Year after year, we notice the tremendous evolution in the capabilities of smartphones. Taking one example, we see the significant development in the sector of smartphone cameras. This evolution has many dimensions, the most prominent being turning the camera into a scanning tool. Indeed, this has become much more precise than ever before. Not to mention the smart algorithms that are integrated into cameras with scanning applications, known as “OCR” (Optical Character Recognition). With these apps, users can scan any image to extract text from it, edit it, and save it. In this article, we present to you a number of applications, the top 5 in this field, which Android users can benefit from instead of using a scanner. The applications are as follows:
The first application in this group and it may be the best in optical character recognition. It supports recognition through the camera integrated with it or by importing a saved image from the gallery. The best thing about the application is that once you capture and scan an image, it does not ask you to select the text area. It includes all the text on the page. You can even extract text without needing to extract numbers. The important feature of the application is the extremely high accuracy of the scan outputs. If there are errors, they are very minimal and not random like other applications. Other features of the application include instant saving to Google Drive, saving outputs to Google Keep notes app, or saving the text in a specific link and sharing it immediately. The application supports more than 50 languages and is available for free on the Google Play Store.
Download Text Scanner app from here
2. Office Lens:
It’s no wonder this application is among this group, being developed by the tech giant Microsoft. The application is supposed to do great things, which is exactly what it does. This app recognizes colored text, handwritten text, and regular text, and the outputs are fully formatted and accurate, requiring only minimal editing, if any. With this app, you can easily export outputs to any app, with instant sharing support for Microsoft’s popular apps like Word and OneNote. The app is also available for free on the Google Play Store.
Download Office Lens app from here
3. OCR Text Scanner:
The application’s team claims that their app has a scanning accuracy from 95 to 100%, which is a great percentage in any case. The best feature is the instant text editor that opens automatically after the scanning process to show you the extracted text and allow you to edit any errors or add your own words. All outputs are saved as text files, giving users great freedom. The app also supports multiple language recognition and is available for free on the store.
Download OCR Text Scanner app from here
4. OCR Pro:
This application may appeal to some and not to others. The reason is that the app does not support importing images from the gallery; it only supports instant capturing through the integrated camera. Therefore, you cannot scan saved images with it. However, the importance comes when the app is in the hands of a student, and its key features include accuracy, quality, and clarity in the outputs. Despite its limited usability, its precision places it in this position. The app is available for free for everyone.
Download OCR Pro app from here
5. Image to Text:
The last app in this group, serving as a scanning tool for text and converting any material, even a business card or image, to extract text. What sets it apart is the high speed in processing the entire operation and displaying results immediately. The app supports unlimited storage on company servers and has a full text editor that appears after the scan process, whether through the integrated camera or by importing an image from the gallery. Unfortunately, the app does not support the Arabic language, but it is available for everyone for free.
Download Image to Text app from here
