As smartphones explode in popularity, augmented reality is starting to move from novelty to utility.
Yelp quietly added a feature to its iPhone app in 2009 that blurred the line between the real and the virtual. If you held your handset up and looked at the world through its screen, you’d see little floating tags containing the names, user ratings, and other details of businesses around you.
Continue reading… “Augmented reality moving beyond novelty”
Augmented reality shopping app.
The prototype of a mobile app that can act as a personal shopping assistant in stores has been announced by IBM Research.
The mobile app could be branded and provided by retailers. Consumers would download the app and then input products they’re shopping for and their selection criteria.
Continue reading… “Coming soon – augmented reality shopping”
Augmented reality will completely change retail.
What is the future of retail? In the next couple of years, customers will be able to try on clothes and products at home with no shipping required. Technology will allow shoppers to virtually wear garments — smelling, hearing and feeling the fabric as if it were real.
Continue reading… “Augmented reality is the future of retail”
A new augmented reality system could help astronauts take care of each other.
Astronauts will face all kinds of medical problems when traveling to Mars or other distant destinations , but rocket science isn’t surgery. And vice versa. A new augmented reality system could help astronauts take care of each other, overlaying computer graphics over a real patient to guide diagnoses or even surgery. It could even improve telemedicine in developing countries or remote spots.
The lenses sit directly on the eyeball, and have been engineered using nanoscale techniques to work as a focusing device that pairs with a pair of hi-tech glasses.
Innovega, a company in the U.S. says, contact lenses which focus 3D screens directly into people’s eyeballs could be on sale as early as 2014. The tiny ‘screens’ sit directly on users’ eyeballs and work with a pair of lightweight glasses with a built-in translucent screen.
Continue reading… “Virtual reality contact lenses could be here by 2014”
A game using augmented reality.
2012 will be a very busy year in all things digital, but there will be just a handful of big, memorable trends. Here are five such movements that are likely to make a big impact in our technologically-enhanced lives.
Continue reading… “5 technology trends to watch in 2012”
The wonders of QR codes
Let’s state upfront that Adriannezy is brilliant. She wanted to participate in Halloween at work, but not wear a costume that got in the way. So she generated a QR code that, when scanned, reveals a picture of herself in a classic Star Trek uniform. She writes, “I’ve had groups of guys holding phones up to my chest all day. It’s been awkward.”
Continue reading… “Virtual Costume”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.