Microsoft's Pix Camera App for iOS Gets Improved Whiteboard, Document Support

Tech giant Microsoft has updated its Pix camera application for iOS devices which now lets users take better scans of documents, whiteboards and business cards too.

From the beginning, Pix app used artificial intelligence (AI) technology to choose and optimise photographs and apply a range of filters. This time the app would deploy AI technology for documents too.

"We have data that shows people are taking a lot of whiteboard photos at work, they are doing a lot of document scanning," said Josh Weisberg, a principal programme manager in the Computational Photography Group within Microsoft's research organisation in Redmond, Washington.

The updated camera app automatically detects whiteboards, documents and business cards in real time and intelligently adjusts camera settings for these types of photos.

Once the shutter clicks, the app uses AI to improve the image, such as cropping edges, boosting colour and tone, sharpening focus and tweaking the angle to render the image in a straight-on perspective.

Other new features in the Pix app include new Styles for your scanned images to add lined paper, crumpled paper and other document-related effects. Users need to ap a scanned image then Edit > Effects to apply a new Style. Also new is iCloud support, while Microsoft says Pix will no longer stop music playing when you take a picture.

Written with inputs from IANS