10 Best Object Identifier Apps to try in 2023
Updated: Aug 8
In a world where technology is advancing at an unprecedented pace, our smartphones are becoming increasingly intelligent. One challenge that we often face is the ability to identify unknown objects, whether it's an exotic plant, an unusual insect, a piece of furniture, or even a fashion item. Enter object identifier apps - a technological solution that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help you identify and learn more about these objects right from your smartphone. Furthermore, these tools can be very valuable for blind and visually impaired people to interpret their environment.
What is an Object Recognition App?
Object recognition apps utilise advanced machine learning algorithms to identify objects in images. You simply capture or upload a photo, and artificial intelligence identifies the objects in the images compared to the thousands of images it has learned from. Once a match or a close resemblance is found, it provides you with information about that object.
Who Can an Object Recognition App be Useful for?
Everyone can benefit from these applications. They're useful for nature lovers who want to know more about plants or animals, interior designers who seek furniture details, shoppers who see an outfit they'd like to buy, and even visually impaired individuals who need help identifying items around them.
Now that we've covered the basics, let's dive into the 10 best object identifier apps to try in 2023:
1. Google Lens
Google Lens is one of the most popular AI-powered apps. It can identify nearly any object, translate text, add events to your calendar from a poster, and even provide details about landmarks or restaurants. It can also recognize text in images, which is useful for digitizing notes or accessing a Wi-Fi network by scanning the password.
2. TapTapSee App
TapTapSee is an app for the blind and designed to assist blind or visually impaired users in identifying objects around them. Just double-tap the screen to take a photo of anything, and the app will speak the identification back to you.
3. PlantNet
PlantNet is a must-have for plant lovers. Snap a photo of a plant, and this app will tell you its species. It's a crowd-sourced app, meaning each identified plant contributes to a better understanding of global plant biodiversity.
4. SnapCalorie
Use your phone to take a picture of any meal and real live nutrition expert will label your food plate for you. SnapCalorie also uses your phone's depth sensor and an algorithm to measure accurate portion sizes.
5. Envision app
The Envision app is an app designed for blind and visually impaired that can recognize text, objects, people and cash. The app can easily be connected to the Envision glasses which allow the user to have a handsfree text to speech aid.
6. SeeingAI
This free app is like a Swiss Army knife for those with visual impairments, packing several useful features into a single, user-friendly interface. It can recognize text, objects, people, and even colors. What's more, the app can read text out loud, describe scenes captured in photos, and even recognize currency. While it may have a slight learning curve, the app is largely intuitive and becomes incredibly handy once you're used to it.
7. Search By Image
This app allows you to perform a reverse image search on any image. It's helpful for verifying the source of photographs, screenshots, and memes. You can discover related images from around the web, identify people, find visually similar images, and more.
8. Pinterest
While primarily known as a social media platform, Pinterest's visual search tool is robust. Pinch to zoom in on a part of a Pin to discover related ideas, products, and more. It’s perfect for fashionistas and DIY enthusiasts.
9. Reverse Image Search
Similar to 'Search By Image,' this app allows you to conduct a reverse image search but with an emphasis on privacy as it does not store or share your search images. It's great for identifying the source of images or finding higher resolution versions.
10: The OKO app
Finally there is a very valuable object detection application called OKO. This application recognizes the pedestrian signal and informs the blind and visually impaired pedestrians of the status of that signal. It does this through sounds and vibrations and thus makes every intersection accessible.