PhotoMath app solves linear algebraic equations and other math problems from photos

Infusing these capabilities into a smartphone further cements the devices as the pocket knife of consumer gadgets

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Meet PhotoMath, an iPhone and Android app that solves math problems photographed with your smartphone’s camera. Simply flip open the app, scan the problem as it appears in the textbook, and the app will calculate the value of the variable. Is this cheating? Slightly. Will students undoubtedly use it? Yes. Will it cause a paradigm shift with what we can do with our phones? Yes.

Once an answer is derived, users have the optioning of sifting through all the steps needed to reach that answer, thereby learning why they were stuck – a process not unlike consulting a tutor or teacher for help.

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Currently, PhotoMath supports arithmetic expressions such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, along with factions and decimals, powers and roots, and even simple linear equations. Since it’s confined to these rudimentary expressions, it’s not the end all of math homework but a convenient tool for solving simple algebraic expressions quickly, much like a scientific calculator. The only major difference being that snapping a photo is much more convenient than typing a linear algebra equation on a smart calculator or typing it into Wolfram Alpha, the computational knowledge engine.

PhotoMath can be downloaded from or the Apple Store. Its android counterpart is slated for a 2015 release. 


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