Technologies

The Future’s Here: Testing Out Gemini’s Live Camera Mode

Gemini Live’s new camera mode feels like the future when it works. I put it through a stress test with my offbeat collectibles.

«I just spotted your scissors on the table, right next to the green package of pistachios. Do you see them?»

Gemini Live’s chatty new camera feature was right. My scissors were exactly where it said they were, and all I did was pass my camera in front of them at some point during a 15-minute live session of me giving the AI chatbot a tour of my apartment. Google’s been rolling out the new camera mode to all Android phones using the Gemini app for free after a two-week exclusive to Pixel 9 (including the new Pixel 9A) and Galaxy S5 smartphones. So, what exactly is this camera mode and how does it work?

When you start a live session with Gemini, you now how have the option to enable a live camera view, where you can talk to the chatbot and ask it about anything the camera sees. Not only can it identify objects, but you can also ask questions about them — and it works pretty well for the most part. In addition, you can share your screen with Gemini so it can identify things you surface on your phone’s display.

When the new camera feature popped up on my phone, I didn’t hesitate to try it out. In one of my longer tests, I turned it on and started walking through my apartment, asking Gemini what it saw. It identified some fruit, ChapStick and a few other everyday items with no problem. I was wowed when it found my scissors.

That’s because I hadn’t mentioned the scissors at all. Gemini had silently identified them somewhere along the way and then recalled the location with precision. It felt so much like the future, I had to do further testing.

My experiment with Gemini Live’s camera feature was following the lead of the demo that Google did last summer when it first showed off these live video AI capabilities. Gemini reminded the person giving the demo where they’d left their glasses, and it seemed too good to be true. But as I discovered, it was very true indeed.

Gemini Live will recognize a whole lot more than household odds and ends. Google says it’ll help you navigate a crowded train station or figure out the filling of a pastry. It can give you deeper information about artwork, like where an object originated and whether it was a limited edition piece.

It’s more than just a souped-up Google Lens. You talk with it, and it talks to you. I didn’t need to speak to Gemini in any particular way — it was as casual as any conversation. Way better than talking with the old Google Assistant that the company is quickly phasing out.

Google also released a new YouTube video for the April 2025 Pixel Drop showcasing the feature, and there’s now a dedicated page on the Google Store for it.

To get started, you can go live with Gemini, enable the camera and start talking. That’s it.

Gemini Live follows on from Google’s Project Astra, first revealed last year as possibly the company’s biggest «we’re in the future» feature, an experimental next step for generative AI capabilities, beyond your simply typing or even speaking prompts into a chatbot like ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. It comes as AI companies continue to dramatically increase the skills of AI tools, from video generation to raw processing power. Similar to Gemini Live, there’s Apple’s Visual Intelligence, which the iPhone maker released in a beta form late last year.

My big takeaway is that a feature like Gemini Live has the potential to change how we interact with the world around us, melding our digital and physical worlds together just by holding your camera in front of almost anything.

I put Gemini Live to a real test

The first time I tried it, Gemini was shockingly accurate when I placed a very specific gaming collectible of a stuffed rabbit in my camera’s view. The second time, I showed it to a friend in an art gallery. It identified the tortoise on a cross (don’t ask me) and immediately identified and translated the kanji right next to the tortoise, giving both of us chills and leaving us more than a little creeped out. In a good way, I think.

I got to thinking about how I could stress-test the feature. I tried to screen-record it in action, but it consistently fell apart at that task. And what if I went off the beaten path with it? I’m a huge fan of the horror genre — movies, TV shows, video games — and have countless collectibles, trinkets and what have you. How well would it do with more obscure stuff — like my horror-themed collectibles?

First, let me say that Gemini can be both absolutely incredible and ridiculously frustrating in the same round of questions. I had roughly 11 objects that I was asking Gemini to identify, and it would sometimes get worse the longer the live session ran, so I had to limit sessions to only one or two objects. My guess is that Gemini attempted to use contextual information from previously identified objects to guess new objects put in front of it, which sort of makes sense, but ultimately, neither I nor it benefited from this.

Sometimes, Gemini was just on point, easily landing the correct answers with no fuss or confusion, but this tended to happen with more recent or popular objects. For example, I was surprised when it immediately guessed one of my test objects was not only from Destiny 2, but was a limited edition from a seasonal event from last year.

At other times, Gemini would be way off the mark, and I would need to give it more hints to get into the ballpark of the right answer. And sometimes, it seemed as though Gemini was taking context from my previous live sessions to come up with answers, identifying multiple objects as coming from Silent Hill when they were not. I have a display case dedicated to the game series, so I could see why it would want to dip into that territory quickly.

Gemini can get full-on bugged out at times. On more than one occasion, Gemini misidentified one of the items as a made-up character from the unreleased Silent Hill: f game, clearly merging pieces of different titles into something that never was. The other consistent bug I experienced was when Gemini would produce an incorrect answer, and I would correct it and hint closer at the answer — or straight up give it the answer, only to have it repeat the incorrect answer as if it was a new guess. When that happened, I would close the session and start a new one, which wasn’t always helpful.

One trick I found was that some conversations did better than others. If I scrolled through my Gemini conversation list, tapped an old chat that had gotten a specific item correct, and then went live again from that chat, it would be able to identify the items without issue. While that’s not necessarily surprising, it was interesting to see that some conversations worked better than others, even if you used the same language.

Google didn’t respond to my requests for more information on how Gemini Live works.

I wanted Gemini to successfully answer my sometimes highly specific questions, so I provided plenty of hints to get there. The nudges were often helpful, but not always. Below are a series of objects I tried to get Gemini to identify and provide information about.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, June 11

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for June 11.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Make sure you think of the right computer shortcut for 8-Across in today’s NYT Mini Crossword, or you’ll be off by a letter. Don’t ask me how I know. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: For this, you’ll be swimming with the fishes
Answer: SCUBA

6A clue: Birth-related
Answer: NATAL

7A clue: «They’re in for ___ awakening!»
Answer: ARUDE

8A clue: «Cut» shortcut, on PCs
Answer: CTRL-X

9A clue: Nairobi is its capital
Answer: KENYA

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Quick bite
Answer: SNACK

2D clue: À la ___
Answer: CARTE

3D clue: Maneuver done from the left lane only
Answer: UTURN

4D clue: In the worst way
Answer: BADLY

5D clue: Whom to tell «Turn off the lights» or «Play some music»
Answer: ALEXA

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Technologies

My Favorite Portable iPhone Charger Is 35% Off in All Colors

The ultraconvenient Anker 622 MagGo snaps neatly onto the back of my iPhone, and I take it everywhere I go. The price just dropped to $31 across the board at Amazon.

I take my phone with me wherever I go, and I’m not afraid to admit that I’ve come to rely on it for just about every aspect of my life — from getting news, weather and navigation help to staying in close contact with friends, family and co-workers. That means, like many people, I live in constant fear that my iPhone’s battery will die on me right when I need it most. That is, I did until I found the Anker 622 MagGo, which CNET ranked as the best magnetic power bank with an integrated stand, and which I now take with me everywhere I go.

Right now it’s available with a 35% discount on Amazon. That drops the price to just $31 from the $48 list price, making this an excellent value for a major convenience. The charger comes in a variety of colors, including white, dark gray, lavender, pale blue and pale green, and it’s pretty common to see one or two colors on sale at any given time. But the current discount applies to every option.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Here’s why I’ve stuck with this little charger for so long

Have you seen people walk around with a loop of cable hanging from their pocket to their phone? I’ve been there and hooked that loop on too many chairs and table corners. Never again. The ring of magnets in the Anker 622 MagGo aligns with the MagSafe magnets in every iPhone since the iPhone 12, latching securely and charging without wires. (The notable exception is the iPhone 16E, which does not offer MagSafe but does charge wirelessly using Qi technology. The Anker 622 MagGo will charge the iPhone 16E but won’t latch to it magnetically.)

It’s also compact — a little backpack feeding power to the phone while you’re holding it or have it stashed in a pocket, even a jeans pocket if your fit isn’t too tight.

Those features alone would have convinced me but the Anker 622 also includes a fold-out back flap that props up my iPhone and can also hold the phone in its wide orientation for StandBy mode. With a power adapter such as the Anker Nano Pro (not included) and a charging cable, I’ve taught long classes with the phone angled to help me keep track of the time without checking my watch.

Essential Anker 622 MagGo specs

Here’s what you need to know.

Battery capacity: 5,000 milliamp hours
Voltage: 1.55 volts
Output: 7.5-watt Magnetic (compatible with MagSafe-equipped devices, iPhone 12 and later) or 20-watt USB-C port. Can charge only one device at a time.
Input: The same single USB-C is also how you recharge the device.
Size: 4.13-inch by 2.61 inches by 0.5 inch
Weight: 5 ounces
Included: Magnetic battery, 60cm (23.6 inches) USB-C to USB-C cable
Warranty: 24 months

MagSafe-compatible charging

I’ve owned several battery chargers and each one has some sort of compromise. They’re bulky. They require a cable. They charge wirelessly but don’t include a magnet to keep the phone in place so it’s hard to maintain that connection. There’s always something.

The Anker 622 is half an inch thick and snaps onto the back of my iPhone using the MagSafe-aligned magnets. I don’t have to turn it on to start charging — power flows as soon as the connection is made.

Now, this isn’t the highest-capacity (5,000 mAh) or fastest portable charger. That’s fine. What I usually need is a way to eke out a few more hours of battery life on my iPhone. I can typically get a full top-off of my iPhone 15 Pro.

Making a stand

The other appealing feature of the Anker 622 MagGo for me is its built-in stand. Honestly, it doesn’t look like it should work well: It’s a fabric-covered set of plastic pieces that lie flush against the case, folds in two places and attaches to the back of the unit with a magnetic strip when extended. Yet I’ve had no problems with the stability of my iPhone 15 Pro or even the larger iPhone 15 Pro Max size.

This also lets me use standby mode by turning the iPhone to landscape orientation (the magnets are strong enough to hold the phone in place) when it’s on a table or desk.

Smart port placement matters

The charger gets its juice from a single USB-C port, which is positioned on the edge of the case, not the bottom. That means you can replenish it while the stand is open — many chargers’ ports are stuck on the bottom.

That USB-C port also acts as a charger for other devices when you plug in a cable, such as when your Apple Watch needs a boost.

How the Anker 622 MagGo compares to similar power banks

Before getting the Anker 622 MagGo, I carried an Anker PowerCore III 10K Wireless, which doubles the battery capacity, includes a USB-A port and charges wirelessly but without magnets to hold the phone in place. That meant if I didn’t use a cable, the phone and charger needed to be stable and level; too often I’d find the iPhone slid off its wireless perch and not charged. It’s also larger and heavier. I still use it, but it’s the power bank that goes into my carry-on suitcase as a backup charger.

Since I’ve owned this Anker 622 MagGo, the company has released a few updated models. The $55 Anker 633 (currently on sale for $45) packs 10,000 mAh into a slightly thicker brick, includes a USB-A port in addition to USB-C and has a metal kickstand for resting the phone upright.

You can also consider getting the chunkier Anker MagGo Power Bank that delivers 10,000 mAh and follows the same idea of compact magnetic charging and a convenient kickstand. Its main appeals are faster 15-watt magnetic charging and Qi2 compatibility, plus a small display on the side that reports the battery capacity and an estimate of the remaining battery in hours.

For more smart buys, check out this amazing multitool and a portable TV that can go anywhere. And if you happen to be gift shopping, check out our roundup of the best gifts for grads, the best Father’s Day gifts and the best tech gifts for anyone, anytime of year.

Impulse Buys Under $25 That Make Surprisingly Great Gifts

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Technologies

Anyone Can Now Access the Largest Space Map Ever Created. Here’s How

The data includes a map of nearly 800,000 galaxies and covers 0.54 square degrees of the sky.

If you’ve ever wanted a better look at deep space, you now have your chance. A treasure trove of data collected by the James Webb Space Telescope is now available for public consumption. Included with the data is an interactive map that contains nearly 800,000 galaxies and various filters so you can view them in different ways.

The data was made available starting on June 5 by the Cosmic Evolution Survey out of Caltech. It consists of survey data that mapped out 0.54 square degrees of the sky. For reference, if you take a look at this month’s strawberry moon, the amount of sky that the telescope mapped is equivalent to about three full moons side by side. The total size of all the map data is about 1.5 TB.

Read more: Coolest Space Photos of 2025 Will Fill You With Cosmic Wonder

Included in the map are galaxies and stars that are 13.5 billion years old, which means it provides the best look into the early universe that science has offered so far. NASA estimates that the universe is 13.8 billion years old, so those galaxies and stars are positively ancient. In all, there are galaxies and stars in the data that cover about 98% of the known universe’s history.

That makes this newly released map bigger than the largest Milky Way galaxy map ever created, which still only covers a small slice of the galaxy’s overall layout. However, the Milky Way galaxy map is still larger in terms of data, as that map is over 500 TB in size.

Researchers mapped the sky with the JWST’s near infrared camera, and 0.2 square degrees of the sky were mapped with the mid infrared instrument. In total, there’s about 1.5 TB worth of data to sift through. Arguably the coolest part of the info dump is the interactive map, which loads in a web browser and allows users to move around and see everything that was included.

Using the interactive map viewer

Curious individuals can check out the project’s map viewer. To use the map, you simply have to follow the link and click the «check it out!» button. Once the map loads, you’ll see a square-ish image that contains over 700,000 galaxies and other objects.

Once you load the map, the best way to view it is using the layers and filters in the top right corner. The first box contains views, including NIRCam RGB and several other views. The second box breaks up the image into tiles. These tiles are how the image was mapped, so you can see which instrument was used to capture each segment of the map.

For educational purposes, the third box is the one to use. These options outline the objects of interest. Clicking on them provides you with a catalog ID (which lets you search for those objects again later), the raw images taken of each object and additional data points like light wavelength.

The tools in the top left are used for search and configuration, like increasing the brightness and changing the hue to make some objects easier to view. With the controls, your best bet is to just look around and find all the cool stuff. At any point, you can reset all of the settings by refreshing the browser window.

How to access the data

The data is accessible in a couple of different ways. The COSMOS2025 project published three research papers on the data they collected. The first is a catalog of everything that was observed. The other two focused on the near infrared imaging and mid infrared imaging used to obtain the data.

You can obtain the data by filling out this form. Once done, you’ll be able to download the data. It’s available as a single, large download or you can download individual tiles if you prefer. There are more advanced instructions available from the COSMOS2025 project website if you need them, and more data available here if you want to download it.

You may notice that the majority of the map data is in the FITS file format. That’s an unusual file format that your standard Photoshop or image viewing application won’t be able to handle very well. Fortunately, NASA has a trustworthy list of FITS image viewers that you can choose from.

The data will also be used to help answer questions about the early universe, and all this data being freely available to researchers the world over will help with that.