News: Niantic Begins Accepting Nominations for PokéStops in Pokémon GO
Augmented reality gaming developer Niantic has decided to give its players the opportunity to make their mark on Pokémon GO with a PokéStop nomination system.
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News: Meta Company's Funding Fallout Followed by Furloughs, Report Says
After a $20 million funding round fell through, augmented reality headset maker Meta Company has been forced to furlough (or place on temporary leave of absence) approximately 65% of its workforce for 30 days.
News: ARKit App WiARframe Wants to Be the Destination for AR Prototyping & Discovery
A new app for iPhones and iPads gives developers a sandbox for testing their AR experiences and sharing them with the world.
News: Apple's Focus on Smartglasses Becomes Clearer with Acquisition of AR Display Maker
While Apple may not be ready to divulge its roadmap for shipping its rumored augmented reality headset, the company's actions tell us a different story.
News: Storing & Transporting Magic Leap One Safely Works with This Affordable VR Case
In recent days, I've twice talked about brining the Magic Leap One out into the world with me to test its mobile capabilities. But you may have been wondering how I carried the device with me. Did I just stuff my brand new $2,300, hard to obtain device in a backpack and hit the road? Hardly.
News: iOS 12 Is Now Open for Public Beta Testers, Here's How to Install It on Your iPhone Right Now
Hours after iOS 11.4.1 beta 4 was released on Monday, June 25, Apple's webpage for its public beta software programs was unavailable because of an "update." Sure enough, that meant the public beta for iOS 12 was being prepped to drop shortly thereafter, which is exactly what happened. In other words, you can now install iOS 12 on your iPhone without a developer account!
News: Apple's ARKit 2.0 Intends to Match & Surpass Google's ARCore with Multiplayer & Persistent Content, Says Report
On the one year anniversary of the introduction of ARKit, Apple is planning to reveal major updates its augmented reality toolkit for mobile apps at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose, California next week.
News: Google, Amazon, & More Invest $28M in Nerve-Tapping Technology from CTRL-Labs
New York-based startup CTRL-Labs has closed a $28 million Series A round of funding from Google parent Alphabet's GV and Amazon's Alexa Fund, among others, for its next-generation neural interface technology for AR/VR and robotics.
News: Coors & KFC Court Consumers for Memorial Day Weekend via Snapchat AR
Many Americans will celebrate the start of the summer this Memorial Day weekend with backyard cookouts, and two brands hope to solidify their invites to those parties through augmented reality experiences in Snapchat.
How To: Finally, a Decent Zombie Base-Building Game That You Can Play on Your iPhone Right Now
With tons of titles to choose from on the iOS App Store, you'll never be lacking when it comes zombie shooters. Unfortunately, the same can't be said if you're more interested in base-building and defending against the undead. PlayStack aims to change this, and they've soft-launched Survival City in the Philippines for further development. With a simple hack, you can try the game yourself right now.
News: Looney Tunes Antics Jump from Screen to Real World with Augmented Reality Experiment
Even in augmented reality, Wile E. Coyote still can't catch the Road Runner. The latest AR experiment from developer Abhishek Singh brings the classic Looney Tunes duo into the real world.
Market Reality: AR Competition Heats Up as Microsoft, Google, & Samsung Make Money Moves
Some of the big guns developing augmented reality technology fired shots at their competitors with announcements and leaked plans this week.
News: Niantic Planning to Chart AR Maps with Crowdsourcing Help from Gamers
If you are an active player of Pokémon GO, you may soon be capturing more than just virtual pocket monsters.
News: Google Working on AR Walking Navigation Mode for Maps
At Google's I/O developer conference keynote on Tuesday, ARCore may have been absent, but Google did preview a potentially trailblazing augmented reality feature for Google Maps.
Spotify 101: How to Download Music for Offline Playback on Android & iPhone
Spotify is a great music subscription service, but constantly streaming songs can really run up your monthly mobile data. Fortunately, you're able to download music from Spotify on Android and iOS in order to preserve your precious data cap.
News: Snapchat Rides AR Ads to Boost in Revenue Despite Redesign Hiccups
During Snap Inc.'s quarterly earnings report, released on Tuesday, the company disclosed that it snagged a revenue total of $230.8 million for the first quarter of 2018, an increase of 54% compared to last year, largely fueled by its augmented reality offerings and other advertising products.
News: New York Times Hitchhikes on NASA's Mission to Mars via Augmented Reality
In the latest installment in its burgeoning augmented reality journalism practice, The New York Times is bringing its readers closer to Mars and NASA's latest spacecraft set to travel to the red planet.
News: Social VR Startup vTime Lands $7.6M to Launch Augmented Reality Version Later This Year
One of the earliest players in the social virtual reality space, vTime, has just landed $7.6 million in new funding, which the company says is partially earmarked for developing and releasing an augmented reality version of its platform later this year.
News: Lampix Exec Gordon Meyer Podcast Interview, Says the Future of AR Isn't in Wearables
The future of augmented reality isn't on your smartphone or face, it's in the everyday items all around us. At least that's the belief of Gordon Meyer, the vice president of marketing at New York-based startup Lampix.
iOS Security: How to Untrust Computers Your iPhone Previously Connected To So They Can't Access Your Private Data
If you've ever connected your iPhone to a computer before, you know iOS prompts you to "Trust" the computer and enter your passcode to confirm. According to Apple, trusted computers can "sync with your iOS device, create backups, and access your device's photos, videos, contacts, and other content." That's a lot of permissions to hand off, especially if the computer's not your main laptop or desktop.
News: Microsoft Japan Concept Video Demos How HoloLens Will Help Pilot the Drone Ships of the Future
Although the HoloLens is still primarily the domain of developers and researchers, the device is nevertheless on the cutting edge of showing us what will be possible with augmented reality in the coming years. The latest example comes via Microsoft Japan and a new concept video that shows off how the HoloLens will be used in the relatively near future to pilot autonomous ships.
How To: Easily View Your Current Cellular Data Usage on Your iPhone
If you can't afford an unlimited plan, you're limited to a certain amount of data each month on your iPhone. Even some unlimited data plans have carrier-imposed mobile data caps that throttle the user if they exceed them. Keeping track of your exact usage each day will help make sure you don't get billed more or throttled like a chump near the end of the month.
Market Reality: Apple's AR Toolkit Is Slowly Catching on While Google & Snap Invest in More AR Development Tools
The business of enabling the development of augmented reality experiences appears to be as lucrative as AR app development itself.
News: Sorry, SE Fans — iPhone SE 2 Won't Have a 4" Display
While Apple usually sets the precedent for its consumers to follow, the iPhone SE returned the company's iconic smartphone to a small form factor, one that had been ditched by the iPhone 6 and beyond. However, it appears Apple is finished with 4-inch phones for good, as the iPhone SE 2 looks to be even larger than last year's iPhone X.
News: Augmented Reality App Created by NYU Students Can Translate Sign Language in Real Time
While Magic Leap may have plans to eventually introduce sign language translation for smartglasses in the near future, students at New York University have demonstrated that such a feat is possible today with a smartphone and a prototype app.
News: Snapchat Powers Up Its Game & Development Capabilities with PlayCanvas Acquisition
With its recent acquisition of 3D gaming engine PlayCanvas, Snapchat parent Snap, Inc. appears to be preparing a challenge to the existing players in the world of game development, particularly in terms of augmented and virtual reality gaming.
How To: Increase Performance for Individual Apps on Your Galaxy S9
Samsung's Galaxy S9 is a powerhouse, driven by the Snapdragon 845. Still, this SoC lags behind the A11 Bionic chip that's inside the iPhone X — meaning you'll need a few tricks in order to squeeze out some extra performance from your phone. Fortunately, there's an app made by Samsung that will help you do just that.
How To: Everything to Do When You Get a New Phone
After setting up your phone, there are a number of things you should do immediately before download your favorite apps. Specifically, now that your data is on the device, you need to take steps now to ensure it's both protected and retained. Fortunately, most of these steps are a one-time process.
News: Magic Leap Filings Point to 'Magic Shop' Branding for Online Store, L.E.A.P. Creator Conference Event
Magic Leap's recent flurry of patent applications prompted us to look around for any trademark movements from the company, and it turns out that the Florida-based company has been quite busy.
News: Capital One Introduces AR Features to Ease the Car-Buying Experience
If you're playing word association with the terms "augmented reality" and "automobiles," your first thoughts probably center on navigation displays in cars or virtual models of exotic vehicles.
Apple AR: PGA Tour AR App Lets You Follow Golfers Live on Your Coffee Table
If you're a golf fan who can't attend the Arnold Palmer Invitational in person, you can still follow the next stop on the apparent Tiger Woods comeback tour in augmented reality with an iPhone or iPad.
News: College Basketball Fans Can Now Celebrate Their School's March Madness Berth in AR via Thyng's App
The NCAA College Basketball Tournament, colloquially known as March Madness, is arguably the most exciting postseason format in US sports, and the team behind Thyng want to take advantage of the annual event with AR content.
News: No, Bose, Those Aren't AR Glasses You're Hyping, but Nice Try
On Friday, audio giant Bose emerged as the latest, and perhaps the most surprising company to announce that it's planning to release augmented reality smartglasses.
How To: Get the Screenshot Editing Feature from Android Pie on Any Phone
The new Android 9.0 Pie update is bringing a feature that stock Android has been lacking — screenshot editing. OEM skins like Samsung's TouchWiz have had this for years, and Apple added it to iOS just recently. But now that it's in stock Android, it'll be included with every phone going forward — trouble is, most people will have to wait for the update. Thankfully, you can get this feature right now on any phone.
News: Leap Motion Hit with Patent Infringement Lawsuit from Same Company Suing Meta
Patent holder Genedics, LLC has filed a legal complaint alleging that hand-tracking startup Leap Motion is infringing on its intellectual property.
How To: Set Your Galaxy S9 to the Highest Possible Resolution Out of the Box
Samsung's Galaxy S9 has the best smartphone display among any in its class, beating out the likes of the Google Pixel 2 XL and iPhone X. However, Samsung doesn't unlock the true power of its screen out of the box. To do that, you'll need to rummage through a few settings on your way to maxing out the resolution of your Galaxy S9 or S9+.
How To: There's an Easy Way to Stop MoviePass from Tracking Your iPhone After Watching Films
MoviePass may be popular with filmgoers on a budget, but it might not be with those of you who are concerned about your privacy, since MoviePass may be logging your location data even when you don't expect the app to do so.
Netflix 101: Parental Controls for Individual TV Show & Movie Titles Are Coming
Netflix currently lets parents block content based on maturity rating, but it isn't a perfect system. Not all titles rated PG-13 are equal, for instance. That's why it's good news that Netflix is adding more controls for parents, by allowing account holders to bar individual movies and TV shows they deem inappropriate.
How To: Get the Galaxy S9's New Ringtones & Notification Sounds on Any Android Phone
The Galaxy S9 was announced February 25, and it's jam-packed with features like AR Emojis and and a Dual Aperture camera. You really love the cut of its jib, but maybe you don't have the means to get your hands on one. Well now, you can get the Galaxy S9's notification sounds and ringtones, to help you feel like you own one.
News: Magic Leap Partner Weta Workshop Confirms Shooter Game Coming in 2018
A controversial video from Magic Leap's past has once again surfaced, but this time it comes with a lot more credibility and a good bit of excitement around the Magic Leap One headset.