Use Pixel's Magnifier

Important: This feature is only available for Pixel 5 and later, not including Pixel Tablet and Fold.

You can use your phone to magnify small text, perform detailed tasks and zoom in to view far-away signs. You can also use visual effects to boost contrast. When you capture an image in low light, your phone adjusts brightness automatically.

Download the Magnifier app

To use the Magnifier app, you can download it from the Google Play Store.

Set up Magnifier through Quick Tap

Important: Setting up Quick Tap isn't required to use the Magnifier app.

You can easily set up Magnifier through Quick Tap:

1. Open your phone's Settings app.
2. Tap System Gestures Quick Tap.
3. Turn on Use Quick Tap.
4. Choose Open app.
5. Next to 'Open app', tap Settings Magnifier.
6. To open Magnifier, double-tap on the back of your phone when your phone is unlocked.

Zoom in and out

1. Open your phone's Magnifier app .
2. Point your camera at the subject that you want to zoom in to view.
3. Use buttons or gestures to zoom in and out:
   • Buttons: At the bottom, tap Plus or Minus .
     Tip: These are located on either side of the Capture button .
   • Gestures:
     • On the image, pinch open to zoom in or pinch closed to zoom out.
     • On the image, swipe your finger horizontally or vertically.
       Tips:
       • You can only swipe your finger horizontally or vertically in the live view and not once the image has been captured.
       • Left to right zooms in, right to left zooms out.
       • Bottom to top zooms in, top to bottom zooms out.

On Pixel 7 Pro, and 8 Pro, you can zoom in up to 30x. Image stabilisation automatically steadies the live image in your viewfinder.

Freeze an image

You can freeze a magnified image to look at it in more detail.

1. Open your phone's Magnifier app .
2. Tap Capture . The image you captured freezes in place.
3. Zoom in to look at the detail you want to view.

When you close the app, your image is deleted.

• To save it permanently, tap Download .
  Tips:
  • To access the downloaded image, at the bottom right, click the Magnifier photo gallery .
  • To protect your privacy, this gallery is only saved locally on your phone.
  • To back up photos, go to Google Photos to access the album, then turn Back up on.
• To share it with another app, tap the Share icon .

Get a clear picture in low light

In low light, you can turn on the torch for a clear view.

1. Tap Torch off .
2. To change its brightness, use the slider.

Tips:

• For discreet use, the torch first turns on at its dimmest setting,
• When you freeze an image in low light, Magnifier automatically creates a clearer picture.

Change colour, contrast or brightness

To apply visual effects to your image in Magnifier:

1. Open your phone's Magnifier app  .
2. At the bottom-left corner, tap Show controls.
3. A menu bar is displayed with options to select filters, brightness and contrast.

• To choose a colour filter:
  1. Tap Filters .
  2. Scroll left or right to select the filter colour you want.
     Tip: You can choose from 11 different colour filters.
• To make an image brighter or darker: Tap Brightness .
• To change contrast: Tap Contrast .

4. After you tap a visual effect, you can adjust it. Either:
   • Drag the slider left or right.
   • Tap Plus or Minus on either side of the slider.

Tips:

• To restore your original contrast or brightness: Tap Reset .
• To restore your original filter: Scroll to the top of the filter options and select No filter .

You can hide filters that you don’t use:

1. At the bottom left, tap Show controls .
2. Tap More settings.
3. Under 'Customisation', tap Filters.
4. Untick the filters you want to hide.
5. To return to the home screen, tap the back arrow .

Use Magnifier as a mirror

You can use Magnifier to get a 5x mirror image.

1. Open your phone's Magnifier app .
2. At the bottom, tap Camera switch .
3. Zoom in or out on your mirror image.

Related resources

• Android accessibility overview
• Use magnification on your screen
• Change text and display settings