Android users may miss out on Apple’s “animoji” but they do get to enjoy Google’s ever-growing zoo of augmented reality animals.
It started in mid-2019, when Google searches for a handful of animals on supported Android devices included a “View in 3D” result. Just over a year later, in August, the feature also came to the Google Arts & Culture app, with a specific focus on AR recreations of “ancient creatures.”
Now, the library of animals has grown. Google confirmed on Friday that there’s been 50 new additions to the library. These include more exotic animals, like giraffes and zebras, as well as more mundane livestock (pigs and cows), cats, and even a specific dog breed, the noble and beautiful chow chow. [Author’s note: My first dog was a chow chow, so maybe I’m biased.]
Hip(po), hip(po), hooray! 🦛 There are 50 new AR animals to discover on Search. Search for your favorite animal on your Google mobile app, tap “View in 3D” to see them in your space and don’t forget to share your best creations with #Google3D. pic.twitter.com/u80Mn7wi1z
— Google (@Google) December 11, 2020
As you can see in the video Google shared, tapping the “View in 3D” link opens up a live view of the scene captured by your device’s camera lens. Once you get the scene situated, the animal you searched for appears in “live” form.
Always entertaining.
The red panda comes with a small pumpkin that it rolls around with on the floor.
Image: Adam Rosenberg / Mashable
You don’t see too many of these roaming through the woods of mid-state New York.
Image: Adam rosenberg / mashable
Same goes for these. Good thing this giraffe isn’t real; it would go hungry quick with fall having stripped all the trees bare.
Image: adam rosenberg / mashable
If you have any kind of AR-ready Android device equipped with a camera, be sure to try this yourself. You can see the full library of animals available to scroll through at the bottom of the screen after you tap “View in 3D” on whatever you’ve searched.
Does this do anything meaningful? Nah. Is it a fun and cool way to set up weird photo opps around your home, especially if you have pets? Definitely.