Google introduces e-commerce product research feature

In its never-ending quest to improve its search engine, Google has unveiled several new features. These include Tab Compare, an AI-powered overview of open products across multiple tabs. This means users can search for the best products in a whole new way, ensuring they get the best deals from e-commerce companies.

Google’s new product comparison feature has been long overdue. The Internet has become part of everyday life, where it is the largest marketing tool available to both businesses and buyers.

Today, the internet is used to find products and even host services that are available to online users. In addition to e-commerce, there are also sectors such as iGaming that offer access to digital games. It is also common for these sites to host a live online casino, where table games such as blackjack or roulette are played on an interactive stream for viewers. Increasingly, all kinds of experiences are coming online to make the internet more than just a marketing platform, but an entertainment hub.

As this continues, more and more products and services will continue to flow through the internet. Following this trend, Google has rolled out several new features aimed at improving things like reviews, such as the 2023 Review Update. Now, Google has given users more ways to compare products across multiple tabs.

Unveiled 1^saint August, Google introduced three new features called Visual Search, Tab Compare, and Smart History. For desktop users, Tab Compare will have the biggest impact on online shoppers. It was launched for users in the U.S. with a planned broad rollout at a later date.

This feature uses AI to gather information from your open tabs. So if you open a few store pages, it will gather features, prices, and user ratings into an easy-to-read table. It even includes a product summary and other useful information, such as power output, battery life, and weight for some products.

It’s a great way to compare products at a glance, using objective information pulled from the store’s website. While more information is needed to make a purchase decision, it helps users narrow down the list of candidates when searching for products. As AI tools become more sophisticated, the information these features provide will only get better.

Other features—visual search and smart history—also use AI to further enhance the Google experience. Visual search brings Google Lens technology to the desktop after its debut on mobile in 2017. It lets users scan real-world products with the camera or circle images on the screen to search for objects on them.

Now, that feature, specifically the latter, is rolling out to desktop users. A Google Lens icon has been added to the address bar, allowing users to click and drag a search box over images. In their example, Google shows a desktop user highlighting, identifying, and searching for a potted plant in a stock photo. It’s a great way for users to see something they like, use AI to identify it, and then search for it to buy.

Another added feature, Smart History, helps users find pages they have visited before. Google Chrome’s history page has now adopted AI to make it easier to find searches made in the past. Previously, users had to remember keywords and page names to search for them.