Apple recently scored a patent (number 9,488,488) to create augmented reality maps, hinting at possible AR integration into the iOS Maps application for iPhone. Does this mean we'll be seeing super visionary projections of places in the app in the near future? Maybe.
This week's Brief Reality is led by a pair of stories with an eye to the future of the augmented reality industry, first in terms of standards for the industry, then with regards to its future applications in the automotive realm. Finally, one company looks to boost its future sales with an executive hire.
Contrary to popular belief, augmented reality apps have been available for a while now. I remember using the Layar app (still available for iOS and Android) to explore nearby businesses and landmarks with varying success via an early-generation Android handset.
Don't look now, but stock photo mega-site Shutterstock may have the most extensive library of augmented reality content available.
While Apple augmented reality smartglasses are not yet official, the tech giant is ramping up its resources by appointing company veteran Frank Casanova to promote its augmented reality offerings.
Despite the rise of music streaming, the experience of immersing oneself in the artwork and lyrics of old school albums is alive again, as sales of vinyl records and CDs have outpaced digital downloads for the first time since 2011. Now, the latest album from Amsterdam-based Necessary Explosion evolves this experience through augmented reality.
Earlier this year at WWDC, Apple made a big show of featuring augmented reality as a central part of iOS moving forward. But since then, other than comments from the company's CEO, Tim Cook, we haven't seen much direct promotion of augmented reality from the company. Until now.
Usually paper beats rock. With augmented reality, The Rock beats paper. Using the Life VR app for iOS or Android, Entertainment Weekly readers can point their smartphones at the cover of the Dec. 8 edition to view a holiday greeting from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, star of the forthcoming reboot, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
Augmented reality was recently named the "Mobile Disruptor of the Year" for 2017 by Mobile Marketer, but the technology is showing no signs of slowing down as we head into 2018. In fact, the technology appears to be gaining momentum.
Influencers of augmented reality demonstrate expertise in their fields and outline a strong vision for the future that they evangelize to others. They help define the direction of the industry and identify others who foster and create innovation in the field.
Augmented reality as a storytelling medium can do some extraordinary things words and images alone can't convey -- such as transporting readers 400 years into the past.
Already among the first game makers to add augmented reality content to an existing game upon the launch of ARKit, Zynga is breaking new ground with mobile AR once again.
After getting its start with models of augmented reality planets that serve as targets for augmented reality experiences, AstroReality is diversifying its portfolio by paying tribute to one of the space agencies that made its products possible.
Now that the NCAA Basketball Tournament is underway, 7-Eleven has decided to launch an augmented reality experience to remind basketball fans where they can quench their thirst throughout March Madness.
Mobile app publishers are using augmented reality to solve everyday measurement problems from measuring the length or height of items to previewing furniture in the home.
Mobile augmented reality developer Blippar has escalated the augmented reality advertising arms race, introducing a new rich media ad format that enables augmented reality experiences without a dedicated app.
Those of us that work with or around augmented and mixed reality have seen a powerful shift in the last year as the popularity and interest have grown in the field. With Microsoft's HoloLens release, the popularity of Pokémon GO, and the constant rumor mill known as Magic Leap, the terms augmented reality and mixed reality have started to become a part of the modern vernacular more and more each passing day.
Fast-food chain Jack in the Box has decided to put an augmented reality twist on the traditional sweepstakes promotion by employing the immersive powers of Snapchat.
The ability for apps and devices to determine the precise location of physical and virtual objects in space is a key component of augmented reality experiences, and the latest advancements in Bluetooth technology may have a hand in facilitating such location services in the near future.
This year's holiday shopping season is shaping up to be fertile ground for augmented reality to show its worth, as both Walmart and Target have crafted immersive experiences designed to engage shoppers in the coming weeks.
Between acquisitions, hirings, patent applications, and insider reports, all signs point to Apple building a smartglasses product that could ship as soon as 2020, but the company has not officially confirmed such plans.
It seems that mobile app developers are constantly coming up with new ideas to apply augmented reality, with Apple's ARKit promising to increase adoption in apps exponentially.
Facebook's annual earnings call on Wednesday didn't come with any big surprises, that is, if you took everything at face value.
The coming year promises to be a good one for those of us watching the augmented and mixed reality world. And the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), starting Jan. 5 in Las Vegas, Nevada, for its 50th year, is bringing 2017 in with a bang—we're expecting a ton of great announcements on the horizon.
The original iterations of the Terminator film franchise have served as the inspiration (via the heads-up display of the T-800) for future augmented reality dreams, so it is fitting that the current crop of AR gives the latest installment in the series a promotional boost.
Snapchat isn't the only tech company transforming landmarks with augmented reality for Pride Month. About four miles southwest of New York's iconic Flatiron Building, which is getting its own Pride makeover via Snapchat's Landmarker AR, Stonewall National Monument is also receiving some augmented reality treatment by way of the Stonewall Forever mobile app published by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center (better known as The Center) in partnership with Google.
Augmented reality is often likened to granting superpowers to mere mortals, but what about mutant powers?
If you need some help expressing how you feel to your mom for Mother's Day, Snapchat and Facebook are here with some augmented reality help.
The New York Times has made a habit of publishing augmented reality stories throughout 2018, and now the media giant's magazine is getting into the act, too.
Famed singer-songwriter David Bowie will return to the real world as part of an augmented reality app launching on Jan. 8, 2019, which would have been his 72nd birthday.
Seeing your baby for the first time via ultrasound is an exciting moment for new parents, but a new augmented reality twist on the experience could make the experience even more powerful.
Augmented reality has given companies worldwide great powers for innovating business practices and engaging customers, but on Monday, Honda demonstrated that with great power, also comes great social responsibility.
If you or someone you know has younger kids and you're looking for an augmented reality toy, Pai Technology has just the educational option for you.
Artificial intelligence and augmented reality go together like spaghetti and meatballs, and Lenovo has some ideas on how to spice up the recipe.
If you need to know whether you are really a Hufflepuff or a Gryffindor, then it's time to get yourself an augmented reality sorting hat.
Lebron James, or King James to his royal subjects, is extending the reach of his kingdom beyond basketball and into the realm of augmented reality.
Although it's impossible (at least for now) to travel back in time to see the Big Bang, The New York Times has provided its readers the closest simulation of the experience via its latest augmented reality feature.
Better known among consumers for its virtual reality apps, Jaunt is now pivoting toward solutions for augmented reality developers.
Another branding team has stepped up to the bar to order a tall glass of augmented reality for its marketing campaign, this time through a mobile app for Rémy Martin VSOP Limited Edition cognac.
Augmented reality headset maker Meta Company unveiled Meta Viewer, its first software application, during its keynote at the Augmented World Expo in Santa Clara on Wednesday.
