Bing Touts New Features For Holiday Shopping

Microsoft announced some new tools to help users search for the right gifts and save money on their purchases throughout the holiday season.

Its new Edge browser for one provides coupons via a partnership with Shopular. It features over 100 retailers including Macy’s, Target, and Toys “R” Us. When the user visits one of these stores’ sites, they can click on the Cortana icon to see available coupons.

The feature was actually announced in September, but is now live and ready to use.

Bing users can also now use Bing Images to compare prices.

As Microsoft explains: “While all this shopping can be fun, it can also be a stressor on our wallet. According to the National Retail Federation, consumers plan to spend an average of $805 on holiday merchandise this year. Bing is bringing you some relief by adding more data to product images, including prices for the same item sold at different stores, reviews and ratings and store availability. We’re rolling this out to desktop and mobile devices over the next few days, at which time all you need to do is search for an item on Bing Images, look for the shopping cart icon and scroll down to the “Places to Buy Beta.” Bing also shows you visually similar products to the one you’re looking at in case your original search is a little out of your desired price range.”

They’re also testing a new feature called Image Stream, which shares recommended images based on things you’ve favorited.

“If you’re not familiar with the favorite feature, it’s the ability to search and save the images that catch your eye,” the company says. “We’ve extended this feature to mobile so you can use it while on the go. Just tap the heart icon to add an image to your favorites. To get started, click on the Images link underneath the Bing search box to see our updated images landing page.”

Images via Microsoft