28 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 44
REVIEW
Pixel 2) to make your phone more helpful in real-life
situations. It’s fine if you just want to identify email
addresses and phone numbers from photos: Lens
converts them to editable text so you don’t have to
retype them. You can also point the camera at a book
or a film poster and ask how good it is to get a list of
ratings and reviews. It’s when pointing the camera at
landmarks or plants that it starts falls down. It didn’t
recognize the famous St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel
or several other London landmarks, and wasn’t great
as a plant finder.
Routines, already available on Google Home, is
another handy feature. You can say something like
“OK Google, let’s go home” and you’ll get directions
home along with any text messages you’ve been sent.
If you were listening to a podcast, it will resume after
the Assistant stops speaking and can even adjust the
volume so you can hear it while you’re driving.