If you’re in a pinch, and if you’ve misplaced your guitar tuner, and if you have a gig coming up like right now (yes, that’s a lot of ifs), you can now ask Google for help get your guitar in tune.
The new feature, called “Google Tuner,” was noticed a few days ago by Android Police. To activate it, just google “Google Tuner,” and you’ll get a fully functional tuner that will use your computer or phone mic (you have to allow it first) to listen to the sounds coming out of your guitar and tell you whether it’s in tune.
According to Android Police, similar functionality existed before and you could invoke it by telling Google Assistant to “tune my instrument,” but now it’s available as a search phrase and it works from any device.
You have to google “Google Tuner” to get it.
Credit: google
Oddly enough, it only works if you actually type “Google Tuner” into the search box. If you search for “guitar tuner” or “instrument tuner,” you won’t get the same result, which makes absolutely zero sense.
I tried the feature out on a Mac and an iPhone, and it works satisfyingly, though it certainly won’t replace my standard guitar tuner (you may have to play a little louder if you’re using an iPhone). But hey, your phone’s always with you, and your guitar tuner may not be.
