How to Import Physical Book Highlights

If you read physical books and highlight or underline passages, Screvi can extract that text using your phone's camera and AI.

This feature is available on the iOS and Android mobile apps.

How It Works

1. Open the Screvi mobile app
2. Tap the "+" button to open the Add Idea screen
3. Tap the camera icon in the toolbar to take a photo, or the gallery icon to pick an existing photo
4. A drawing screen appears where you can mark the specific text you want extracted
5. Tap "Extract Text" to send the image to Screvi's AI for processing
6. The extracted text appears in the text field, ready to edit and save

Drawing on the Image

After taking or selecting a photo, the drawing screen lets you highlight the passages you want extracted:

• Draw over text with your finger to mark the passages you care about. Screvi renders a yellow highlighter effect on the image.
• Straight lines are auto-detected. If you draw a roughly straight line, Screvi automatically snaps it to a perfectly straight underline.
• Undo removes the last stroke. Clear removes all drawings.
• If you don't draw anything, Screvi extracts all readable text from the entire image.

Multiple Pages

You can scan multiple pages in a single session:

1. After taking or selecting your first photo, tap "Add Page" at the bottom
2. Take another photo or choose from your gallery
3. Navigate between pages using the arrows at the top
4. When you're done, tap "Extract Text (X pages)"

The AI processes all pages together and returns the combined extracted text.

Assigning to a Source

After the text is extracted:

1. Review and edit the text if needed
2. Tap the source selector at the bottom to assign the highlight to a book
3. Search for an existing source, or create a new one by typing the book title
4. Optionally add tags, a page number, or a note
5. Tap Save

If you don't select a source, the highlight is saved under your Personal Notes.

Tips for Best Results

• Good lighting matters. Make sure the page is well-lit and avoid shadows across the text.
• Keep the page flat. Try to avoid curved pages near the spine, as warping can make text harder to read.
• Mark specific passages. Drawing over the text you want gives the AI a clear signal of what to extract, rather than trying to grab everything on the page.
• Use the gallery option if you've already taken photos of book pages. You don't need to retake them.

Voice Input

You can also add highlights by speaking:

1. On the Add Idea screen, tap the microphone icon
2. Speak your highlight, quote, or idea
3. Screvi transcribes the audio using AI
4. The transcription appears as editable text, ready to save

This is useful for capturing ideas or paraphrases while reading a physical book, without needing to photograph the page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What types of markings does the scanner detect?

The AI can read text that is highlighted with a physical highlighter, underlined, circled, or bracketed. You can also use the drawing tool on the photo to point out specific passages.

Does it work with handwritten notes?

The AI primarily extracts printed text. Handwritten margin notes may or may not be recognized depending on legibility.

How accurate is the text extraction?

The AI is very accurate for clearly printed text in good lighting. You can always review and edit the extracted text before saving.

Can I scan multiple books in one session?

Each scan session saves highlights to a single source. To scan from a different book, save the current session first, then start a new one and assign it to the other book.