Chairish, Inc. is the latest furniture retailer to bring augmented reality into its mobile stores, adding features for users to visualize products in their homes. Today, the company added AR capabilities to their iOS apps for their brands Chairish, an online marketplace for v ...more
February 21st is going to be a busy day for Android smartphones. Samsung has already scheduled its "Unpacked" event to show off their new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge handsets, and now LG is joining in on the action, as it will unveil the G5 on the same day, at the Mobile World Congr ...more
Not too long ago I showcased ReCam, a free app that lets you schedule recordings and use your Android device as a security or spy camera of sorts. While useful, this app required you to schedule when to record in advance, resulting in you possibly missing the footage you inten ...more
Maybe it is narcissistic to take selfies, but it has become a socially accepted norm, no matter how stupid you might look doing it. Since so many people are seemingly in love with themselves and mobile photography, I thought it was about time to show you how to step up your se ...more
According to T-Mobile's website, an Android version bump is due out today. While details of specific changes are sparse, the support documentation for Nexus devices very clearly notes a release date of June 2nd for the software. Sprint may have jumped the gun with its own outi ...more
Starting with Android 9 and 10, Google made privacy and security the main priorities for Android updates. Both versions brought numerous changes to help erase the notion that Android isn't safe, but Android 11 might even have them beat. In Android 11, Google is building upon ...more
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus has practically guaranteed that the virus, along with the phrases "social distancing" and "flattening the curve," will rank among the top search terms of 2020. USA Today combined the phrases in its latest augm ...more
All of the the tech industry giants, including Apple, Facebook, and Google, are working on new smartglasses and/or AR headsets, but this week, Google took a major step forward with gesture recognition technology that could make its way into AR wearables, posing a threat to Lea ...more
Facebook added a new feature that lets you post 3D versions of your portrait mode photos for all your family and friends to see on their smartphones, computers, and virtual reality goggles. These new 3D photos add a whole new dimension to your images with movement and more dep ...more
Until next March, the iPhone XS and Samsung Galaxy S9 will be the only phones considered by many. Whether you're an Apple fan wanting to see how your new phone stacks up against the competition or a buyer on the fence, here's how the latest flagships from the two biggest brand ...more
This week, Next Reality published its annual feature on the leaders in the augmented reality industry, the Next Reality 30. So it's no coincidence that the companies represented in the top four spots of the NR30 also made business headlines in AR this week. While Magic Leap i ...more
While ARKit and ARCore are poised to bring AR experiences to millions of mobile devices, one company is poised to anchor those experiences anywhere in the world with just a set of geographic coordinates. The geospatial augmented reality platform Aireal enables developers to p ...more
The Samsung Galaxy S5 was just officially announced at Mobile World Congress. The new flagship device will be available worldwide beginning April 11, 2014, including all major U.S. and international carriers. With over 200 million Galaxy devices sold to date, the S5 doesn't st ...more
After the mobile augmented reality platforms of ARKit and ARCore moved Google's previously groundbreaking Project Tango (the AR platform that gave us the first smartphones with depth sensors) into obsolescence in 2018, we've seen a bit of a resurgence of what was then a niche ...more
So the new iPhones have arrived. Like last year, Apple released three iPhones in three different sizes that vary in price and specs. There's the base model iPhone 11, and then there are the real deal, premium models, the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max. The iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro ...more
With Google taking on the sidewalks with augmented reality walking navigation for Google Maps, Apple has its sights set on the road. In a patent application submitted in Jan. 2019 and published on Thursday by the US Trademark and Patent Office (USPTO), Apple has described a p ...more
Smartphone videos get better and better each year. Seven or eight years ago, who would have thought iPhone and Android phones could support 4K video recording. Some phones can even shoot slow-motion at 960 fps. But no matter the resolution or frame rate, a phone's rolling shut ...more
We've seen a variety of AR experiences related to athletic footwear over the years, but Puma is betting sneakerheads will buy into a version of interactive design where sneakers are the augmented reality experience The shoemaker launched the LQD Cell (pronounced "liquid cell" ...more
This time last year, we got our first taste of what mobile app developers could do in augmented reality with Apple's ARKit. Most people had never heard of Animojis. Google's AR platform was still Tango. Snapchat introduced its World Lens AR experiences. Most mobile AR experien ...more
Apple's newest mobile operating system, iOS 8, is out for the general public, and we've got a rundown on the best new features you can use on your iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. While there's not a huge visual change as there was from iOS 6 to iOS 7, there's still plenty of coo ...more
Following its dominance as a provider of silicon for smartphones, Qualcomm is eager to replicate that ubiquity with not only processors for augmented reality headsets but also reference designs to give device makers a head start. On Tuesday, in place of an unveiling at Mobile ...more
The first headset running on the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 chipset from an original equipment manufacturer is official. On Monday at the San Francisco Photonics West conference, startup Lynx unveiled the Lynx Mixed Reality Headset. The headset is a $1500 passthrough AR/VR weara ...more
Dark mode themes for mobile apps are all the rage these days, but YouTube is taking that a bit literally with its latest augmented reality experience. On Monday, to promote the release of Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, which debuts in US theaters on Friday, Disney released a v ...more
While Gucci is among the most recognizable brands in fashion, you would be excused for not realizing that the company makes sneakers as well. Yet, here we are, with Gucci adding an augmented reality try-on camera tool to its iOS mobile app, available now via the App Store, fo ...more
By far the most significant development for AR in the coming months and years — the development that will drive AR adoption — will be our reliance upon the AR cloud. Soon, you will see companies attempt to brand this technology with some moniker they've created (for example, ...more
Already a dominant force at the box office, Marvel Studios appears intent on establishing itself as the ruler of augmented reality media as well. After licensing Iron Man to Hasbro for the Hero Vision Iron Man AR Helmet as a tie-in to Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel has return ...more
Location services provider Mapbox is expanding the reach of its augmented reality development capabilities to include apps for automobiles as well as smartphone navigation. On Thursday, Mapbox announced a trio of new features for its Vision SDK, which will soon be available t ...more
Snapchat made augmented reality selfie effects famous, with Facebook copying the feature across its mobile apps. Of course, others have followed, but their face tracking apps often pale in comparison to the original. Now, Google is giving Android developers the keys to adding ...more
Update: The LG G8 ThinQ has been announced. You can read all of the official specs at our full article on the new phone. 2018 was another rough year for LG. The mobile division lost over $700 million last year despite releasing four flagship-caliber phones. LG, however, remai ...more
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. The NBA superstar, in his role as pitchman for Nike, is the centerpiece for a new in-store Snapchat AR advertisement at the Hous ...more
It looks like Facebook really likes Google's augmented reality leadership talent, as the social media giant has hired away another employee from the AR and VR team at Mountain View to lead its team for a product that brings Facebook's AR platform into homes. On Wednesday, Fac ...more
Augmented reality and drones already go together like turkey and stuffing, but a new iOS app adds some spice to the combination with a new kind of flight path automation. Available now in Apple's App Store, the Vermeer Beta app displays a 3D map of the intended drone flight a ...more
In this jam-packed October, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro has flown under the radar in the US. Due to Huawei's lack of presence in the States, many are unfamiliar with the second largest OEM in the world. Huawei has continuously put out amazing mobile devices, and this year they rele ...more
Apple's iOS 12 has finally landed. The big update appeared for everyone on Monday, Sept. 17, and hiding within are some pretty amazing augmented reality upgrades for iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches. We've been playing with them ever since the iOS 12 beta launched in June, and ...more
Already one of the leaders in augmented reality for cosmetics, L'Oréal is extending the reach of its ModiFace virtual try-on platform through a partnership with Facebook. The cosmetics company will be integrating the augmented reality experiences built with Modiface into Face ...more
Since early March, iOS users have been able to enjoy the most popular video game sweeping the rounds. Android users have been left envious as they wait for a "few months," the only vague release date given by Epic Games. In the meantime, there are a few ways we can still satis ...more
Badges? We don't need no stinkin' badges! That is, unless they have augmented reality content embedded in them and give us full access to Facebook's annual F8 developers conference — in that case, yes, we'll take all the badges. The event kicked off on Tuesday, and continued ...more
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of programming languages and variations of those languages that exist. Currently, in the augmented reality space, it seems the Microsoft-created C# has won out as the overall top language of choice. While there are other options like JavaS ...more
It seems like each day new rumors and leaks come out for Huawei's upcoming P series devices. Everything from its name change to its specs has been leaked, sometimes with contradicting rumors. One of the biggest leaks is the inclusion of triple rear cameras, a first for smartph ...more
With Nokia's relaunch, the iconic company attempted to reimagine the budget phone market. The series of phones they introduced last year challenged the idea that good phones can't be cheap. This year, Nokia introduced the Nokia 7 Plus, a phone which offers perhaps the best bal ...more
A recent update to Facebook's News Feed could significantly broaden its reach when it comes to delivering augmented reality content. In a post on its developer's blog on Tuesday, the company announced that it has adopted the industry-standard gITF 2.0 format for 3D posts on i ...more
Samsung hopes to make a splash with the new Galaxy Note 9 to make up for the underwhelming sales of its signature Galaxy S9 series. This flagship is a radical departure from its predecessors — it's now optimized for gaming and paired with the most advanced S Pen stylus to date ...more
Although it sounds like a foodie's take on Facebook, what Calabasas, California-based FaceCake actually offers is more about augmented reality fashion marketing rather than food selfies. At the National Retail Federation's Big Show & Expo in New York this week, the company un ...more
Who said brushing your teeth can't be fun? It certainly isn't Kolibree, a company that's introducing the world to the first augmented reality toothbrush for kids at this week's CES tech conference in Las Vegas. Not to be confused with the Marvel Comics character of the same n ...more
While some companies like IKEA and Lowe's zig towards ARKit to entice shoppers, Target has opted to zag to broader appeal with an augmented reality see-before-you-buy tool for its mobile website. With Target's new See In Your Space Tool, shoppers can visualize more than 200 f ...more
With Apple ready to unleash ARKit to millions of iPhones and iPads and ARCore on its way to supporting millions of Android devices, is there room in the world for a cross-platform mobile AR platform? On Aug. 28, Palo Alto startup 8th Wall announced its 8th Wall XR, a suite of ...more
Two companies behind a number of augmented reality devices have joined forces to develop a 3D depth-sensing camera system that will facilitate computer vision capabilities for augmented/virtual reality experiences and more. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., whose processors power ...more
Google might be taking the lead on artificial intelligence in smartphones with their latest announcement, MobileNets. MobileNets is a series of TensorFlow vision models built for mobile devices, described by Google as "mobile-first." The company hopes that MobileNets will max ...more
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. Augmented Reality Digital Placement (ARDP) delivers content to smar ...more
4DViews, the volumetric capture company that films actors and performers in augmented and virtual reality for things like movies, TV series, and applications, has just released the app 4DViews: Raise Virtual to Reality, to demonstrate its technology for smartphones. The mobil ...more
Judges at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Accelerator Pitch Event named Lampix the winner in the Augmented and Virtual Reality category, conference organizers announced today. The ninth annual competition, which took place over the weekend in Austin, Texas, pitted 50 startup fin ...more
The new Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ phones were announced on March 29 at the Samsung UNPACKED 2017 event. Preorders start on March 30 for the Korean tech giant's latest flagships, and sales officially begin in the US on April 21. Samsung will need a smooth release to win ...more
Android comprises an entire ecosystem of apps, games, functions, and features, so it would only make sense that it has its own lexicon. Words, phrases, and acronyms that didn't exist ten years ago are now used in an off-the-cuff style by developers and support technicians acro ...more
With barely a whisper of augmented reality during the first day of its developer's conference, Samsung came out swinging on day two with the introduction of its version of the AR cloud and a partnership with Wacom that turns Samsung's S-Pen into an augmented reality magic wand ...more
Now that we've had our hands on the Magic Leap One for almost a year and early adopter developers have had the opportunity to publish apps for the AR headset, it's time to see how it stands up against the rigors of a day at the office. We did just that, and we wrote about it! ...more
Ahead of the highly-anticipated iPhone unveiling and iOS 11 launch, augmented reality developer Scope AR has confirmed that the iOS version of Remote AR, their live support video calling app, will support iOS 11 and ARKit immediately. Remote AR enables users and remote suppor ...more
As we get closer to the release of the iPhone 7 this September, more and more details are emerging about the features the new smartphone could have. The well-regarded analyst Ming Chi-Kuo of KGI Securities, who has an uncanny ability to predict new Apple features, has reported ...more
With Apple releasing the iPhone XR, it appears Samsung is looking to challenge this "budget flagship" option head-on. They brought their usual two phone releases this year, but also threw in another three for a total of five phones, including the Samsung Galaxy S10e. And for m ...more
With the best selling phone on Amazon in 2018, Lenovo had big shoes to fill when making the successor of the Moto G6. Fortunately, Lenovo was up to the task. The Moto G7 continues to provide a high performance-to-price ratio, offering a worthwhile upgrade for G6 users while re ...more
The augmented reality industry made great strides in 2017, but its apex is not even in sight. In terms of software, augmented reality is approaching meaningful mainstream awareness, thanks mostly to Apple and ARKit. Meanwhile, on the hardware side, AR is very much in its infa ...more