Google Lens has easily been one of the more useful AR apps and a tantalizing tease of life with smartglasses in the not-so-distant future. Now, Apple has its own version of Lens, dubbed Live Text, built right into iOS 15 and iPadOS 15.
This week, developer Niantic began rolling out a new feature called AR Mapping to Pokémon GO that has bigger implications on the realism of augmented reality in mobile gaming and beyond.
Alongside the launch of Android 11, Google added a new feature to Live View, the augmented reality mode for walking navigation in Google Maps, that helps you find friends in AR. But even if you're not trying to meet up with somebody, you can easily access the AR mode and orient yourself to any location.
Deep fakes, the art of leveraging artificial intelligence to insert the likeness and/or voice of people into videos they don't otherwise appear in, typically focus on celebrity parodies or political subterfuge.
Late last year, Snapchat introduced Cameos, deep fake-ish stickers animated from your own selfies. Now, Cameos have evolved as a sticker option to use in photos and videos captured with the app's camera.
After an Instagram creator created a viral sensation last holiday season with the Which Disney camera effect, Disney followed it up with a Sponsored Lens playing a similar roulette with programming from Hulu.
I've been steadily making my way through the series Hannibal, which arrived on Netflix in June. I've just now made it to the back half of the third season, which introduces us to a new villain who (spoiler alert) seeks to become the Great Red Dragon.
With the global COVID-19 pandemic preventing Pokémon GO players from venturing into the real world, developer Niantic has adapted the game for trainers to play in a socially-distanced manner.
A side effect of the COVID-19 pandemic is that small businesses are suffering from forced closures and social distancing, but game developer Niantic has a solution.
For the average consumer, augmented reality is a fun way of dressing up photos and videos for social media. However, AR is also gaining momentum as a medium for storytelling, particularly in sharing powerful messages.
In 2018, Niantic unveiled its in-development augmented reality cloud platform for smartphones, the Niantic Real World Platform. A demo showed Pikachu and Eevee cavorting in a courtyard, darting in front of and behind potted plants and people's legs as they walked through the scene. This would be the future of Pokémon GO.
The Los Angeles Rams are the latest NFL franchise to introduce new or modified uniforms for the 2020 season, joining the Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and their neighbors, the Los Angeles Chargers.
The response to the COVID-19 pandemic means that social distancing has become the new normal. It also means that more Americans are using video conferencing to connect with colleagues working from home or friends and family in quarantine because of the new coronavirus.
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 augmented reality experience, which quizzes your knowledge in the best practices of social distancing.
The coronavirus pandemic has ushered in an unprecedented time in modern history where terms like "social distancing" and "self-quarantine" have pushed their way into the zeitgeist.
When watching stories in your Instagram feed, there's a high probability that you'll come across an AR filter that you'll want to try out for yourself. A quick browse and search in the Effect Gallery will bring up nothing in most cases. But all of that unproductive work isn't necessary because there's a faster and simpler way to get the AR effect in Instagram Stories, and it works all of the time.
There's a new trend on Instagram Stories: People are making viral AR filters where images of popular characters from TV shows, movies, and other mediums shuffle above your head until one sticks. The filters range from Disney and Pokémon characters to Harry Potter and Friends, but you're not limited to just that because you can create your own "which are you?" filter.
It's easy to forget just how cool face filters are. Augmented reality has come a long way, and apps like Instagram now offer a suite of impressive effects to play with, but some of the best ones aren't easily found. There is a treasure trove of exclusive, custom face filters that are unavailable to the general public, but not at all inaccessible — you just need to know the trick to getting them.
Thanks to Apple's ARKit 2.0 augmented reality framework in iOS 12, we now have a "Measure" app built right into our iPhones that can measure real-world objects. No more physical tape measure or ruler. No more guessing. Just whip out your iPhone, open the app, put your camera, and get measurements. Before you do, however, there are a few things you'll want to know.
When it comes to augmented reality (AR) on Android, you might be wondering how you can get those cool new games and apps on your unsupported phone. Google has an officially supported device list for its ARCore platform, which usually consists of the more modern devices. You won't find very many older devices on the list for a reason, but that doesn't mean your "old" phone can't use ARCore still.
Google's has expanded ARCore support to numerous Android flagships like the Galaxy S10, so if you have a compatible device, you get access to all the cool new apps that can augment the world around you. One of ARCore's most sought-after features, AR Stickers, is normally exclusive to Google's Pixel lineup, but by sideloading the Google Camera app, you can try it on any ARCore device.
The idea of augmented reality isn't new, but the world of smartphones is looking to push it forward in a big way. As with any platform, both product demand and technological advancements have to catch up to the industry before it can become a viable solution for daily consumer life. Apple and Google are working to introduce the smartphone consumer to AR for the first time with basic features for now.
Our phones have evolved past a simple pocket computer. They have become more like Swiss Army Knives, opening up possibilities that were previously considered Sci-Fi material. Thanks to the recent push into augmented reality, a new world of tools is becoming available to mobile users.
