Google Files Will Soon Allow You To Search For Images, PDFs Based On Their Contents

There must have been situations in your life when you wanted to find an important file on your mobile device but couldn’t do so because of a random file name you chose when creating or saving it. This can cause a lot of frustration and hence wastes valuable time.

But what if there were a solution that could mitigate this issue by allowing you to search for what is inside the file? Yes, the search giant is working on a Google Files feature that will let you do just that.

As reported by Android Police, Google Files’ Smart Search feature is currently under testing, and it allows users to search for files like images and PDFs depending on what is inside them. This makes it unnecessary to remember file names, saving time and energy when looking for a particular file in a hurry.

This feature works by using local machine learning technology to conduct a deeper search for on-device files. It works with text in images and PDFs, location and objects in images, artist, album, and title from audio and videos.

So, for instance, let’s say you lose your airline ticket that was in PDF format in the files app because you saved it using a random file name. All you need to do is search for the airport name, and ideally, you should be able to find your file. Android Police further notes that you can do the same for objects in photos, so if you are looking for an image of your dog, you can search for dogs to find it.

With that said, there are a few limitations with this feature. For now, file scans are done only periodically, and hence, newly downloaded files don’t immediately show up. Moreover, audio and location-based search is reportedly not working presently.