By Michelle Strydom
Although Pokemon Go is (sort of) a new concept, AR is definitely not. The focus on AR has recently blown up with the throwing of pokeballs and the collection of pokemon. But that’s not where it ends. AR can grow much bigger than it has through this game, and maybe even be used for purposes other than gaming.
Augmented Reality: Why we care
AR is the view of the real world through computer-generated sensory input like sound, video, graphics or GPS data. This sounds just like Virtual Reality. However, it’s not.
According to Jan Vermeulen, a senior journalist at
MyBroadband, AR brings us closer to real life than VR.
“Augmented reality overlays computer-generated virtual elements over your view of the real world, or an image of the real world captured by a camera,” says Vermeulen. “[Meanwhile] virtual reality aims to immerse you in a completely different computer-simulated world. I would say that AR has proven to have more practical applications, and VR still faces the challenge that it causes nausea in some people.”
AR is a real world away from the real world. But with other technology like VR delivering on long-awaited expectations, the survival for AR after Pokemon Go could be up for debate.
It didn’t start with Pokemon Go, and it won’t end there
The sad reality is that AR could be forgotten as soon as the excitement around Pokemon Go dies down. And perhaps in the gaming world it will because it’s hard to believe any other gaming app can compete with Pokemon Go.
Marco Cocomello, a gaming and tech journalist for
PixelVulture, explains: “AR has been dying out, with less apps and games using it, we have seen very little of it in gaming this generation, and in terms of mainstream gaming, it’s headed in a more VR direction.”
Despite the uncertainty around whether or not AR is a tool of the future for gamers and developers, professionals like
Tim Merel, managing director of
Digi-Captial, predict with confidence that AR could hit revenue of $120-billion by 2020, comparing its market to the mobile phone.
“We think AR’s addressable market is similar to the smartphone/tablet market. So AR could have hundreds of millions of users, with hardware price points similar to smartphones and tablets. This could drive large hardware revenues for device makers,” says Merel.
If this is true, AR could have a much larger ground to come up with more ways to incorporate the concept with already existing trends, which could, in turn, reach more people. Perhaps even non-gamers.
AR could grow beyond gaming
The key to survival for any device or concept is to go beyond what it was initially designed for. Having said that, businesses are already finding ways to tune into AR’s power to enhance the way you view things, and bring something new and interesting to consumers.
“Whether it's hosting meetings or showcasing products, this developing technology holds potential promises for revamping the way we think about doing business,” says
Adam C. Uzialko, a staff writer at
Business News Daily.
Uzialko references Gareth Price, technical director for
Ready Set Rocket, who suggests that AR brings life to business and the Internet, something we can’t begin to imagine without the tool.
"Augmented reality for business offers promise both in communicating with customers and within the organisations themselves for work functions. AR brings the internet from being contained on a screen to becoming part of the fabric of the world around us, which will benefit businesses with a physical presence."
Even if the only real benefit behind AR is adding life to lifeless things, we can use it in both our personal and professional lives. Just look at the success of Pokemon Go. This example on its own instills the belief that the public is primed for a future with AR.
Do you think augmented reality has a future beyond Pokemon Go? Let us know in the comments below.