Google Lens now available for some 2016 Pixel and Pixel XL users

Last year’s Pixels get in on the Google Lens fun.

Google Lens has a long way to go before it’s ready for prime-time, but after just debuting on the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL, it appears that the feature is already making its way to some users of last year’s Pixel devices.

According to some Redditors, opening Google Photos recently prompted them with a message saying that they could now join Google Lens’ Pixel Preview program. The pop-up has two options near the bottom to either get started with Lens or set it up later, but should you choose to turn it on, it’ll work just like it does on the Pixel 2.

With Google Lens turned on, the information icon on any pictures in Google Photos will be replaced with a new Lens icon. When you tap that new option, Lens will scan your photos for things like books, phone numbers, addresses, artwork, and more. It doesn’t work perfectly, but then again, Google’s calling this a preview for a reason.

Lens’ integration in Google Photos is fine, but actually accessing it is still pretty clunky. Thankfully, Google will soon be adding Lens right to the Assistant in the coming weeks, and when this happens, it should be available for the Pixel 2 and first-gen Pixels alike.

Google Lens integration with Assistant to be available in ‘a few weeks’