Your phone’s camera is more than just a lens to capture memories. You probably already know that – it can deposit checks, import business cards, and look for constellations in the night sky. But with some smart thinking or the right tools, it can do so much more.
Use your camera roll for quick notes
I use my camera more often to remember things than I do for real photos. Not only do I keep pictures of my license plate, medical insurance card, and other information in Evernote – thanks to my camera – but I also keep a lot of things in the camera roll for the short term. Taking a photo is often a quick way to take a note without having to type for five minutes. Do you need to remember where you parked in the mall? Take a picture of the board as you hit the elevator. Need an easily accessible map of the mall while you shop? Grab a picture of the kiosk (it never seems to be around when you need it). If you’re tracking your calorie intake throughout the day, take pictures of the nutrition labels and consolidate them in the evening. When I take computers apart I often take pictures of each step so that if I get stuck putting them back together I have a visual guide to reference. Never forget that you have an endless roll of film in your pocket.
Visualize furniture in your home
It’s not all about taking photos – modern phones are much more powerful than they used to be. Augmented reality allows you to superimpose digital information on top of the real world, as viewed through your camera lens. For example, if you’ve been keeping an eye on furniture but want to see if it really blends in with the environment, some apps, including Amazon and IKEA Place, let you use your phone’s augmented reality capabilities to create a digital rendering . of that coffee table in your living room. It doesn’t necessarily work for all furniture available in the store, and IKEA only offers this service to iOS users, but it’s quite useful for those who have access to it.
Search for products based on a photo
Let’s say you have the opposite problem: you see a cool piece of furniture, art, or something else at a friend’s house, and they have no idea where they bought it. Some apps, such as eBay and Wayfair, allow you to take a photo of something and search for it on their platform. You might not find an exact replica, but you might find something similar – or it could give you the right words to dig deeper into your search and find exactly what you’re looking for.
Try on glasses, clothes and makeup before buying
Other brands are starting to get on board with augmented reality, albeit a bit slow. For example, Warby Parker lets you virtually “fit” different frames, so you can narrow down your selection before ordering a pair to try on at home. Google is now partnering with cosmetics companies to offer virtual passes when you search for certain types of makeup, and L’Oréal lets you do something similar on the desktop (it also supports hair colors). Other apps, like Zeekit, allow you to try on clothes from a few popular brands, but we’re still waiting for this idea to really gain traction with major clothing stores.
Share your WiFi with a QR code
This is not really a trick for that your camera, but rather for your friends’ cameras: if your home network has a long, complex and unique password, it is annoying to give it to friends and family members who visit. Instead of quitting your long passphrase, you can print it as a QR code with a tool like QiFi. When they scan it with their phone, it automatically connects – no typing required. You can even buy chic QR badges and Wi-Fi magnets on Etsy, designed for things like short-term vacation rentals.
Scan documents to PDF
Scanners are simply the worst. Getting my printer / scanner to work is like trying to train a starfish to jump through hoops. These days, your phone’s camera can do just fine – just grab Adobe Scan and you can turn any document into a clean PDF that you can send to anyone. If you want to export it as an editable document, apps like Microsoft Office Lens and ABBYY FineScanner can give you a lot more control.
Get a better view of hard-to-reach places
I’m only a little embarrassed to admit how often I use my camera to find an HDMI port in the back of a dark cabinet. Or to find out which wires correspond to which connections on the back of that tall outdoor speaker. Or to find the serial number on my printer, tucked away in a closet. Instead of pulling the whole thing out to see what’s out there, I can grab my camera, reach back and take a few pictures, hoping for the best. (In the same vein, I’ve seen people use it on small print restaurant menus when they forget to bring their reading glasses.)
Translate signs and other text in real time
Traveling to another country can be stressful if you don’t know the language, and while it helps to learn a little before you go, apps like Google Translate can be of great help to you. Not only can you type or say something to have it translated into the language of your choice, but you can also point your camera at a sign, menu or other realistic piece of text and it will translate it instantly.
Help with your math homework (or Sudoku puzzle)
At some point in your math career, a calculator just starts to feel limited. After all, how does knowing the answer help you if you can’t figure out how it got there? Photomath is an augmented reality app that allows you to take a picture of a math problem and then see the steps that lead to the answer. It can handle simple problems as well as more complex functions such as logarithms, trigonometry and even differential equations. Oh, and for your free time, there are even apps that can help you solve your Sudoku.
See If Your TV Remote Needs Batteries
Finally, here’s something decidedly low-tech. If your TV remote isn’t working, you can quickly open your phone’s camera, point the remote, and press the power button. If you see the infrared light appear in the viewfinder of the camera app, you know that the remote is still sending out signals (and your TV’s receiver may be blocked). If you don’t see the infrared light, your remote probably needs new batteries. Make sure to test with the power button as some features may not use infrared on modern TVs, and if you’re having trouble with the rear camera, try the selfie camera. It can be more sensitive to infrared light.
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