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Market Reality: Olympics AR Content on Instagram & Google, Facebook's Metaverse, & Snapchat's Magic Karaoke

Over the past week, practically every major tech company working on augmented reality has held their quarterly earnings calls with investors, and each addressed or at least mentioned the role of AR during their prepared remarks. However, Facebook's earnings call had some of the spicier commentary on the technology.

News: Grid Studio Turns Old iPhones into Works of Art

Apple is known for its dedication to design, attention to detail, and for its apparent belief that its products are half device, half art. If you've ever felt similarly about that latter point, or had a desire to hang your iPhone on the wall, Grid Studio might just have the piece for you.

News: Facebook's Smartglasses Are the New AR Hype, but It's Becoming Clearer That a Metaverse Platform War Is Coming

Facebook's earnings calls are generally focused on numbers—revenue and user growth. But this week the company's founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, carved out a significant portion of the call to elaborate on Facebook's plans for immersive computing.

News: New York Times Revives Its AR Storytelling on Instagram with Tokyo Olympics Experiences

Old school media stalwart The New York Times launched its augmented reality news content in 2018 with a feature on the athletes of the Winter Olympics.

AR Snapshots: Snapchat's Latest Augmented Reality Lens Turns Celebrities into Lip-Syncing Pop Stars

The Lens Studio community, now made up of more than 200,000 creators, has generated some impressive augmented reality effects in the last few years. Amazingly, the groundbreaking Lenses for Snapchat continue to come, often from the internal AR team at Snap.

News: Google Adds More Olympic Athletes to Its Roster of Augmented Reality Search Content

After facing delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Olympic Games are underway in Tokyo, but a surge in cases worldwide has taken the spectator out of these spectator sports.

How To: When It Comes to iPhone 12 Series Cases, Smartish Is All You'll Need

I drop my smartphone a lot. Like an absurd amount of times. Practically multiple times a day. So it's surprising that my iPhone 12 Pro has lasted nine months without a cracked screen yet. Part of that has to do with the late-2020 model's durability, and the other part is thanks to my protective case.

Market Reality: Snap & Epic Games Acquisitions, Nreal v. Epic Games, AR on Oculus Quest, & HoloLens at the Olympics

It's already been a banner year for mergers and acquisitions in the augmented reality industry, with WaveOptics and Ubiquity6 among the notable companies acquired. Two of the more active M&A players, Snap and Epic Games, continued their respective buying sprees this week with major deals supporting their AR strategies.

News: Facebook Finally Opens Oculus Quest Passthrough Feature to Developers, Making the VR Device an AR Playground

Facebook Reality Labs chief Andrew "Boz" Bosworth does a lot of hinting and teasing of what's coming next at Oculus, often with only a vague timeline on the horizon.

News: This Is How Japanese Wireless Giant Docomo Is Using the HoloLens 2 to Add AR to the Olympics

On Friday, the Tokyo Olympics finally kicked off after massive delays and complications due to the pandemic.

News: BMW Releases Art Car Series of Famed Artists, Including Jeff Koons and Andy Warhol, in Augmented Reality

One app is continuing to make a name for itself as the go-to platform for celebrity art that transcends canvas and paint and moves in augmented reality.

News: Snap Adds Upper Garment Segmentation, Multiple Object Detection, & More with Lens Studio 4.1

After adding full-body tracking and 3D body mesh in its past two Lens Studio updates, Snap continues to supply creators, particularly apparel retailers, with tools for creating clothing-centric AR experiences.

News: Epic Games Builds on Metaverse Foundation with Sketchfab Acquisition

Already among the leaders in AR development tools via its Unreal Engine, Epic Games has added another tanky weapon to its arsenal.

News: Nreal Fires Back Legal Countersuit at Epic Games Over Naming Dispute

The legal battle between Epic Games and augmented reality startup Nreal isn't cooling off anytime soon.

News: Snap Continues AR Buying Spree with Vertebrae Acquisition

Snapchat parent company Snap has opened up its war chest to acquire yet another company that will play a role in its augmented reality ecosystem.

News: Snap Spectacles Used to Turn Spoken Word Poetry into an Augmented Reality Experience

From the front lines of mainstreaming augmented reality smartglasses comes the latest update from Snap and its Spectacles wearable.

News: USA Today Showcases New Summer Olympics Sports with Augmented Reality

After a postponement of the Summer Olympics for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tokyo is set to host the games this summer, despite a surge in cases in the city.

Market Reality: Facebook AR & Space Jam, Virgin Galactic AR App, Asics NFTs, & Shark Week on Snapchat

A pair of properties from the soon-to-merge Warner Media and Discovery companies chose different platforms for their augmented reality marketing, with Warner film Space Jam: A New Legacy opting to go with Facebook and Discovery Channel publishing an AR experience through Snapchat.

News: Google Extends Support for Google Meet to Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2

Due to the apparent lackluster adoption of its Explorer Edition, it can be easy to forget that Google Glass still exists as an enterprise product.

How To: Sync All Your Freelance Articles to Authory — Your New Online Writing Porfolio!

When you're a writer with work published across various online platforms, building a portfolio of your work can be pretty time-consuming. That's where Authory comes in.

News: This Is How You Can Join LeBron James & Warner Bros. Space Jam Cartoon Characters in Augmented Reality

The remake of the Warner Bros. classic animation meets live-action movie Space Jam, this time starring LeBron James instead of Michael Jordan, hits theaters today.

AR Snapshots: Dive into Shark Week with These Snapchat AR Lenses

Shark Week, which debuted in 1988 as a week of programming on the Discovery Channel dedicated to the titular predatory fish, has grown into a cultural beast of its own.

How To: Take Back the Internet with This Custom DNS & VPN Bundle

In the early days of the internet, if something was there and not password protected, you could see it. In the process of becoming the indispensable work and entertainment resource that it is, the internet also grew the same borders that countries have while also getting less safe for the people using it. If you want to watch something, you have to hope it was available in your country. If you want to keep your information safe, you have to take some extra steps to make sure that happens. The...

News: DigiLens Looks to Plastic Waveguides as Alternative to Glass for AR Smartglasses Displays

When it comes to the future of AR smartglasses, DigiLens has one word for you. Just one word. Are you listening? Plastics.

News: Asics Brings Its Sneaker Magic to the 3D World via NFT Auction

Some tried to call it a brief cryptocurrency-fueled fad, but it looks like NFTs are here to stay. Now, one of the biggest sneaker companies on the planet, Japan's Asics, is getting into the game with its own set of NFTs, and there's a virtual object component included.

News: Create Your Own Holograms at Home with the Volu iPhone App

With the release of Object Capture this fall, Apple is giving everyone with a Mac and a camera the means to create their own 3D objects.

How To: Protect Your Information on Up to 10 Devices with This Thrifty VPN

Your privacy is important, especially online. Almost anywhere you go on the internet, you leave a trail of data that companies can use without your permission. VPNs are the easiest way to keep your browsing private and your information safe. Ivacy VPN is one such service, and it's one of the best deals you can get on a VPN because it will cover 5 of your devices for a lifetime, and this is a two-account bundle, so you'll be able to cover 10 total devices for $49.99.

How To: Stay Connected Anywhere in the World with This Compact LTE Hotspot

The ability to stay connected online regardless of your environment is incredibly valuable. Being able to access the internet during a blackout, check your messages while camping, or get in contact with emergency services while you're out in the middle of nowhere can be the difference between a brief inconvenience and prolonged suffering. The DuoTurbo 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot with Complimentary 9 GB Data can give you that easy, constant connectivity, and right now it's on sale for $152.99 — 10% ...

News: Apple Seeds iOS 14.7 RC with Support for MagSafe Battery Pack

Apple released the iOS 14.7 RC (release candidate) today, Tuesday, July 13. The new update — and likely official 14.7 release — includes support for Apple's new MagSafe Battery Pack, adds two Apple Card Family options to combine credit limits and share one co-owned account, among other new features and changes.

News: Rokid's New Smartglasses Mirror Content from Smartphones, Desktops, & Consoles to Virtual Screens

After receiving $100 million in funding in 2018, smartglasses maker Rokid is going the crowdfunding route to finance its latest product.

News: Camera IQ Gives Cosmetics Brands the Power to Push Virtual Try-on Effects to Snapchat, Facebook, & Instagram

Cosmetics brands have a long love affair with augmented reality, embracing virtual try-on effects as a means to help sell eyeliner, hair color, lipstick, and the like.

News: Virgin Galactic App Uses Augmented Reality to Let You Sample Space Tourism with Richard Branson

Billionaire Richard Branson did his part to advance space tourism this weekend by beating Elon Musk (SpaceX) and Jeff Bezos (Blue Origin) to become the first among them to travel into space.

How To: The Fastest Way to Dim Your iPhone Screen Lower Than the Lowest Possible Brightness

In the dark, even the lowest brightness option on the iPhone can still feel a thousand burning suns. No matter whether you're in bed or at the movie theater, you don't want to create a distraction with your smartphone. That's why you might want a brightness that isn't readily available on your device — but luckily, there may be a way to go lower than the lowest brightness.

How To: This Smart Phone Mount Is Also a Wireless Charger

Whether you're using your phone's map to navigate or entrusting your passenger with the responsibilities of the mobile DJ, your phone needs a secure place in your car. And if it could charge while it's there, that's great too. The Naztech Smart Grip Wireless Charging Car Mount is exactly what you're looking for if you need a place to keep your phone secure, charging, and able to be used when it's safe to do so. Right now, this adjustable phone mount is on sale for $39.99, an 11% discount.

Market Reality: Facebook & Harry Potter AR, MLB AR App, Doritos AR Ads, NFT Holographic Future, & Google Meet AR Filters

Brands are increasingly adopting augmented reality to promote their products and services, and they have multiple paths for bringing AR experience to their audiences.

News: How to Watch Japan's Viral 3D Cat Live, and How It All Started in China & South Korea

The most viral internet cat of the moment is a virtual kitty trapped in a billboard in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, Japan.

How To: The Secret to Laying Down on Your Side with Headphones On

It's nearly impossible to comfortably lay down on your bed or couch with headphones on. Sure, you can position yourself so that your headphones don't touch anything, but that usually means facing up at the ceiling, which is a huge no if you're watching something on Netflix or listening to music on your side.