With so many companies announcing news or demonstrating technologies at the Augmented World Expo 2017, it can be a challenge to see it all. In fact, we are still unpacking some of our in-depth on-site coverage. So, this edition of Brief Reality is focused on the news we did not cover last week.
A great Halloween party depends on the right spooky ambience. Having some shrunken heads in strategic locations is an easy, fun way to get your guests in the right (frightened) frame of mind, and they require items you can easily find in your kitchen or at the local grocery store.
Always downing a glass of red wine in the evening? Don't be ashamed. Red wine has some great health benefits when consumed in moderation, including improved memory, lower risk of heart disease, and even bone strengthening. Photo by Joe Shlabotnik
So, this idea was born from a necessity to save. My household uses tissues a lot. I have two small kids, so they are extremely useful. The problem with tissues is that they seem to disappear in no time. So, whenever we ran out in-between shopping visits, my family would just use toilet paper.
Need an electric outlet and don't have one? No batteries on hand, either? Well, then you should use the next best thing - potatoes! In this tutorial, learn how to make that old science fair staple - the potato powered calculator! Check it out, it really works!
Here's an easy step by step tutorial on how to make a leather sheath for your Scandinavian knife. Place the knife on top of the leather you will be using to make the sheath. Measure the tip of your knife away from the bottom of the leather for about a size of the width of your index finger. Wrap the knife with the material you're using to measure the length and width of the sheath. Mark the edges of the leather that will be needed to make the sheath. Cut out the leather by following the marke...
Prior to this year, Time primarily relied on image markers in the magazine to trigger its special augmented reality features
If the name Leroy Jenkins elicits a reaction from you, then you are old enough to remember the iconic title World of Warcraft from its heydey (whether or not you actually played the massively multiplayer online role-playing game).
Under the rocket's red glare and the bombs bursting in air, the Statue of Liberty is swaying in celebration this Fourth of July thanks to Snapchat.
With the defending champion Golden State Warriors and Drake's favorite team, the Toronto Raptors, set to face off in the NBA Finals starting Thursday, Snapchat has gifted hoops fans with a pair of augmented reality experiences.
While Jack Daniel's is one of the most iconic brands in the liquor business, when it comes to augmented reality marketing, it's joining a long list of others telling a very familiar story in the growing marketing medium.
Hollywood loves sequels so much that studios and their marketing teams are not too proud to release a sequel of an augmented reality promotion.
We're still weeks away from a probably HoloLens 2 release, but Microsoft's immersive computing team is still hard at work on other aspects of its "mixed reality" ecosystem.
Space might be the final frontier, but NASA is making a detour into augmented reality first. The Spacecraft AR app, developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in collaboration with Google, debuted exclusively for Android this week (an iOS version is also in the works).
Soon, kids young and old aspiring to imitate Iron Man will only need to learn how to duplicate Tony Stark's snarky wit, because Hasbro will now supply the augmented reality helmet.
It seems fitting that Time magazine's first augmented reality cover is an issue guest edited by Bill Gates, since the company he founded is currently leading the AR charge via the HoloLens.
As it turns out, Apple did get AR hardware into its retail stores for the 2017 holiday shopping season, but it's not the headset we've been hearing rumors about for years; it's the MekaMon battle-bot.
If you've ever wanted to hone your paintball skills, without spending a ton of money and making a huge mess, Show Me Virtual and Apple's ARKit have an app for you.
We've all been there. Lost in the supermarket for what feels like hours trying to figure out where the hell the macaroni and cheese is and why it isn't with the rest of the pasta items. The labels at the top of the aisles aren't always helpful or accurate, and items often get misplaced or lost in the masses of food on each shelf. Thankfully, the augmented reality gods have answered our prayers as a new demo shows the future of finding the items you need using Apple's ARKit.
We've got Google Maps to help us out when we need to navigate outdoors, but Google can only map out so many indoor locations without getting creepy. And that's where Stimulant comes in. This "innovation studio" built a HoloLens app that lets you map out an area, define locations, and use the headset to get instant directions to any defined location.
Computer cables tangle and get in the way, but Mobile Accessory Project hopes to solve that with CONNEX, a flat cable shaped like a credit card which expands up to 1.5 feet.
Ant-Man isn't one of the most famous Marvel superheroes. In fact, with the news of his individual movie came great doubt that the comic book legends could succeed in telling the tiny story of an oddball hero on the big screen. Yet with its humor and unique story, Ant-Man has become a hit movie in its own right—and the hero will most certainly make a hit Halloween costume.
For all that money spent on a new Watch, Apple could've given us more than just a charger and its case. I mean, the case is nice and all, but what realistic use is there for it? In all honesty, it'll probably find its way onto a shelf high above in the closet—but it doesn't have to.
If you're one of those people that would rather make a Valentine's Day gifts than buy them, then this fun little project is right for you. Impress your special someone with this homemade bear. All you really need is a large lemon or orange. There's not much instructions to make this project because the results will vary, but use the example in the image to guide you, and watch the video below.
Who doesn't love The Lego Movie? With a theme song that shouts the film's awesomeness, becoming one of its brick-bodied, eternally happy characters is everyone's dream.
While texting and driving may get you a ticket, there are still a ton of uses for your phone in your car, music and navigation just to name a couple. Every Android device comes with access to GPS and traffic updates, but none of those apps really have your back in real-time.
Utility tool apps provide extremely powerful and useful lightweight replacements for your parents' heavy archaic tools—everything from flashlights to tracking systems and more.
I want my Halloween costume to take as little effort as possible and be cheap—extremely cheap. That means I don't want to pay 50 bucks for some costume online or spend all day playing with liquid latex, and I most definitely do not want to visit a super crowded costume store in Hollywood.
Thanks to its open-source platform and easy-to-use hardware and software, there's literally thousands of Arduino projects detailed online for anyone to make—a magic mirror, DIY polygraph machine, and hotel-hacking dry erase marker just being a few examples. Hell, you can even make the Daft Punk helmet.
As our society and population grows, more developments such as housing and restaurants are built. While this is beneficial for us, it's not so great for the environment and the animals that occupy it. Some of the victims of our prosperity have been the birds, forced from their natural habitats.
Greeting cards. Everyone hates buying them, they're way overpriced, and the majority of them go right in the trash after they're opened. So why do we still buy them?
Small containers are useful for many things. They're good for storing snacks if you have children, as well as holding coins or odds and ends. But those regular store-bought containers are lame—who wants to keep their stuff in a Tupperware dish or old butter container?
Keep the kids learning and entertained with this fun pinwheel project. Summer is a great time for family activities, and these Fourth of July pinwheels are a math lesson, craft project and decoration-making session all-in-one.
They say cheaters never prosper, but how will your know for sure if you don't give it a try? By a little repositioning of the blindfold and some spacial awareness you can be the master at this classic party game.
If you've never done it before, making a podcast can be tricky, with multiple programs to use and multiple file types to deal with. But, this video series helps you through the complete process of creating a podcast, everything including recording, editing, images, exporting, converting, uploading, and finally… sharing. Watch this whole series to learn how to make podcasts using GarageBand, iWeb, iTunes, and Fugu.
In this Arts & Crafts video tutorial you will learn how to make a Santa Claus bookmark. You will need a card, craft paper, a ribbon, scissors, markers of different color, a punch and glue. Paste the card on to the upper part of the paper, fold the paper and paste it by applying glue to the inner part. Punch a hole on the upper part in the center. Draw 2 eyes and a nose with a marker. Draw 2 crescent shapes for the mustache and a ‘U’ for the mouth. Next draw 2 triangles for the eye brows. Draw...
Crayola Color Explosion™ lets you create wild multicolored effects with a single color-reveal marker! The unique clear-ink marker works only with black Color Explosion paper, revealing hidden colors for amazing designs. Drawings can be done freehand or with stencils. A great project to do with your kids!
In this great, short video, you'll learn how to make plastic cup Christmas ornaments that are great for children! All you need is some plastic cups, an oven, and some permanent markers! Just don't leave those cups in the oven for too long!
See how you can build a liquid fueled rocket with office supplies, mainly... a Sharpie magic marker and some duct tape. You'll also need some gas duster, the air cleaning can of gas. It's a pretty simple rocket to build, won't take long, and is loads of fun. Except, you'll need to keep buying canned air to propel it into the air multiple times.
Whether you're looking to make your own comics or you just like the style, check out this how-to video and find out how to make a quick cartoon style tortoise sketch. The cartoon tortoise rendered in this video is quick to make, and only requires an ink pen, and water-soluble markers if you want to add some color. Watch this video drawing tutorial and learn how to sketch a cartoon tortoise.
