As augmented reality gains popularity, the demand for delivering related services and generating content increases. This is demonstrated by a pair of investments from the past week, one in the expansion of a technology lab and another in the form of seed funding for a content studio.
Influenced by the growth of augmented and virtual reality technology as well as 3D computer vision, Ericcson Ventures invested in Matterport, whose hardware and software help companies create AR/VR experiences.
Augmented reality can be used to fascinate and entertain, but it can be applied in the workplace. While companies on the entertainment end received their votes of confidence via funding, two companies working with enterprises demonstrated their worth by teaming up to pursue customers.
Lazy makeup enthusiasts, this new service is what you've been waiting for! Makeup giant Estee Lauder's latest project incorporates augmented reality to help customers test out their lipsticks without even getting out of bed. The company collaborated with Modiface — a group that creates AR services for the beauty industry — to produce a new Facebook Messenger chatbot that uses customers' cameras to let them virtually try on the brand's Pure Color Lipsticks.
A few years ago, the Hilton hotel group unrolled the Digital Key, a feature of the Hilton Honors app that allows you to unlock your hotel room with your smartphone.
You can pinch yourself, but you're not dreaming. Sprint is actually offering a year of (mostly) free, unlimited service for anyone who switches to the carrier. The only stipulation is that you must bring your phone with you, and it has to be one of the 27 eligible devices.
The common thread between this week's Brief Reality stories is that augmented reality is beginning to prove its worth as a technology that improves workflows and processes. From customer service to healthcare to manufacturing, augmented reality is helping companies improve productivity.
At the Google I/O keynote presentation today, Clay Bavor, Vice President of Virtual Reality for Google, shared a number of new initiatives in virtual and augmented reality. This included new services for the Tango platform called visual positioning service, or VPS.
What companies do you think have a unique and compelling take on social media? Wendy's is certainly confident, to say the least. But Lufthansa Airlines is taking a different approach than most — and it seems to be working — as they give passengers a look behind the scenes through Snapchat Stories.
Upskill, an enterprise software developer for industrial augmented reality applications, recently received an influx of funding and a major vote of confidence from two of their top customers.
Amazon has been toying with the idea of opening physical retail stores for some time now, even opening old-fashioned bookstores in select locations and teasing cashier-less convenience stores. But the online retailer has some new ideas in the works, including implementing virtual and augmented reality into retail home stores.
While its direct-selling model echoes brands like Avon and Tupperware, Indonesia's MindStores gives the approach a modern twist—with augmented reality.
The Meta 2 developer kit has finally begun shipping! Gary Garcia, the senior director of customer success at Meta, just sent out an email that they are shipping out to the first round of preorder customers. Waves will be building from there, up to far higher manufacturing rates near the end of Q1 of 2017.
Oh no... your precious iPhone is in shambles. Maybe you shattered your screen after a crazy night of celebrating, or maybe your two-year-old jabbed a toy into your iPhone's charging port, completely destroying it in the process. Now what? Do you take it to a repair shop, or go to an Apple Store to have it fixed? This brief article will help you weigh your options.
The future for the Meta 2 augmented reality headset will have to wait. While shipments were supposedly on their way out back in June, Meta revealed today that they need a bit more time to provide the best possible experience—and that's really for the best.
Netflix has become the subject of heavy buzz this week, and not due to the latest season of Daredevil (which gets two thumbs up, btw). The online video entertainment provider is drawing fire over its admission that it has been throttling video streams for its AT&T and Verizon customers for years.
The Calendar app that ships with Windows 10 has a nice little feature that will help make your days more productive by showing the current five-day weather forecast.
Before you purchased your smartphone or tablet, the device had already embarked on quite a long journey. From product development to manufacturing, your Samsung Galaxy device had already developed a rich history prior to your ownership.
A landmark bill finally went into action this week that will allow American cellular customers to unlock their smartphones for free. The process of unlocking may vary between mobile service providers, but you can rest assured that you are now entitled, by law, to carrier-unlock your smartphone.
The in-fighting between the major US carriers just got a little more interesting. In July of last year, T-Mobile introduced their JUMP! plan, letting customers upgrade their devices after just six months, up to twice a year. Buy a device, split up the price into monthly payments, and pay an additional $10/month to enroll in the service.
Yesterday, Bryan Clark pointed out a new option on Verizon's privacy settings that gives new customers 30 days to opt out of a data sharing program that gives advertisers information on basically everything you're doing on your new iPhone (or any other smartphone).
This IGN guide provides an overview of the different Strike Packages available in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, including how the death streak and win streak packages work. You'll learn how to use the recon drone, Advanced UAV, and more.
Let's face it, pro gamers make a ton of money, and that money is only increasing every year. If you're fairly good at Call of Duty: Black Ops and want to try your hand at the tournament scene, find out how to connect with other professional gamers and organizations and land become a pro Call of Duty player.
Did you know that finding the three teddy bear astronauts on Moon unlocks a hidden easter egg in the Call of Duty: Black Ops DLC Rezurrection? Take a look at this guide from Achievement Hunter to learn how to hear a special song.
Once you're at the power switch, it's a short path to the machine that allows you to purchase the 'Mule Kick' perk needed for achievements and more. This perk will allow you to carry more than two weapons at a time. Take a look at this guide from Game Front to learn where to go to get the perk in Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection DLC on Moon.
If you're looking into unlocking a few achievements in Call of Juarez: The Cartel, take a look at this video from the Achievement Hunter folks. In it, you'll learn how to pick up the 'Little Bighorn', 'Been there, done that', and 'High Noon' achievements in multiplayer.
The ultimate measure of a Call of Duty Black Ops player, or player of most any other online multiplayer shooter, is their kill-to-death ratio, or KD. If yours is lower than 1 you're dying more than you kill, and you probably want to improve you skills and start doing some pwning. This video tutorial will give you a lot of great advice and tips on how to do so. These include class setups, sniping spots, and other awesome knowledge.
No City would be a pretty awesome name for just about anything. Rock album, memoir, celebrity child, even a Yu-Gi-Oh! card / deck. This video will teach you how to make an awesomely powerful No City deck for Yu-Gi-Oh! and kick some ass with it.
The Rolling Stones still tour, against all odds, and their tongue logo might be the coolest any band has ever had. This video will show you how to start it up by making a custom Rolling Stones tongue Call of Duty Black Ops emblem.
If you own a wolf t-shirt as so many kids do these days, or just like wolves, you've found your Call of Duty Black Ops emblem. This video will teach you how to make an awesome playercard with a wolf howling at the moon that is complicated and sure to impress your fellow players.
The ? blocks from the Mario games are synonymous with powerups and fun gameplay, making them perfect for your Call of Duty Back Ops custom playercard / emblem. Watch this video for an in-depth tutorial on making the question block in the emblem editor.
Jason Voorhees has made the old-fashioned hockey goalie mask synonymous with psychotic violence, and his image is perfect for a Call of Duty Black Ops emblem. Watch this video for a guide to making one using the in-game emblem / playercard editor.
If you've ever seen It Might Get Loud, you probably remember the part where Jack White makes a one-string guitar out of household scraps. This type of guitar is called a Diddley Bow, after Bo Diddley, and is about the simplest and easiest electric guitar you can make. Watch this video to learn how.
HIM (His Infernal Majesty) have ridden the support of Bam Margera to massive fame, and their logo is one of the coolest ever devised for a band. This video will teach you how to make the HIM logo in the Call of Duty Black Ops emblem editor.
Pre-production is a much less complex process for an indie film than a big-budget one that needs stars and permits and such, but it's still vital to shooting a good film in a timely fashion. This video will walk you through Ryan from Film Riot's entire pre-production process, including script breakdowns, free casting calls, budgeting, getting a crew and locations.
The customizable perks in Call of Duty Black Ops multiplayer make the whole experience much bigger and more dynamic, and choosing the right one for a given map or game type can be the difference between pwnage and utter shame. This video discusses a number of the perks and the situations in which you should use them.
Your Call of Duty Black Ops custom player card / emblem is the first thing that a potential opponent sees about you, and you should be proud of it. This video will give you some great tips that will help you make any emblem you choose to make look sharper, less flat, and overall just plain more badass. The example made in the video is a cool star, so if you wanted a star you're even luckier!
Poker and video games go together great, not at the same time perhaps, but there is a lot of overlap between their fans. Show your love of both by watching this video and learning how to make a pocket aces Call of Duty Black Ops player card / emblem.
Athletics and video game playing haven't always enjoyed a close relationship, but they certainly do now, as evidenced NFL players competing as fiercely at Madden as they do on the field. This video will teach you how to make a soccer ball or or baseball Call of Duty Black Ops player card / emblem / icon.
The Panda Bear is one of the cutest and most adored animals on Earth, but many Call of Duty Black Ops players might think of them more as cannon fodder. If you love these animals and want to defy the adolescent male norms of Black Ops emblem / player card creation, watch this video to learn how to make a Panda player card.
