Google has released an app that turns a smartphone into a photo scanner.

The PhotoScan app will allow users to digitize old photos and cherished memories through the use of computational photography. The app will detect the edges of the photo, straighten it, correct its orientation, and even remove unwanted glare. There are also additional tools such as an "auto enhance" feature, photo filters, and granular adjustment tools.

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The app makes digitizing old photos easier and more cost-effective as compared to the old method of using a conventional scanner, which would take time and money. Additionally, the alternative of taking a photo of a photo would result in crooked edges.

How the app works is that the scanner will hover over the points that will be displayed in the old photo, like a viewfinder. Aside from that, Google's software will handle the rest, making use of all the tools that have been included in the app.

The PhotoScan app works on photos and pictures that are flat on a table, in a frame, or even in a photo album. The quality of the photo is comparable to that of a traditional flatbed scanner, and it also has the ability to digitize slide when projected on a wall.

All photos that have been digitized can be saved in the device storage, or online through Google Photos. The PhotoScan app is now available for iOS through the App Store, and on Android via the Google Play Store.