10 secret Google hacks and hidden features
Most of us use Google on a daily basis for a variety of different things, whether it’s to find a local specialist, to look at holiday destinations, check the length of a journey or even for homework research!
Google is an extremely handy tool giving you the ability to search for anything in a matter of seconds! You may not even realise there are several fun and peculiar hidden tricks it has to offer.
Listed below are some of the fun features for you to try out and experiment with.
Google PAC-MAN
Simply type ‘PAC-MAN’ into the Google search bar. The first result which appears is ‘Play PAC-MAN Doodle.’ Click on this to start playing.
Google even decided to take things a step further on April Fools’ day this year where you could play Ms PAC-MAN within Google Maps. This feature was enabled for one day only, sorry to disappoint any PAC-MAN admirers!
Google Barrel Roll
Within your Google Chrome web browser go to Google and type in the search bar ‘do a barrel roll’ press enter and watch as your screen spins 360 degrees.
Google Gravity
Type ‘Google Gravity’ into the search, don’t press enter, instead click on where it says ‘I’m feeling lucky’ then watch the words as they come crashing down. This is a funny trick to set up on a colleague’s computer whilst they are away from their desk. Sit back and watch the confusion on their face as they return!
Google Zerg Rush
Within Google search for ‘zerg rush’ and this will start a game which you can play inside the browser. Lots of Os start to appear on your screen. If you then double click your cursor transforms into a plus sign allowing you to then click on the Os to demolish them. Your score is calculated and you can see how well you’ve done.
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To experiment with some other fun features check out ‘elgoog.im’ which is Google spelt backwards!
(Please note elgoog.im is not affiliated with Google – it’s just a bit of fun!)
elgooG was a mirrored website of Google Search bringing up horizontally flipped search results, also known as a “Google mirror”.
Google Snake
Using the up, down, left, right arrows on your keyboard see how tangled you get in a game of Snake! For some it’ll remind you of the 1976 arcade game where the Snake concept first originated. In 1998 Nokia made it available on their mobile phones – this is when things took off with the surge of fascination and interest Snake attracted.
Google Underwater
Watch as your page turns into a shark tank and the Google search bar begins floating in the water.
Google Mirror
This will flip your screen so that everything appears mirrored. Try typing into the search bar and that will also show what you’re typing and the results in reverse.
Google Tilt
In order to tilt your Google homepage visit ‘elgoog.im/tilt’
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1998
Fancy going back in time? With this trick you can, sort of! Go to Google and search ‘Google in 1998’, and you’ll be transported to a retro version of Google from the 1990s.
Set a timer
If you need to set a timer you can use Google as a timer, just type “Set timer 30 minutes” (or type whichever length of time you want to monitor).
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