Just a few hours ago, I was satisfied with my iPhone 3G using software version 3.1.2, but after after researching the system requirements to run Augmented Reality apps, the 3GS is looking like a must-have. At first, Apple marketed the speed, voice control, and video editing capabilities as the key features of 3GS, but the digital compass seems to be the necessary component to take advantage of AR apps with the video feature. Using a smartphone, the GPS with the Maps app has been surprisingly one of my favorites especially if I suddenly forget where I’m going or to be the back seat driver with all the answers. And apps like Yelp are useful to suggest an user highly rated restaurant based on your current location, but now, the AR version will display the information layered on live images, but only using 3GS.
Since this Summer, developers have been introducing Wiki-style versions that display informational text boxes on the live scenes as you use the iPhone camera.
Or, the international favorite, an interactive map of the Paris Métro as you stroll the avenues, the London Tube and now the NYC Subway! Last week, watching the CNBC special, Inside the Mind of Google, their developers gave a sneak preview of AR for the new Android phone that leverages Google’s powerful search engine using images. The technology allows users to take an image from a camera phone and uses visual recognition engines to recognize objects shown in the image, and return search results based upon that recognition. The Visual Mobile Search (VMS) applied to the fashion industry as example would create walking billboards of street fashion in trendy districts or transform static window displays into e-retail sites by users proceeding to check-out after downloading the stats!
That might be in the future, but you can now scout your local bar with Stella Artois Le Bar Guide complete with taxi service or use Worksnug’s Wi-Fi finder for the nearest hot spot!
