A new augmented reality framework from Disney Research could make it possible for fans to take selfies with an augmented reality Mickey Mouse, Darth Vader, or Iron Man that mimic the user's poses. Called AR Poser, the prototype experience relies on image recognition to anchor ...more
As the premiere app for chatting and video calls, it only makes sense for Skype to provide a dark theme to help prevent eye strain and minimize battery drain. Not only that, it has to also keep pace with popular messaging apps like Facebook Messenger that also have the feature ...more
Mario is one of the most recognizable character in the world, and if you own an XBox 360 you can't play any games featuring him. He can still be a part of your gaming life though if you follow the steps in this video and make your XBox 360 Avatar in the likeness of Mario. Fro ...more
While Snapchat had a head start in making augmented camera effects popular on smartphones, Facebook has spent the past few years in hot pursuit, with no less than three apps offering mobile AR experiences, plus its Portal hardware lineup of smart home devices. Facebook's late ...more
As fun as Twitter is, it can also quickly turn scary. Anonymous, aggressive, and troll accounts can attack you for your tweets and stalk your every move. While you could make your profile private and block users, there are lesser-known privacy and security features that you ca ...more
There is a new interface for customizing your farmer! Just click on them on your farm and you can change their look. There will also be a small icon on the left of a face in a duck costume you can click. This new layout was added to help showcase the new costumes and clothes! ...more
Arcade gaming just got about a million times cooler. VirtuSphere offers an interface that captures the players movements in 360 degrees, and then translates these movements into a video game. Rumors of the technology first emerged back in 2006, but the real life application ha ...more
There are a number of reasons you'd want to delete your Skype account. You may have decided to move away from the app in favor of another service like WhatsApp or FaceTime, or perhaps you want to erase your account due to an online hack. Regardless of why you might want to del ...more
When Microsoft unveiled Mesh a couple of weeks ago, the move revealed a major part of Microsoft's next steps toward dominating the augmented reality space, particularly with regard to enterprise customers. But aside from the general details contained in the announcement, what ...more
IMVU is a 3D avatar chat, instant messenger, and dress up game. Get help with all of your IMVU avatar needs with these IMVU tips and tricks! Watch this video tutorial to learn how to edit hair and skin in IMVU (09/20/09). Description of the application directly from IMVU: IM ...more
Visitors to the Unity booth at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco will get a special augmented reality treat courtesy of Magic Leap and Weta Workshop. On Monday, after alluding to the reveal in a blog post last week, Magic Leap revealed Grordbattle, a multiplayer ...more
In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to draw the character Sokka, from the show Avatar and the Last Airbender. Begin by drawing a circle for the head and a rectangular torso. Add the arms and a boomerang in one hand. Now add the legs and feet. Draw some guidelines on the ...more
After stealing the show at the HoloLens 2 launch and starring in Qualcomm's unveiling the Snapdragon XR2, holographic video conferencing app Spatial has landed a leading role in Magic Leap's second act with the enterprise segment. This week, Spatial announced that its 3D remo ...more
Available for free in the Android Market, Google's Androidify turns your phone into a veritable Android Assembly Line. The app lets Android owners create and dress custom Android Robot-style avatars with paper-doll ease. Long and tall? Short and squat? Purple? No matter! Your ...more
The past year has revealed a gaping hole of opportunity in the world of business called virtual meetings. Some existing players like Zoom hopped on that opportunity, while others like Skype seemed stuck on the sidelines, and Google Meet just managed to catch up in time to snag ...more
This is a great video that shows you how to transform a photograph of yourself into a creepy blue person from James Cameron's "Avatar". In a few simple steps, you'll be radioactive. Part 1 of 2 - How to Turn yourself into a Na'vi Avatar in Photoshop. Part 2 of 2 - How to Turn ...more
The augmented reality smartglasses race is getting a major new entrant that could significantly change the entire landscape. On Tuesday, Qualcomm revealed its own XR1 AR Smart Viewer Reference Design, a pair of smartglasses that are meant to give OEMs (original equipment make ...more
With the opening round of Wimbledon, one of professional tennis's four major tournaments, beginning on Monday, Snapchat is serving up an augmented reality tennis mini-game. The game challenges worldwide users and their 3D Bitmoji avatars to take on the digital doppelganger of ...more
After a series of hints revealed by CEO Rony Abovitz via Twitter, Magic Leap looks like it is ready to launch Magic Leap One on Thursday at 8:08 a.m. ET. Rony Aboviz changed his twitter profile's header to this launching whales image at 8:08pm on 8/7/2018. One day before laun ...more
How is everyone else getting cool clothes and skin in Poptropica? Cheat codes! This video shows you a list of common cheat codes you can use to change the appearance of your avatar, as well as a few other goodies, when playing Poptropica.
While painting in augmented reality is not a groundbreaking pursuit, the ability for Magic Leap One, iPhone and iPad, and Android users to collaborate remotely on virtual artwork would be. That is what Across Realities is aiming to do with Spatiate, an app that launched on Th ...more
If you're up against the Berserker boss fight in Horde Mode 2.0 (also known as a Berzerker in some locals) and you're trying to figure out how to beat him, take a look at this walkthrough for Gears of War 3 for a strategy that'll defeat him. Oh, and you can also unlock an avat ...more
Apple's Animojis took the world by storm with their ease of use and fluidity. They added new life to your emojis by mapping your face with the technology that lives inside the iPhone X. Now, Samsung is also adding new life to emjojis with the introduction of AR Emojis in the G ...more
We know that Microsoft's HoloLens 2 is due to start shipping later this year, but despite the trickle of news about the device, we still don't know when. Now, a new set of documents on the Federal Communications Commission website confirms we probably won't have TOO much long ...more
Toy Story 3 has received rave reviews across the board. Curious, a couple of us here at WonderHowTo went to see it last night. We found it to be decent. Not fabulous. The opening was exhilarating. Full of action and humor and a thoroughly dynamic use of 3D, but the rest of the ...more
If you're a Bieber fan, you're likely familiar with the infamous tumblr, Lesbians Who Look Just Like Justin Bieber. Meaning, girls can be Bieber look-a-likes, too. Just wear a white t-shirt, jeans, converse, and baseball cap. And most importantly, get your Bieber-do in order. ...more
Because timing is everything, the latest entry in the location-based augmented reality gaming sweepstakes, Ghostbusters World, has arrived just in time for Halloween. Launched Monday on the App Store and the Google Play Store, Ghostbusters World shares its perfect timing with ...more
IslandGirlzJewelry over on Etsy has transformed ordinary SCRABBLE tiles into elaborate jewelery that both SCRABBLE fans and Avatar fans will appreciate. If you're the crafty type, I'm sure you could use this as an example to create your own earrings or bracelets using some old ...more
We are in the midst of a mini-boom for communications tools designed for augmented reality headsets, with the introduction of Avatar Chat and Mimesys for Magic Leap One and Spatial for the HoloLens within the last few months. However, these apps have largely been siloed to on ...more
The last thing you want is for your animated avatar to accidentally 'flash' your user by letting the flesh peek through the clothing mesh. This tutorial shows you how you can animate the clothing and avoid this situation when working with Autodesk 3ds Max.
Want to make a cartoon representation of yourself? See how to create free cartoon avatars that can be customized to represent your unique personality or interests across the social networks or chat clients you frequent with this video guide. For more information, including det ...more
Need a hair lift in IMVU? No problem, get some bad hair day advice with this vid. You just need a little Photoshop skills to get your IMVU avatar looking good. IMVU is a 3D avatar chat, instant messenger, and dress up game. Chat in 3D, hang out and have fun in thousands of an ...more
In order to unlock the Avatar Award Carter's Helmet in Halo: Reach, you will need to beat Winter Contingency on Legendary difficulty without dying. It can be hard, but this video by Achievement Hunter shows you how to pull it off.
Among the many partnerships mentioned early on in the life of the Magic Leap One, by far one of the most talked about has been the comic book app from Madefire. On Monday, the two companies finally released the app to the public, and we got a sneak peek at how it works just b ...more
Want your sims avatar to be able to give birth to twin girls? This tutorial shows you a few tips and hints to influence the pregnancy of your chosen Sims avatar to ensure two baby girls pop up in the delivery room! (hint: it's all about the watermelon)
The Association for Computing Machinery's annual Siggraph conference, taking place next week in Los Angeles, will bring researchers from around the to show off their latest innovations in imaging and display technology. This year, the conference has a new headlining act, as M ...more
One of the major criticisms of virtual reality, and much modern technology in general, is the antisocial nature it creates. But vTime wants to overcome the isolating nature of VR headsets with a virtual hangout space for you and your friends. Video: . As Engadget points out, w ...more
In the aftermath of the launch of the Magic Leap One, Magic Leap has ejected two more executives from their leadership roles. Chief marketing officer Brenda Freeman and chief business officer Rachna Bhasin have been transitioned into advisory roles but will continue to report ...more
Snapchat has already found a compelling way to create advertisements in augmented reality with their branded filters, but they continue to experiment with new ways to monetize the bridging of the real and digital worlds. Their latest idea, which requires users to "snap" an ima ...more
The experience of actually using the HoloLens 2 can be difficult to describe to anyone who hasn't had a chance to directly interact with the device in person and be blown away by its immersive capabilities. That's why any new exploration into exposing the augmented reality ma ...more
Later this week, Black Friday will mark the start to the holiday shopping season, but if you're buying for a Magic Leap One owner, you can buy their ideal gift now. On Monday, Sennheiser fulfilled the September announcement of its partnership with Magic Leap with the release ...more
T.I. is finally out of the joint and back on the hip-hop scene. What better way to celebrate in your own home for free than making an XBox 360 Avatar in his likeness? This video will show you how to use one set of clothing pieces to make a pretty spitting image of the rap star ...more
In this drawing tutorial, we learn how to draw a chibi Sokka. Start off by drawing a round circle for the head of the character. After this, draw on the ears to the sides of the head. Then, draw on the hair on the back of the head followed by the facial features. After this, d ...more
There's a HowTo behind everything, including the astounding, just released 3-D Avatar. Reviews across the board agree with one thing: the film is visually breathtaking. PopSci explains the technology behind the filmmaking. "...James Cameron decided nearly a decade ago to film ...more
Your Skype contact list might contain a sea of names that make it tough to find a specific person you're trying to reach. The same goes for your loved ones and colleagues, especially if you have a common name like Jennifer or John. Knowing that, you might want to change your S ...more
Augmented reality headsets with depth sensors, like the HoloLens, offer a much more immersive experience than the average smartphone at present, and one app demonstrates that in a uniquely entertaining fashion. ZOOO, currently available on the Microsoft Store for $4.99, uses ...more
In this clip, you'll learn how to create Navi'i-style eyes (with special attention paid to the irises and pupils) with Adobe Photoshop CS5. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular raster graphics editor or a seasoned designer looking to better acquaint yourself with the new feat ...more
With its new Sponsored Lens debuting on Snapchat on Friday, McDonald's is attempting to give potential customers a virtual pick-me-up. The promotion features a 3D Bitmoji, an animated avatar crafted in the user's likeness. That character sneaks a slurp from the super-sized vi ...more
While Magic Leap has remained mostly silent regarding its plans for its Magic Leap One successor, the software team continues to makes strides with improvements to the device's Lumin OS and SDK. In version 0.97 of Lumin OS, arguably the biggest change is the graduation of Map ...more
Following the launch of the Magic Leap One earlier this month, the device and the company took a few hits from early reviewers. But it turns out those were just love taps compared to the absolute scorched earth acidic screed penned this weekend by someone well credentialed to ...more
Are you a gigantic fan of James Cameron's film, Avatar and have some artistic talent? Why not wear your badge of "Proud Avatar Fan" on your bedroom wall, with this video tutorial on how to draw & watercolor Na'vi Jake Sully. This video goes in fast motion taking you from the b ...more
In this gamer's guide, you'll learn how to use the character customization options in EA Sports MMA for the Xbox 360, the popular mixed martial arts video game. For all of the details, and to see how to personalize your own EA Sports MMA avatar, watch this video walkthrough. ...more
After using Snag-it to capture your avatar, use Windows Movie Maker to edit it.
Many YouTube users don't even notice that they have a profile picture on their account, and if that's the case, it's a boring unknown shadow avatar— a "blank" person. Are you a blank? Then hurry up and change your profile photo so the world can know who you are. Even if you a ...more
Why role play online with an avatar when you can live out your princess-rescuing and spellcasting fantasies in real life? Amtgard is a real life, live action RPG in which people roleplay in set up situations. If you play Amtgard and would like a shiny new shield to tote aroun ...more
Want a cute little grim reaper outfit for your avatar when you're on the PlayStation 3 game, Little Big Planet? This tutorial shows you how to collect items from each level in the game and assemble them for your own Grim Reaper gear!
President Barack Obama is proving to be just as polarizing as the last president, but if you still love him after his nearly two years in office (has it only been that long?) pay tribute to him by creating an XBox 360 Avatar in his likeness using the steps in this video. This ...more
In this video, we learn how to draw the manga character, Katara. Start out by drawing the basic outline of the character. Have her hands out in the air, like she is in a striking position. Then, add in the details of her face and hair, then work your way to adding in the detai ...more
The last few months have delivered some great new Magic Leap releases, but that doesn't mean the development team is resting on its laurels when it comes to the platform itself. On Thursday, Magic Leap began inviting users to join its Lumin OS Beta Program, which includes a r ...more
Facebook's annual earnings call on Wednesday didn't come with any big surprises, that is, if you took everything at face value. However, if you read between the lines, and paid close attention to the very specific and intentional language the company's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, u ...more