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Whether you’re squinting trying to read a menu in a dark restaurant, the warning label on your medication, or the fine print on a contract you probably shouldn’t be signing, a magnifying glass can come in very handy. One with a light would be even better.
Good news! That phone in your pocket is filled with handy tools, including a magnifying glass. No more squinting needed, see what you want when you want to.
iPhone Magnifying Glass Setting
Beginning with iOS 10, your iPhone has a very useful magnifying glass feature using the lens of the camera. You must enable this feature to be able to use it.
[note]Also see Fixing Your Font Size! to learn how to increase the size of the font on your phone.[/note]
Turning on the Magnifying Glass on Your iPhone
To turn on the magnifying glass on your iPhone, go to:
Settings => General => Accessibility => Magnifier => On
You can also turn Auto-Brightness to On. Auto-Brightness adjusts the brightness of the screen according to the light in the room.
Using the Magnifying Glass on Your iPhone
To use the magnifying glass on your iPhone, called the Magnifier, triple-tap the Home button. That will open the magnifying glass screen.
Slide the yellow dot on the Magnifier to zoom in and out. Slide the dot right to zoom in and left to zoom out.
Tap the lightning bolt to turn on the light on your phone and brighten what you’re seeing.
Tap the lock to lock the focus level so the camera isn’t constantly adjusting the focus.
Tap the white circle button to freeze the image. The circle will have a yellow rim while the image is frozen. Tap the button again to unfreeze the image.
You can freeze the image on the Magnifier and then zoom in on it. This way the image is stable as you’re trying to see it. Move the image around with your finger to see different parts of the image.
Tap the triangular filter icon in the lower right corner of the screen to control the image you are seeing. The filter lets you adjust the brightness and color of the image.
You can also add colored filters to the image:
- White/Blue
- Yellow/Blue
- Grayscale
- Yellow/Black
- Red/Black
In the bottom left corner of the filter screen is an invert button. Tap that to invert (switch) the colors.
Android
Some Android phones have a magnifying glass feature, depending on the version of Android they are using. To enable the magnifying glass feature, go to Settings => Accessibility => Vision => Magnification gesture, then turn it on.
When you need to use the magnifying glass, go to the camera app and tap the screen three times. To turn off the magnifying glass and see the normal view, tap the screen three times again.
Android phones do not come with a magnifying glass feature built in, though you can use zoom in the camera app if you need magnification.
Many magnifying apps are in the Google Play app store with different features. Many of these apps are free but have advertisements.
Magnifying Glass Flashlight
As of this writing, Magnifying Glass Flashlight has the highest rating (4.5****) of the magnifying apps in the Google Play store. This app has both magnification and a flashlight to shine a light on what you’re trying to see. Like the iPhone Magnifier, this app can freeze the image so you can zoom in and stabilize what you’re trying to see.
This app has small ads at the bottom of the screen. They do not flash or move so they are fairly easy to ignore.
After downloading and opening the app, you will see that the flashlight is on by default. You can turn this off if you do not need it, and want to save battery, by tapping the lightbulb in the lower right corner of the screen.
Tap the A button to add a blue filter and invert colors so light becomes dark and dark becomes light.
Tap the Red and Blue button to have the camera light flash like a strobe light.
Tap the camera icon to freeze the image and take a screenshot of the image. Pinch and spread your fingers to zoom in and out of the image.
Tap the photo icon on the left to see the screenshots you’ve taken and share them with others. Tap the back button on your phone to return to the magnifying glass.
You can check out other Magnifying Glass apps in the Google Play Store: Magnifying Glass Apps in Google Play.
Be sure to check for apps having a light, if that is important to you.
Your Thoughts
Have you ever needed a magnifying glass but didn’t have one handy? Do you like the idea of using your phone as a magnifying glass?
Share your thoughts in the Comments section below!
*Magnifying Glass image (edited) courtesy of Kate Ter Haar via Flickr and Creative Commons
Voice of America Learning English
If you’re interested in learning tech and English at the same time, check out my personal technology column at Voice of America Learning English. This week’s article is: Websites to Find Free Ebooks.
Hi Carolyn,
Interesting indeed 🙂
Never knew that we could use our iPhone’s as a magnifying glass! It reminded me of having to use my large one to see things when need be, and yes, squinting my eyes…lol. Though I don’t have an iPhone yet, but this adds to the list of all the benefits it holds. I’d surely be passing this along to my family and friend’s – those who have an iPhone, as I am sure they don’t know they have this feature in it.
Thanks for sharing. Have a nice week ahead 🙂
Hi Harleena, Yes, both the iPhone and Android phones can be used as a magnifying glass. If you’re going to use your Android phone as a magnifying glass, it’s better to use an app for the added features.
The iPhone doesn’t need an app, but it does need to be set up to use the Magnifier. Many people don’t know this setting exists but I’m hoping they do now!
My husband has vision problems due to Multiple Sclerosis and this is extremely helpful. Thank you so much.
See, this is why a subscribe to The Wonder of Tech! Who knew this feature existed? And I was literally just about to lug home a big heavy magnifying glass from my dad’s study that he is no longer using. Now I have the phone. Thank you, Carolyn!
Hi Carolyn – thanks for another great tutorial. Now I’m starting to regret replacing my iPhone with a Moto Z Droid. One of the challenges I’m having with this phone is figuring out what it can do and what useful features it has I’m not aware of that I should consider using. Would you ponder doing a future post on your best tips/tricks for making this phone more useful? Thanks so much for providing such a wonderful resource for so many!
Ha, another intelligent article. Who would have thought about this one now 🙂
Yea I am sure I will need the magnifying capabilities when I am in a dimly lit restaurant. I have already enabled this feature on my iPhone and tested it. Works just fine, thanks for bringing it to our notice.
Curiosity got to me on this one! Although I knew about searching for an app to get the magnifying glass (because I’ve already done it as an Android user), I clicked through & enjoyed your post to find out if you had found a method that I was unaware of.
Even though that wasn’t the case, I was delighted by your post nonetheless. And for what it’s worth, I wanted to publicly thank you in written form for it.
Yours most sincerely,
Otis
Hi Otis, I’m glad you enjoyed this post, even though you already knew the information in it. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.
Hi Carolyn,
I was not aware of any such trick or option which can turn the iPhone into a magnifying glass. I must say it is going to be really helpful for all those who have some kind of vision problem or people like me who like to zoom things for more details of the things or images.
I must say that this is a very unique thing which I should always remember and tell others also.
Thanks!
Well I think we could also mobile camera for magnifying purpose but the shared app looks pretty useful.
Thanks for share
Hi Carolyn,
Great article! I never used it before now i am sure gonna check and how this actually work. I am gonna tell this to my father because he have vision problem. Please share us about top App Development Companies too. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Hi Somia, Thank you for letting me know this article was helpful and that you will be sharing it with your father. I hope he’s able to find some ebooks he enjoys. One of the big advantages of ebooks is that readers can adjust the font size to make it more comfortable for their vision.
No more hauling around heavy books with large print. Ebooks don’t weigh anything, no matter what size the font is!
I also appreciate your request to share information about top app development companies. That topic is outside the niche of The Wonder of Tech. I write about personal technology to help readers in their daily lives, such as this article. But if new tech is interesting, I sometimes include the backstory of the company. Often tech companies are started by everyday people who have an idea to make people’s lives easier!