Model Explorer by ZeroXR

How to see the best chess moves on a real board with your phone

Open 0xr.space in Chrome on an Android phone, press Scan on the dock and point the camera at a chess board. After a few seconds it draws the board's lines on the picture, and once a position holds, a chess engine's three best moves as arrows, green for the best, each with its move and White's score, such as e2e4 +0.31.

It is experimental. A board seen from above reads best; from a steep angle with an unfamiliar piece set, up to one square in five can be misread, so following a game from the start works better than reading a position cold. Moves are written square to square, not as Nf3. It does not read the board on an iPhone or in Firefox.

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Steps

  1. Set up the pieces and hold the phone above the board, with the whole board and its edge in view, in even light.
  2. Open 0xr.space in Chrome on Android, press Scan and allow the camera.
  3. Hold still for about 8 seconds. The board's lines appear, the caption reads Reading the board, then White to move with the depth, and the arrows follow.
  4. Use the buttons under the picture: New game when the pieces are set up for a new game, Flip if White and Black are the wrong way round, Side to change whose move it is.

Questions

Can I use it during a game against someone?

No. Taking an engine's moves during a rated game, a tournament or an online game against a person is cheating under FIDE's and chess sites' fair-play rules. Use it to study, to set up puzzles or to go over a game after it ends.

What does Scan send and keep?

See the privacy page at https://0xr.space/privacy/ for what the camera features send and keep.

Why are there no arrows?

Arrows come once the same position has been read twice in a row. A hand over the board, glare, or a board cut off at the picture's edge holds them back.

How do I turn it off, or start it at once?

It turns on by itself when a board is seen. Open 0xr.space/?chess=off to keep it off, or 0xr.space/?chess=on to look for a board as soon as Scan opens.

Does it play against me?

No. It only shows the best moves for the position on the board; you move the pieces.

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