Stepping Stones to Holograms: Augmented Reality
By: Emily Piscitelli
Tags: Consumer, Augmented Reality, Technology

Holograms are not being used in the real world on a day-to-day basis. You can’t just take out your watch, command “call mom” and see a 3D version of your mom standing right in front of you. This blog post is going to be about augmented reality. This is the next stepping stone in making holograms a reality in communication.

Fashnology

Today, augmented reality is being used in many ways. Some versions of this are wearable (smart watches, Augmented Reality Smart Glasses) while others (AR mirrors) are not wearable (Rauschnabel, 2018). The wearable augmented reality is based off of fashnology, a combination of fashion and technology. While marketing teams and creators get together to make new technology, they need to take into account what the user wants. Many of these wearable items are becoming popular because users can have the item on their body for easy access. These wearable products are easy to carry around and very mobile. Apple watches are an example of this. As an avid Apple customer, I have purchased many apple watch bands. I have different colors and materials to match different outfits. Spectacles by Snapchat are another form of this AR wearable fashion. These glasses are similar to a GoPro, but instead, the camera is built into the glasses. You can capture life the way you see it.

Fashion is extremely important in technology as a selling point. A lot of research that is conducted today revolves around technology and the way fashion can be incorporated. One scholarly article, written by Philipp Rauschnabel, a Professor at Universität der Bundeswehr München specializing in Online Marketing, Media Innovation, Quantitative Research, AR, VR, MR, discusses the use of AR and research conducted on it today. Rauschnabel says, “This stream of research argues that to understand how consumers react to wearable devices, scholars must incorporate both fashion- and technology- related factors in their research” (2018). In other words, fashion is a large component of technology, specifically wearable technology. Individualism today is widely expressed through fashion which is why researchers need to look for ways for these technologies to be individualized and wearable for easy access and efficiency.

Spectacles by Snapchat

Augmented Reality Mirror

One stationary augmented reality device that is currently used today by consumers is the Augmented Reality Mirror. This mirror is a non-wearable version of AR that can be used in stores world-wide when the technology really takes off. Consumers can stand in front of this mirror and see themselves wearing different clothing. This is a new way to try on clothing in a public, or even private setting. This form of AR allows customers to try on clothes without even taking their shoes off. This technology allows for fast and easy purchases of clothing. As a busy college student, I understand the usefulness of such efficiency and this type of technology can change the world for someone in my position.

Augmented Reality Apps

Augmented reality apps are also being used more and more by consumers. An example of this is an app that allows you to hold your phone over foreign text, and the app will automatically translate the text for you. This is another way to make life even easier and more efficient for consumers.

As a fast-paced world, efficiency is a huge deal to everyone. Rushing around is basically second nature to anyone you ask. Augmented reality can revolutionize efficiency for consumers and change the way that we do anything.

Citations

Rauschnabel, P. (2018, May 15). Virtually enhancing the real world with holograms: An exploration of expected gratifications of using augmented reality smart glasses. Retrieved February 25, 2019, from https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.gate.lib.buffalo.edu/doi/full/10.1002/mar.21106