Bing Vision demoed on a pack of gum...'cause we can [Video]

Okay, this Bing Vision thing is really nice. Although augmented reality apps and one that scan are not new to the world (see Google Goggles), the way Microsoft does this on Bing is actually very elegant.

For one, we like how the overlay works when it finds what it's looking for. Just something really nice about the transparency and the items "floating" there. Second, the camera sensor works very well, even in low-light with little "re-adjustment" needed by the user. Barcodes read a bit better than CD cases or books, but even the latter should scan fine on a bookshelf in the store.

Finally, we also just like how it scans anything. You just point it at a CD, book or barcode and it just reads it. There's no settings, not select-format, it just works.

Daniel Rubino
Editor-in-chief

Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central. He is also the head reviewer, podcast co-host, and analyst. He has been covering Microsoft since 2007, when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, laptops, next-gen computing, and watches. He has been reviewing laptops since 2015 and is particularly fond of 2-in-1 convertibles, ARM processors, new form factors, and thin-and-light PCs. Before all this tech stuff, he worked on a Ph.D. in linguistics, watched people sleep (for medical purposes!), and ran the projectors at movie theaters because it was fun.