they would go with. Users can also capture a vegetable or a fruit and get to know all the recipes related to it.
Lens comes as an out of the box visual search tool. A bit similar to Google’s image search, Pinterest takes the idea a step further by simplifying the process (search directly through camera) and adding a variety of search results which are not centric to the picture but related to it.
Pinterest also released an update which allows its users to find pins similar to any pin that they like, just by a single tap.
Now each idea on the app carries a small circle on its bottom right. Tapping it will show the user some more related ideas.
One click on a picture of a Pizza and pins having similar pizzas will be displayed to the user right away.
Along with this, Pinterest introduced ‘Shop the look’. Shop the look identifies the objects in pins that can be purchased online and offers the Pinterest users, links to make the purchase.
Target, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, CB2 and Wayfair are the current brands with which Pinterest has partnered with for this feature.
While ‘Instant Ideas’ and ‘Shop the look’ are now available on iPhone, Android and the web application, Lens will roll out over the coming weeks in the US.
ource: http://www.news18.com
