Hitachi (best known for manufacturing computer parts and electronic products — not, uh, web software) unveiled a new search engine called GazoPa, which finds images based on the shapes and colors they present, rather than tags and text related to the image. Say you're looking for a specific pair of white shoes but you just can't remember what they were called. With GazoPa, you could first search for "white shoes" and get treated to a gallery of just that. You could then refine your search, clicking on a shoe that looks closest to what you were thinking about — a sneaker or sandal, for instance — and GazoPa will sort through images of shoes and find the ones closest to the shape you picked out. Check out the video above to see it in action.

The search engine is currently in closed beta, though if you toss Hitachi your email you can put yourself on the waiting list to try it out.

GazoPa, via Gizmodo