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Google Enables Pixel Visual Core For Better Instagram, Snapchat, and WhatsApp Photos (theverge.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the third-party dept.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: Google's Pixel Visual Core, the hidden image-processing chip inside the Pixel 2 family of phones, is getting an update today that lets it work its machine learning magic in third-party apps. Already enabled via Android 8.1 for the Pixel 2's main camera app, the Visual Core is now going to be operational within any other camera app that employs the relevant Google APIs. That means your Instagram photography and Snapchat Stories will get the benefit of the same improvements in processing speed and efficiency. I have been using a Google Pixel 2 XL since before the Android 8.1 update that initially flipped the Visual Core to being active, and I can't say I've noticed a huge difference in the speed or operation of the camera. It was sterling before 8.1, and it's been the same since. But the way Google explains it, the Visual Core is likely to be more helpful and impressive in third-party apps because it will allow the company to run its proprietary HDR+ algorithm in those other apps: "Pixel Visual Core is built to do heavy-lifting image processing while using less power, which saves battery. That means we're able to use that additional computing power to improve the quality of your pictures by running the HDR+ algorithm."

22 comments

  1. Nice! by nospam007 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "That means your Instagram photography and Snapchat Stories will get the benefit of the same improvements in processing speed and efficiency."

    So the rest of the planet will get the pictures of your lunch and your cat much faster.
    The world will be a better place.

    1. Re:Nice! by BBF_BBF · · Score: 1
      Really this just means that the photo from the camera that the Instagram app gets is of super high quality before the user promptly applies a blurry, color reducing filter on it.

      In other words, no difference in picture quality of the end product posted to many Instagram accounts... just the satisfaction of using the co-processor for Google Engineers. ;-)

    2. Re:Nice! by Hadlock · · Score: 1

      The big difference for me is that photos with HDR+ on (i.e. 99.99% of all photos on my phone) are processed with less of a hit to the battery. If you take more than 2 photos a day (I use mine for everything form sunset photos to taking photos of grocery lists or part numbers for my car/laptop) HDR is pretty heavy on the battery, and I've had it kill my phone at low battery.
       
      So if it decreases battery drain on devices, I'm all for it. Especially when we go on trips and take 100+ photos in a day. My girlfriend has a fancy SLR and an iPhone 6 but all our photos come out best on the Pixel and it's a big drain on my phone's battery.

      --
      moox. for a new generation.
    3. Re:Nice! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or more likely, the Google will now save big bucks as their spyware is offloaded to phones from their servers.

  2. Still Waiting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm waiting for the update that puts a 3.5mm headphone jack on the phone.

    1. Re:Still Waiting by DigitAl56K · · Score: 1

      Although I know this won't satisfy you, some context for others: Google dropped the price of their USB-C to 3.5mm dongle to $10, and Pixel 2 has stellar battery life, so charging while listening won't often be a concern. It also has very fast charging so downtime would be minimal in any case, and if that still doesn't satisfy you, there's BlueTooth.

      Having said that, I also would like to see the 3.5mm jack back, and I'm annoyed they removed it, but I do have to say the Pixel 2 (non-XL) is a phenomenal phone, if a little over-priced.

  3. Of course ths will be used for porn by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And Slashdotters will get HDR Goatse at last.

  4. Pixel 2's HDR is super fast by DigitAl56K · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Google really have done a great job with HDR and image enhancement on the Pixel 2. On the 5X, taking multiple HDR shots would make images queue up to be processed, slowing the whole phone down, making it hot, and after several shots prevented the camera from taking more photos until the queue emptied out a bit again. In some situations using HDR was definitely a risk to managing to capture the shot at all.

    On Pixel 2 HDR shots are the default and the phone takes photos faster than non-HDR shots on the 5X.

    1. Re:Pixel 2's HDR is super fast by trawg · · Score: 1

      HDR still fails for me semi regularly on my 5X :( it seems to happen if I try to do something with my phone while it's in processing state - I end up with a corrupt photo. I leave it turned off mostly but tried it again the other day for one photo, and only just noticed it didn't work.

  5. Snapscat, what is that anyway? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't use any of those apps. I'm old

  6. Blurry panoramas by DigitAl56K · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Google should fix the blurry panoramas:
    https://productforums.google.c...

  7. Doesn't matter. Too expensive! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The last I saw, it was still over $600 for the Pixel 2. I don't know what the price is now, but if it's over $300 it's still too expensive. A good phone is useless if it's too expensive for most people to justify buying it. A lot of us have gotten fucked by Google with their Nexus devices, where the devices still work fine but newer releases of Android stops supporting them after only a few years. The Nexus 5 came out in late 2013, yet it was no longer supported by Android 7, which was released in August 2016! It's stupid to pay $600 or more for a phone that might stop receiving updates within 3 years of its release!

    1. Re:Doesn't matter. Too expensive! by jareth-0205 · · Score: 1

      The last I saw, it was still over $600 for the Pixel 2. I don't know what the price is now, but if it's over $300 it's still too expensive. A good phone is useless if it's too expensive for most people to justify buying it. A lot of us have gotten fucked by Google with their Nexus devices, where the devices still work fine but newer releases of Android stops supporting them after only a few years. The Nexus 5 came out in late 2013, yet it was no longer supported by Android 7, which was released in August 2016! It's stupid to pay $600 or more for a phone that might stop receiving updates within 3 years of its release!

      I mean they announce the support period when they released the phones... and infact have extended it after-the-fact for some of the phones. So I hardly call that "fucking over"

    2. Re:Doesn't matter. Too expensive! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The galaxy nexus was stuck on 4.3 and didn't get upgraded to 4.4 despite the fact that one of the biggest parts of that upgrade was supporting phones with less ram than it had.

  8. GOOGLE enables Skynet chip by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Just saying.

  9. somehow this scares the s&@# outa me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't have a pixel, but Google running their own custom ML, on my phone that has a GPS, two cameras and a mic makes me worried ... it's a feeling I've got that's enhanced by how disconnected an org can be that has their SREs running amok, censoring who visits their sites ...

  10. Re:Why you shouldn't buy a JEWgleFone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Jew write all that yourself?

  11. Perhaps *you* haven't noticed a difference... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    but Google's hivemind sure has. It can now see much better through your eyes.

  12. The Skynet chip and kittens by DrYak · · Score: 1

    Come on, Google.

    I know that joking that "if Skynet becomes self-aware with human-level emotions now during the internet era it will be m ore likely to become over-obsessed with kittens rather than with winning a war against humans" has been a staple of internet humor.

    But it was supposed to be a joke. Not a prediction / design plan for you first smartphone embed neural net chip.

    --
    "Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]