Next Reality News

Market Reality: While Apple & Vuzix Bet on AR, Game Developers Are Less Enthusiastic

This week, saw two companies leaning on AR to prop up their financial futures. On one hand, Apple made quite a bit of AR-related news ahead of its quarterly earnings report next week. On the other hand, Vuzix launched a pre-order program for its Blade smartglasses and closed the largest financing deal in the company's history to fuel its ongoing headset production.

News: GDC Survey Says Developers Are Bullish on HoloLens, Slow to Mobile AR Versus VR

A new survey of game developers paints a somewhat less than rosy future for augmented reality gaming, but there's still some hope for its long-term prospects.

Dev Report: Live 3D Tiles Are Finally Available for Windows Mixed Reality Headsets but Not HoloLens

Longtime Next Reality readers may remember my Wish List for Microsoft early last year. It was a post in which I put my head together with a number of other community developers to create a list of features that would make Windows Mixed Reality and HoloLens better for developers. It would seem that one of the most sought-after features is finally here ... well, sort of.

News: Lenovo Mirage Star Wars AR App Gets 'Last Jedi' Update, Including Porgs & New Lightsaber Duel

Although The Last Jedi hype has mostly passed, there are still a good number of fans out there dueling Sith lords in augmented reality via their new Lenovo Mirage headsets. Now, thanks to an update on Thursday, those aspiring Jedi have a new AR challenge to engage in the Star Wars: Jedi Challenges app.

News: Thyng Gives Anyone the Ability to Embed AR Content in Images Ahead of ARKit

Stop me if you've heard this one before: scan an image with your iPhone's camera and augmented reality content shows up.

News: This App Turns the iPhone X into an AR Face-Painting Booth

Thanks to Face Maker, a new app for the iPhone X, children everywhere can now avoid the trauma of face painting.

News: Apple iPhone X App Lets You Wear Your Friend's Face Like a Mask & Put Words in Their Mouth

On Wednesday, Apple released a new batch of Animoji characters that gives iPhone X users more virtual masks to play around with, but what many have been waiting for is an app that lets you put on a virtual mask of another person, not an animated emoji. Well, that day has finally arrived.

News: Vuzix Launches Program Allowing Consumers to Order Blade AR Smartglasses Along with Business & Developer Customers

After Vuzix's scorching hot week at CES, the future of AR is so bright, we have to wear (smart) shades. Luckily, Vuzix is making it easier for consumers to grab a pair.

News: Augmented Reality & VR Take Flight in New Airbus iPhone App

While flying can be a frustrating and sometimes nerve-racking experience, Airbus is banking on augmented reality features in its new iflyA380 app for iPhones and iPads to help passengers learn to love the ordeal.

Apple AR: Apple Adds Much-Needed Vertical Surface Recognition in ARKit Update

When Apple unboxes the next major update to its mobile operating system this spring, iPhones and iPads will gain some significant new features for augmented reality experiences: verticality.

News: Apple iOS 11.3 Update Introduces Brand New Set of Animoji Characters

We knew it was coming, it was just a matter of when. Apple has just announced iOS 11.3, a new update for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch, and it will include a brand-new set of Animoji for the iPhone X.

Apple AR: This App Totally Lets See Your Weed Right in Front of You, Man

If there's one augmented reality app idea that should have gone up in smoke, it's probably Tokédex, an app that brings cannabis to the world of AR.

Apple AR: Tim Cook Makes Rare Animoji Appearance, Pushes AR Amid Slow iPhone X Sales Reports

In the wake of reports of slow iPhone X sales and a possible early end to its shelf life, Apple CEO Tim Cook is on a public goodwill tour of sorts, espousing the virtues of Apple AR.

News: Google AR Prototype Enables 3D Model Viewing Through Web Browsers

Unsurprisingly, Google wants to be the caretaker for augmented reality on the web, and its latest move in this endeavor is a 3D model viewer prototype called Article that's designed to work across all web browsers.

News: Augmented Reality Haunts Meitu Apps in the Name of 'Insidious: The Last Key'

Scary movies seem to be a natural fit for augmented reality experiences, with the latest example coming from the Insidious film franchise.

News: This Winter Olympics App Will Use Augmented Reality to Help Fans Navigate PyeongChang 2018

If navigating a new city for a sporting event, such as the upcoming Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a daunting task, then making your way through a foreign country to a series of venues may seem like an impossible mission.

News: 'The Walking Dead' Mixes Augmented Reality & Wine to Keep You Alive Between Episodes

Fans of The Walking Dead can now kill time until the series returns from its winter hiatus by raising walkers from the labels on bottles of wine influenced by the show.

News: StubHub Punches Augmented Reality's Ticket to Help Fans Navigate Super Bowl LII

While the Minnesota Vikings have a realistic chance to become the first team to play in a Super Bowl on their home field, there will still be fans attending Super Bowl LII who will be in unfamiliar surroundings.

Market Reality: Sketchfab Opens AR Content Store, Amazon Pushes Fitness Gear with AR & DAQRI Capitalizes on AR Training

While it may seem to some like investors are just throwing their money at augmented reality companies simply because the tech is heavily hyped, these money managers do actually want to see a return on their investments.

News: Maroon 5 Dives into Augmented Reality with Music Video Created Entirely in Snapchat

Move over, Hype Williams, it looks like Snapchat is about to take some of your music video-making business, and pop rock group Maroon 5 is the proof.

News: This Is How Big Business, Cities & Native American Tribes Are Leveraging the Power of AR via DAQRI Headsets

While the mainstream consumer market waits for cool augmented glasses to arrive from Magic Leap, or maybe even Snap Inc. (Spectacles 2.0??), AR headset maker DAQRI and its business customers are finding new, money-saving and time-saving use cases for the technology today.

News: This iPhone App Gives You Virtual Prizes for Turning Your Curse Words into Objects in AR

If you love to hear yourself talk, you can now enjoy seeing your words materialize in augmented reality with an ARKit-compatible iPhone or iPad.

News: Amazon Pushes Athletic Wear in Augmented Reality with Mo-Capped Fitness Models

Apparently, Amazon's new year's resolution is to bulk up its fitness fashion sales by pumping up its augmented reality muscles.

News: Meta 2 Augmented Reality Headset Available to Businesses Through Dell Starting in February

Following up on a preview of the deal we reported during last week's CES, Dell has officially announced the details around its role as the first company to resell the Meta 2 augmented reality headset.

Dev Report: 'Book of the Dead' Demo Shows New Unity 2018.1 Features Are a Literal Game Changer

In its goal to push the visual quality of real-time rendering to a new level, Unity is starting the new year off right by releasing a sneak peek at its upcoming interactive rendering improvements via a short, three-minute first-person interactive demo called "Book of the Dead."

News: FaceCake Uses Snapchat-Like Camera Effects to Let You Try on Earrings Instead of Masks & Rainbows

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.

News: Sketchfab Launches Professional 3D Model Store for AR & VR Content Creators

After hosting millions of free 3D models online, Sketchfab is betting that augmented reality and virtual reality developers and creators will be willing to pay for premium 3D content.

News: This App Takes Eyebrows from Bushy to Blessed via Augmented Reality

Among consumer brands, cosmetics companies rival furniture retailers as the quickest to adopt augmented reality as a means to help customers visualize how products will look before they buy them.

News: If You've Ever Wanted X-Ray Vision, Check Out This Combination of Augmented Reality & Ultrasound

Seeing your baby for the first time via ultrasound is an exciting moment for new parents, but a new augmented reality twist on the experience could make the experience even more powerful.

News: CES Wrap-Up — 2018 Event Confirms Race for Consumer AR Smartglasses Will Be Marathon Rather Than Sprint

Coming into this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the common sentiment among observers was that this was expected to be the big year for augmented reality.

Market Reality: Vuzix & Meta Represent the Brightest AR Present at CES, While Google, Facebook & Huawei Grow AR's Future

It would be difficult to discuss the business of augmented reality without acknowledging the annual tech meat market of CES.

News: This Is How Amazon's Alexa Works on the Vuzix Blade

Last week, we told you about one of the first pairs of augmented reality smartglasses to get Amazon Alexa functionality, and now we're finally getting a look at how it works.

News: HoloLens Can Now Simulate Childbirth to Train Medical Students

Medical training technology company CAE Healthcare has given birth to the latest example of how augmented reality can help to build practical operating room skills for doctors and nurses. The company's newest product is called LucinaAR, which harnesses the power of the Microsoft HoloLens.

News: Microsoft Gives Us a Peek at the Reality Room Created for Employees to Experiment with AR & VR

One of the most overlooked components of talking about augmented reality and virtual reality is getting people to actually use the hardware and software associated with these platforms.

News: Realmax Claims Crown of Widest Field of View for an AR Headset at CES

Shanghai-based Realmax is introducing the crowds at CES to the Realmax Qian, an augmented reality headset capable of a field of view (FoV) that topples anything available on the market today.

News: This AR Headset Surpasses the Field of View of HoloLens, but You Still Won't Wear It in Public

Digital imaging company OmniVision Technologies and the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute Company Limited (ASTRI) entered the CES fray this week with a new reference design for an augmented reality headset capable of 60 degrees field of view (FoV).

News: Augmented Reality Could Be the Solution to the Worldwide Shortage of Surgeons

A recent TED Talk makes a strong case for the healthcare industry to adopt augmented reality as a means to expanding access to surgical care across the globe.

News: Lenovo's Newest Smartglasses Aimed at Enterprise Rather Than Consumers

Lost among the latest laptops, smart assistants, VR headsets, and Motorola-branded gadgets that it brought to CES 2018, Lenovo has also introduced a new pair of augmented reality smartglasses.

News: WayRay's Auto Techno Video Will Make You Want to Add AR to Your Driving Experience

When it comes to marketing, sexy sells, a point that has been lost on most augmented reality hardware makers focused mostly on the geek space. But a new promotional spot from AR-in-the-car accessory maker WayRay indicates that AR companies are beginning to see the virtual sizzle reel light.

News: Dell Becomes First PC Maker to Partner with Meta to Offer Augmented Reality Headsets

Using the CES tech conference in Las Vegas as the launch pad, Dell has announced that it's partnering with Meta Company to offer its augmented reality headsets to business customers.