Virtual reality is a term most of us are familiar with, but is augmented reality trending to take over? Many interactive marketers believe the answer is yes.
What is Virtual Reality?
Most of us are familiar with that VR is, a computer generated, interactive or 3D environment. One which may be defined as virtual in which a computer has generated all elements, interactive where the user decides what happens and immersible where the user is absorbed or embedded into the experience. With the newest technologies these computer created worlds combine the senses of sight, sound, touch, and even smell to give users the sense of the virtual world.
How is Augmented Reality Different?
In a virtual world the world may appear real, but it is not real. The user cannot fully experience the world around them, as it is not real. Augmented Reality is different in the sense that it supplements the real world using virtual, computer-generated objects which coexist in the real world space. Unlike a computer generated scene, AR provides a link between the natural world and a virtual world, essentially blurring the line between the two dimensions. The resulting “Mixed Reality” environment can assist in more than just entertainment, but in real life applications as well. AR has applications in medical and engineering fields, as well as design and commerce, in addition to the traditional entertainment applications used by VR.
Augmented Reality in Real Life Use
While AR is still an up-and-coming technology for consumer use, it is available through products such as Google Glasses and Meta Glasses. Both of these products, and many more you have likely never heard of, are attempting to revolutionize the way people interact with their real environments. Even today, many of the companies attempting to launch their AR products and campaigns are still only thinking of these products as visual, rather than submerging all of your senses.
As the AR trends continue to develop, and more products make their way onto the mainstream, the market will evolve to branch AR out into a world that will encompass all of our senses, similar to VR. What’s next on the marketing horizon for AR? Your guess is as good as ours.
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