Smartphones News
News: Google Lens Delivers AR Try-On for L'Oreal's Garnier Products at Walmart
Sure, it's the giving season, but sometimes you've just got to treat yourself to some cosmetics. If you're shopping at Walmart, L'Oreal just made that a shade easier when shopping for Garnier hair color products with an assist from Google Lens and the Modiface AR platform.
Market Reality: AR Leaders Predict 2020, Nreal Fights Back, Elon Musk's Vision in AR, & Magic Leap's Boosters
As the year comes to a close, we've invited some of the leaders of the AR industry to take the time to look back at the progress the AR industry has made while looking forward to what's ahead in 2020. A report on the top apps of 2019 — and the decade — also offers some insights on the progress and direction of mobile AR.
News: 8th Wall's Web AR Brings Album Art of Pink Floyd to Life
What better band than Pink Floyd, the pioneers of psychedelic and progressive rock, to show the music industry how to reinvent album art for the augmented reality age?
Vision Forecast 2020: AR Execs Weigh in on Recent Industry Milestones & What We Can Expect in the Coming Year
The year 2019 was filled with all the normal peaks and valleys of the tech business cycle, but this year was particularly important in a space as relatively young as the augmented reality industry.
News: Augmented Reality Apps Account for Over Half of the Top 10 Most Downloaded Apps of 2019, Report Says
If there's any lingering uncertainty as to the mainstream viability of augmented reality, a list of the top mobile apps and games of 2019 serves to dispell those doubts.
News: 8th Wall, Amazon Sumerian & Trigger Team Up to Deliver Web AR Promotion for 'Jumanji' Movie Sequel
Augmented reality already seemed like the ideal technology to advertise for a movie based on the premise of being sucked into a video game world the first time around. For the sequel, how about two times the immersion?
News: HyperloopTT Uses Magic Leap to Show How Elon Musk's Futuristic Vision of Transport Will Work in the US
While Elon Musk is in Los Angeles showing off the future of personal transport via the Cybertruck, another, unaffiliated group is taking one of his most popular ideas to market, with augmented reality as a key part of the plan.
News: Niantic Bringing Buddy Interactions to AR+ Mode in Pokémon GO, Shared Experiences with Other Trainers to Follow
It looks like Pokémon GO players may get a surprise gift from the game's developer, Niantic, this holiday season.
Exclusive: Nreal Fires Back at Magic Leap with Motion to Dismiss Trade Secrets Lawsuit
In a stunning end-of-year twist to the Magic Leap versus Nreal legal saga, the China-based startup is now filing a motion against Magic Leap.
News: AirPods Too Expensive? Here Are 6 True Wireless Earbuds That Are Just as Good for Working Out
Despite their awkward appearance, Apple's AirPods have become the earbuds of choice for working out, largely thanks to quality audio without any wires to tangle. However, at $159 to start, they aren't exactly for everyone.
News: Snapchat Launches Trailer Reaction AR Lens for Tom Cruise Movie 'Top Gun: Maverick'
Usually, flying into unknown territory would mean riding into the "danger zone", but Paramount and Snapchat are taking the trip anyway with one of Summer 2020's most anticipated movie sequels.
News: Dior Returns to Instagram AR with Virtual Makeup Effect to Promote Holiday Collection
The cosmetics brands are among the earliest adopters of augmented reality, using virtual try-on tools to preview shades of makeup before buying.
Market Reality: Google Updates ARCore & Cuts Glass, Star Wars AR in Japan, & Hands-On Magic Leap for Fashion & Voice
After facing reports of financial troubles over the past month, Magic Leap came out swinging this week with a big push for the enterprise segment of AR, including a repackaged Magic Leap 1, a suite of enterprise apps, and updates to Lumin OS and its supporting development ecosystem. Oh, and its AR headset managed to win a starring role in the marketing juggernaut for the forthcoming Star Wars movie.
Gift Guide: Must-Have Phone Accessories for Privacy & Security
In a time where we're more connected than ever, privacy and security have never been more important. Maybe you're not concerned, but I'm sure there's someone in your life who is, and shopping for them can be daunting. However, with these gifts, you can provide them the tools they need to enhance their protection.
Hands-On: Launching Space Rockets in New York's Central Park via Magic Leap's Boosters App
We're a few weeks away from the fireworks associated with New Year's celebrations, but that doesn't mean you can't start a little early — in augmented reality.
News: Snap Brings Custom Materials & 3D Face Mesh to Lens Studio
Snapchat parent company Snap credits its popular augmented reality experiences and its flourishing Lens Studio creator community to its user growth throughout the year.
Hands-On: This Is How Magic Leap's Voice Control Works via the New Lumin OS Update
This week's Magic Leap Lumin OS update contained a number of goodies, including iris authentication, and a way to stream to Twitch from the device.
News: Facebook Messenger Blasts Out Trio of Star Wars AR Effects for 'Rise of Skywalker'
While "Baby Yoda" from The Mandalorian threatens to overshadow it, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrives in theaters next week, which means it's time for Disney and Lucasfilm to ramp up its promotional strategy.
News: AR Telepresence App Spatial Debuts on Magic Leap via Enterprise Suite
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.
News: Magic Leap Used to Bring AR to H&M & Star Wars Fashion Collaboration in Tokyo Developed by Warpin Media
There may be questions from some about the future of Magic Leap, but in Japan, The Force is with the augmented reality startup.
News: Bosch Designs Easy to Deploy Optical System for Smartglasses Makers
With big-name tech companies like Apple and Facebook gearing up to push out their own smartglasses in the coming years, engineering conglomerate Bosch has been working on the optical components that could help the competition catch up.
News: Chinese Smartphone Maker Oppo Previews AR Glasses & Futuristic Hardware Concepts
China-based smartphone maker Oppo is ready to put Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon chips in its latest round of smartphones, but, like Qualcomm, Oppo is also preparing to move on to augmented reality wearables.
News: Facebook Adds New Story Time Content to Portal, New AR Features to Portal TV
Friends and family receiving new Portal devices for Christmas will have some extra stocking stuffers in the form of new AR features.
News: Magic Leap Repackages Developer Tools as The Lab, Publishes Updates to Lumin SDK & Lumin OS, & Previews Magicverse SDK
Along with rebranding Magic Leap 1 for enterprise customers, Magic Leap has gifted its developer community with some new toys with a tease of more to come in 2020.
Hands-On: Magic Leap App Obsess Lets You Create a Fashion Store Pop-Up Nearly Anywhere
The newly enhanced focus from Magic Leap on enterprise, announced on Tuesday, also came with a few companies opting to weigh in with their experiences developing for the platform.
News: Magic Leap Pivots to Enterprise, Announces New Business-Focused Services, Slightly Modified Name
As we predicted this time last year, Magic Leap is finally moving from consumer entertainment hype to making a firm commitment to enterprise customers.
News: North Focals 2.0 to Arrive in 2020, First Generation Sales Halted
While Apple, Facebook, and Snapchat are still working on their first-generation AR wearables, startup North is already preparing to bring its second-generation smartglasses to the world in 2020.
News: After 7 Years, Google Abandons Individual Glass Owners Who Spent $1,500 to Join Its Early Wearables Experiment
Did Google CEO Sundar Pichai kill Google Glass for non-enterprise users? That's the obvious first question following news that non-enterprise Glass users will no longer have access to Google's core apps after February 2020.
News: Google Update Adds Real-World Occlusion to ARCore with Depth API
Apple's ARKit has built a considerable lead in terms of features over Google's ARCore, but Google's latest update to ARCore adds a capability that makes the platform a bit more competitive with ARKit.
News: Now You Can Drive Elon Musk's Tesla Cybertruck in AR from the Comfort of Your Home via iOS & Android
What do you do when your favorite new car is still two years away from hitting the road? Look to augmented reality, of course.
Market Reality: HoloLens 2 Hits Primetime TV, Qualcomm Unveils XR2 Chip, & Magic Leap Tops 2019's Biggest AR Investments
Investment in augmented reality remained robust in 2019. For the third consecutive year, we looked back on the biggest funding deals in the AR industry this week, and a familiar name came out on top.
News: New York Times Debuts Location-Based Air Pollution AR Visualization for Apple iOS Devices
After establishing itself as a leader among media companies in augmented reality in journalism over the course of 2018, The New York Times pulled back from the technology this year.
News: Qualcomm Launches Snapdragon XR2 5G for Next-Level AR Hardware & Reference Design for AR Wearables
As one of the leading makers of processors for smartphones, Qualcomm further bolstered its place in the market with the announcement of the Snapdragon 865 earlier this week.
News: Nreal Collaborates with Qualcomm & Deutsche Telekom to Build Prototype Enterprise AR App
As a frequent collaborator with Qualcomm, it would be kind of weird if Nreal didn't have something new to unveil at this week's Snapdragon Summit.
News: Snap Unveils Gucci Edition of Spectacles 3, Film Shot via Spectacles 3 by 'Kids' Director Harmony Korine
After several iterations of the product, Snap is focused on making sure the world knows that its smartglasses can be fashionable.
News: Microsoft's HoloLens 2 Makes Primetime Debut on Fox TV Show 'The Resident'
The HoloLens 2 hasn't even reached most of the market, but it's already a big-time TV star. Microsoft's augmented reality device made its primetime debut on FOX TV last night on an episode of the hospital drama The Resident.
News: Microsoft HoloLens 2 Assists De'Longhi Japan Call Center Agents Using Augmented Reality Product Models
Less than a month after the worldwide launch of HoloLens 2, call center consultant BellSystem24 has already prepared an augmented reality solution for one of its clients.
News: The 25 Biggest AR Investments in 2019
It's safe to say that we can call the annual ranking of AR investments a holiday tradition at Next Reality.
Market Reality: Facebook Adds AR to TV, Magic Leap Gets New App from Insomniac, & Five Nights at Freddy's Debuts in AR
It's the holiday season, and the tech industry is giving consumers several AR products and apps as gift-giving options.
Hands-On: Facebook Pioneers Augmented Reality for the TV with Latest Portal Hardware
When Facebook launched its first hardware products last year, the Portal and Portal+ smart displays, the company mostly touted its video-calling features as it faced off against Amazon and its Echo Show.