Google Goggles: Cool tool or one step closer to Big Brother?

Google unveiled its latest mobile technology, Google Goggles, which can be used to search photos, barcodes or DVD covers on an Android-based smartphone (although it may be coming to other smartphones soon.) The technology is impressive, and although it doesn't boast a 100% guarantee, its searches are usually relevant.

Goggles is basically an object-recognition system and by taking a photo of something on your smartphone -- either a storefront, the Eiffel Tower, book or even a person -- its visual search technology breaks down the image into object-based signatures, compares them with others in its image database and ranks them for your searching pleasure. So far, Goggles isn't doing well with animals, food, cars or plants but developers say that's only a matter of time.