Augmented reality technology can be found now in a large number of mobile apps and games. Some of these apps are specialized and developed for professionals, scientists, and students. But the great majority of AR apps are freely available in Google Play and the App Store for the general public.
Augmented reality does not offer a fully immersive experience to its users, the way virtual reality does. It is more like an extension of the real world. Actually, the company Microsoft, which developed the [amazon_textlink asin=’B0761LXM6G’ text=’HoloLens’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’arpost-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’2fc6f70b-ea6e-11e7-be0f-17f405d5a180′] augmented reality goggles, prefers to use the term ‘mixed reality’.
Both terms mean the same thing: a real time, direct or indirect view of the physical environment whose elements are enriched or supplemented by the insertion of computer-generated objects, videos and sounds.
Even for beginners augmented reality is familiar in relation with the mobile game Pokémon Go, which was hugely popular in 2016. While this game is a good example of what AR does and how it can be experienced, it is just a part of the whole concept.
Augmented reality apps can be used with a range of hardware devices and have various applications which go beyond the world of entertainment. Therefore, let us start with the physical devices you need in order to experience AR.
AR technology can be experienced in two ways:
In terms of hardware, the option is, basically, between a handheld or a hands-free device. Mobile phones are the most frequently used devices when it comes to augmented reality apps and games. The apps make use of the phone camera to capture the real-world images and the accelerometer to detect motion and correlate it with the computer-generated imagery (CGI) images which are superimposed onto the physical environment.
AR glasses are devices which consist of:
These smart glasses are not stand-alone equipment: they still need to be paired with a smartphone which has the AR app or game installed on it.
AR apps have really taken off since the launch of the ARKit for Apple iOS and ARCore for Android. These two platforms allow the embedding of augmented reality experience into apps with a compact storage size to facilitate installation on a wide range of mobile phones.
Elements of augmented reality are also included in various social media platforms – such as the chat filters for Snapchat. However, the best-known types of AR apps are those developed by retail companies. Cosmetics, furniture, home improvement and fashion brands have launched apps which allow people to point their mobile phones and “try on” products before buying them.
Apart from AR shopping and games, there are various ways in which you can experience this technology in a practical manner:
Augmented reality technology will certainly have a bright future, given the fact that smartphones become more and more powerful and capable of rendering realistic 3D images with minimum lag. The practical applications of this technology are reaching more and more industries, making augmented reality a standard feature of most apps and games in the near future.
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