AR 2.0 - what is it and why you need it.
Bill Gates said, we tend to overestimate technology change in the next 2 years and underestimate the next 10. Last year Apple dropped ARKit onto over half a billion devices as part of the 10 year celebration of the iPhone and launch of the iPhoneX. Google immediately responded by announcing ARCore, version 1.0 launching last month straight away supporting 100 million devices. Both platforms, backed by two of the worlds largest companies, mark a profound update to Augmented Reality (AR), a technology that’s been evolving for more than a decade.
Apple Campus Visitor’s Centre as seen through AR
Seamless Technology
In the tech industry we’re more than used to meme’s being dubbed “2.0” as a way of saying when a technology hits the next level. Web 2.0 signalled “the next level” of the way we designed and used the web, unleashing what we now know as Social Media. At the time of course the buzz was more literal around User Generated Content, crowdsourced content and mashups. The change of course has been more profound.
Web 2.0 didn’t just unshackle the web browser, it powered innovation making the Internet truely seamless in our daily lives. Ten years ago smartphones were just the beginning, today the smartphone App we use on the way to work, also are embedded in our cars, on our TV’s, in our homes and even on our bodies (think Apple Watch, Fitbit). The World Economic Forum recognised in 2016 that The Internet of Things (IoT) was already at a technological tipping point and massive economic impact by 2025. The 2025 targets for Mobile Internet were passed in 2018.
AR 2.0 is “Baked In”
AR, like its cousin VR, is not new. I remember my first Netscape 1.0 web browsing experience in 1994 being underwhelmed by how 2D it was. I craved immersive 3D experiences like gaming back then offered (Doom, Quake). 10 years later, platforms like Flash and Second Life started offering deeper experiences beyond text and images but still were not immersive and, more importantly, useful. Before Apple and Google announcements last year the biggest AR phemomenan was Pokémon Go, yet another gimmick albeit one exclusively on mobile.
The difference now is that “AR 2.0” its own mobile-first platforms. Sure, we had great apps like Starwalk geo-mapping camera constellations with augmented imagery, but now we have true platforms for delivering location-based data and delivery of contextually relevant content. Apple iOS 11 is not currently the world’s largest AR platform by chance. ARKit is a product of a two-and-half year project of Apple buying the best AR technology. Whilst media hyperbole focussed on Beats By Dr Dre, other software and hardware companies were being acquired such as including German software company Metaio and the hardware behind Microsoft’s Xbox Kinect. The innovation is unlikely to stop. Tim Cook again dubbed AR as a “profound” technology. Google may appear to be playing catch-up, but they also have a wealth of AR knowledge to leverage from Google Glass.
AR Comes of Age
Web 2.0 came about with the interplay of cloud computing, user experience and connectivity. AR 2.0 already has similar benefits, no more expensive equipment, real user applications and embedded in the physical world. The pace of change no longer driven by curiosity on it’s own, but the demand for connecting better with the real world. In our pockets and in our hands we have the most powerful camera lenses, graphics processors and the software algorithms, driven increasingly by artificial intelligence. AR unlocks not only the benefits of being on a smartphone, but a frictionless part of our daily lives. At first AR2.0 will appear magical, unreal and simply “wow” us, but then something deeper will follow.
This why we created an AR 2.0 company — we want to make the customer experience Realar. Realar is an augmented reality platform for Real Estate. Our mission is to define a new way to create, engage and interact with Real Estate. Real Estate is typically the most important purchase decision anyone makes in our lives. There’s no actual try-before-you-buy, no test-drive, no money-back guarantee. Using the Realar Places App, using only a smartphone, designers, buyers and builders can walkthrough understanding the full size of a new build or renovation, see the actual view through a window, even see changing daylight during at different times. As real estate becomes increasingly inaccessible for young, affordable and first time home buyers, Realar is aiming to solve a real world problem by unleashing the magic of AR 2.0. Don’t underestimate the next few years.
Check out some of the latest and coolest examples of AR 2.0
Find out more at realar.com of follow-like @realarplaces #maderealar