Quick Comparison
| Feature | Snowball | Google Lens |
|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Contact management | Visual search & OCR |
| Creates contacts | Automatically | Copy text only |
| Voice notes | ||
| Follow-up reminders | ||
| Offline scanning | ||
| Smart tags | ||
| CRM integrations | 100+ | Google Contacts only |
| Relationship tracking |
Google Lens is a Visual Search Tool
Google Lens is impressive technology for identifying objects, translating text, and searching images. It can read business cards too—but it just gives you text to copy. There's no contact creation, no context capture, no relationship management.
- Extracts text but doesn't create contact records
- No way to add notes or voice context
- No follow-up reminders
- Requires internet connection
- Not designed for professional networking
Key Differences
Purpose-Built for Networking
Snowball is designed for one thing: turning business cards into relationships. Google Lens is a general-purpose visual AI.
Scan to Contact Instantly
Snowball creates a complete contact record automatically. Google Lens gives you text you have to copy and paste.
Context Capture
Voice notes, tags, relationship goals. Remember what you discussed. Google Lens has no memory.
Works Offline
Conference wifi fails. Snowball doesn't. Google Lens requires internet for everything.
When Google Lens Makes Sense
- You need general visual search (identify plants, products, landmarks)
- You want to translate text in images
- You occasionally scan one-off cards without follow-up needs
- You're already using Google Photos for everything
When to Choose Snowball
- You want scanned cards to become real contacts
- You need voice notes for context
- You want follow-up reminders
- You need offline mode at events
- You need CRM integrations beyond Google
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Google Lens save to contacts?
Google Lens can recognize text on business cards, but you have to manually copy each field to your contacts app. Snowball does this automatically.
Is Google Lens free?
Yes, Google Lens is free. Snowball also has a generous free tier.
Which is more accurate?
Both have good OCR. But Snowball is trained specifically for business cards and extracts structured data (name vs title vs email) more reliably.
Does Snowball work with Google Contacts?
Yes. Snowball can sync with Google Contacts, so your data appears in both places.