If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that trying on clothes is a pain. However, as annoying as it may be, it’s still something that’s crucially missing from online shopping. Google is attempting to combine online shopping with trying on clothes in real life, and I gave it a try.
What is Google “Try On”?
The feature is called “Try On” and, as you would expect, it’s powered by AI. It builds on Google’s previous Shopping feature that allows you to see clothes visualized on a wide range of skin tones and body types. But with “Try it On,” you get to be the model, and all it takes is a photo.
To try for yourself, you’ll need to enable “Try On,” which is currently an experiment, from the Search Labs. You can do this by opening the Google app on your phone and tapping the beaker icon in the top corner. Opt in to the feature and then tap “Try things on.” Google will guide you through uploading a photo of your full body.
Once you have a photo uploaded, it’s just a matter of finding clothes with the “Try it on” button in Google Shopping. You can easily cycle through the different outfits you’ve tried on and share the photos with friends to get their input. The whole process is pretty painless, but how does it look?
Let’s Get Dressed
To ease you into things, Google has provided a bunch of generic clothing organized into “Womenswear” and “Menswear.” I got started with full top-to-bottom denim coveralls. In the gallery below, you can see the outfit and my before-and-after photos.
For the most part, I’m very impressed with the result. I intentionally used a photo with hands in my pocket to make it more difficult, and it handled it well. There’s some weirdness going on with my face that wasn’t in the original photo, though. Let’s keep trying.
This one was just supposed to be linen cargo pants, but I realized it always changes your entire outfit—which is one of my small issues. But again, I’m really impressed with the result. The skin on my chest that wasn’t in the original photo matches perfectly. My hands are flawlessly in my pockets again, too.
Now, we’re upping the difficulty level this time. I’m trying on shorts, but my legs are not visible in the original photo. The accuracy for this one really blows me away. I would swear that those are my real legs, which is a bit disconcerting, to be honest. It gives me “uncanny valley” vibes despite looking totally realistic.
As mentioned, these have all been generic outfits provided by Google to test the feature, but the real magic comes with clothing you can actually purchase. All you have to do is search for something in Google Shopping and look for the “Try it on” button.
As you can see, the AI struggled a bit more with these. This is a Detroit Tigers pullover that looks mostly okay until you notice the text on the front is a jumbled mess. It also gave me new pants and shoes, which I did not ask for.
It did a pretty good job with this flannel shirt, especially with the skin around my neck and chest again. Interestingly, it didn’t roll up the sleeves like they appear in the product photo. The same thing is happening with the rest of my outfit, though. Where did that big belt buckle come from?
For the last one, I tried another pair of shorts. Once again, I am a bit spooked by how real those legs look. But my main gripe is that I don’t like how it changes my entire outfit every time. What if I wanted to see how those shorts looked with the shirt I was wearing? Why can’t I do that?
Closing Thoughts
Not everything that I searched for was available to try on. Along with many shirts and pants I found, I wasn’t able to try on any caps, beanies, or full-body costumes. Google did say it’s for “shirts, pants, skirts, and dresses,” but it didn’t mention if they’re partnering with certain brands or stores. I’m not sure how it determines whether you can try something on or not.
For the most part, I’m impressed with “Try On,” and I can see myself using it in the future. If you can’t tell from my photos, I’m a tall person, which makes it hard to find my size in physical stores. So, what I often do is buy multiples online and return the ones I don’t like. This could potentially save me from some of that hassle. It won’t tell me which things will fit best, but I’ll get an idea of how it will look on me.
Right now, this seems to be presenting the best-case scenario—what the clothes with look like if they fit you perfectly. Clothes often don’t fit perfectly, though, so sizing seems like a logical next step for something like this. I can imagine a not-too-distant future where you can cycle through sizes to see how they’d fit. Nothing will ever replace the feeling of physical clothes on your body, but getting some digital help is nice.
