How tech companies are trying to make augmented and virtual reality a thing, again

Companies are on a hiring spree for people who can code an alternative reality.
By Shirin Ghaffary and Rani Molla  Feb 11, 2020, 11:00am EST

A doctor in Germany testing mixed-reality glasses for use in cardiology.

Jens Kalaene/picture alliance via Getty Images

It’s a good time to be a software engineer. And it’s an even better time to be a software engineer who can build virtual or augmented reality.

In the past few years, major tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Apple have been investing in virtual reality (VR) and its sibling technology, augmented reality (AR). Google just released a new “Live View” option in its popular Maps app that uses AR tech to superimpose information onto your field of vision as seen through a smartphone camera. We’ve seen similar examples of simple AR use cases, like the Ikea Place app, which works with your smartphone camera so you can see what certain pieces of furniture might look like in your house. Google is also continuing to improve its ARCore platform so that almost any phone can do things like measure depth.

source: https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/2/11/21121275/augmented-virtual-reality-hiring-software-engineers-hired

Better hardware will undoubtedly unlock a lot of transformative potential for virtual reality — but even more so with augmented reality. Rumors suggest that Apple will release its first AR headset in 2023. Facebook, which sells its own line of Oculus virtual reality headset products, is also betting on augmented reality. Mark Zuckerberg has said he thinks there will be an AR “breakthrough” in the next decade on the technology, and Facebook is investing heavily in the field to be the company to do that. And Microsoft’s new HoloLens 2 is being used for industrial applications like training Airbus cabin crews in virtual airplanes as well as, more controversially, military applications, including helping US soldiers prepare for combat.

The rise of AR

When it comes to the potential of virtual reality technology versus augmented reality, it’s increasingly obvious that AR is where there’s broader popular appeal. While the reach of VR is limited to gamers who wear headsets, major tech companies see VR as a gateway to more wide-reaching possibilities of AR technology. The idea is that AR can reach widespread adoption in our everyday lives, as it does with the new Google Maps feature.

As it stands now, popular AR is app-centric — think Pokemon Go or the Ikea app that lets you envision new furniture in your living room. Both are popular apps, but they’re experiences that you must consciously log into and experience through a smartphone screen. A true AR revolution would be one where the technology seamlessly integrates into our lives without any effort. But the hardware isn’t quite there yet. The gadgets that exist now, like Magic Leap or HoloLens, may be getting closer to the dream of effortless AR, but so far they’ve been proven imperfect for the average human.

It should be noted that anticipation for AR’s big breakout moment has been building for the better part of a decade. Google tried to make AR for everyone — or at least those who could afford a $1,000 gadget — nearly six years ago with Glass, a wearable device that put a small display in front of the user’s eye. The product never reached widespread adoption, though the headset has seen some success in enterprise applications.

Many think Google Glass was ahead of its time, although the technology wasn’t advanced enough yet to justify wearing a Matrix-looking set of glasses on your head all day. With its focus on design and usability, Apple could revolutionize the AR headset space if it indeed builds a product. Others like Microsoft and Facebook are racing to do the same.

Naturally, all these companies are hiring more people to build these new technologies. And now, new data from job-matching site Hired shows just how much these companies have been staffing up. The growth in AR/VR job listings and companies seeking interviews for those jobs took off in the past 12 months; jobs in those categories barely registered on Hired’s radar in previous years.

Facebook currently has more than 3,000 jobs on its career page with the term “AR/VR.” Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have a total of about 1,000, depending on what variations of AR/VR keywords you use. A Facebook spokesperson said it currently employs “thousands” of people who work on AR/VR and plans to move its AR/VR teams to a new campus that will seat approximately 4,000 employees

“Demand is outstripping supply,” Hired CEO Mehul Patel told Recode.

There’s been a 1,400 percent growth in interview demand for AR/VR engineers in the past year, according to Hired. The company conducted a study that analyzed thousands of listings and companies in its annual state of software engineers report.

The overall number of listings has grown exponentially, too. The average salaries for these positions in major US tech hubs range from $135,000 to $150,000.

While the growth for AR/VR jobs may seem extreme, Hired said it mirrors the 517 percent annual growth in demand for blockchain engineers in 2018. Last year, however, the demand for blockchain engineers had slowed to 9 percent.

But while the blockchain craze may have slowed down, the number of AR/VR projects is only expected to increase in the years to come. In terms of the promise of big growth, software engineers tend to agree. Some 74 percent of those surveyed in Hired’s report said they think we’ll see the full impact of AR/VR within the next 5 years.

Meanwhile, plenty of other data points show how the technology industry is betting — and spending big — on AR and VR.

An explosion of inventions

In 2019, more than 7,000 AR/VR inventions were patented globally, more than in any year to date, according to Derwent, a subsidiary of Clarivate Analytics that keeps a comprehensive database of patent information. (Derwent counts inventions rather than patents because a single invention requires numerous patent documents.)

In the 15 years ending in 2017, Microsoft claimed more AR/VR inventions than any other company with 745. Facebook ranked fourth, after Samsung and Huawei. Keep in mind, this data doesn’t yet include the most recent spending growth on AR/VR in the past two years.

The role of education

Since there aren’t enough engineers who are already proficient in coding for AR/VR to meet the hiring demand, Hired says engineers are increasingly looking to self-teaching methods to broaden their skill set, in addition to seeking out computer science training in school. Across the board, AR/VR was second only to machine learning as the most desired field that engineers in Hired’s survey were most interested to learn about.

Stuart Zweben, professor of Computer Science & Engineering at Ohio State University, tracks data on computer science degrees. Zweben told Recode that his data isn’t granular enough to detect whether there’s been a rise in specializations in AR/VR, but depending on the degree program, traditional computer science graduates will likely have at least some of the skills necessary to take introductory jobs in AR/VR. He said, “They should have some basic fundamental skills they can apply to areas like this.”

According to Hired, positions in AR/VR require the ability to work with a large amount of data, generated on the web and stored in cloud databases as well as specific programming languages including React, Java, C++, and SQL.

A growing total market size

Market intelligence company IDC expects global spending on augmented and virtual reality to be nearly $19 billion this year, a growth of 79 percent from the 2019 estimate. That number includes the total of what individual shoppers, companies, governments, and other end consumers are all expected to spend on products like VR headsets and AR glasses and corresponding services.Spending will be led by the commercial sector, including industries like securities and investment services and banking.

While $19 billion may seem big, that’s still only a fraction (a little under 15 percent) of expected overall consumer spending on robotics systems and drones, for example, which was estimated by IDC to be about $127.8 billion next year.

While we know companies are spending big and hiring expensive talent to build out AR/VR, only time will tell if the consumer market continues to grow and those investments will pay off.

VR is already changing the way we play games and watch movies to become more interactive, immersive experiences. AR stands to be even more transformative. Whether we realize it or not, popular social features like live Snapchat and Instagram filters are already leveraging this type of tech. But more profoundly, AR in particular could change the way we live when we’re outside the realm of entertainment, like how we drive to work or buy groceries. At least that’s what tech companies are hoping with their latest AR/VR spending spree.

5 failed tech predictions for the 2010s that didn’t work out

1. Wearables went mainstream, but AR glasses like Google Glass and Snap Spectacles aren’t as big a deal as tech companies thought they’d be.

In 2009, futurist Ross Dawson predicted that in the coming decade we could see “augmented humans” with AR glasses or contacts allowing us to control machines. Instead, Google Glass and Snap Spectacles both made Business Insider’s list of “Worst Tech of the Decade.”

Something about the tech just didn’t resonate with people, beyond the few superfans who tried them. Shortly after Google Glass was released, Google even had to warn wearers not to be “creepy or rude (aka, a ‘Glasshole’).” The company ended consumer sales of Glass in 2015.

2. Augmented reality, in general, isn’t as advanced as experts predicted 10 years ago. Breakouts like Pokémon Go were big hits, but other consumer products haven’t gone far.

Futurist Gerd Leonhard predicted that tablets would usher in an era of augmented reality’s dominance, which would be a “huge boon” to content production. AR has allowed for fun Snapchat effects and games like Pokemon Go, but it hasn’t changed daily life in the way that people thought it would — at least not yet.

3. Self-driving cars have gotten more advanced, but they’re not about to take over the roads anytime soon.

Autonomous vehicle technology from companies like Tesla has definitely improved, and reports of drivers falling asleep at the wheel have mostly been without injuries as the cars were able to compensate. But Tesla still says that autopilot mode requires “active driver supervision,” and a Tesla in autopilot mode earlier this month crashed into a police car, proving that the system is far from perfect. Self-driving tech from Alphabet and Uber have also yet to see a wide launch, and largely remain in the testing phase.

4. Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin were supposed to be the future, but they haven’t been widely adopted, and Facebook’s Libra currency has caused headaches for the company.

The last decade has seen plenty of highs and lows for cryptocurrencies. Investing in bitcoin early could have made you very wealthy by now, but many analysts see it as a bubble or niche financial product.

Cryptocurrency exchanges have been hacked, sometimes leading to investors losing their holdings. Some early investors have made millions, others trying to get in on the craze have seen their investments fall to a fraction of their value as crypto prices fluctuate wildly.

Facebook is working on the launch of its Libra cryptocurrency, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified on the subject before the House Financial Services Committee in October. Lawmakers have been critical of the project, and many major backers including PayPal and Visa have dropped out.

 

5. Some scientists and researchers predicted that artificial intelligence would help us avoid human shortcomings, like bias, but while the technology shows promise, it’s far from perfect.

Incorporating AI into sectors like policing was predicted to to help us avoid prejudice, but even as AI plays an increasingly important role in daily tasks, bias among AI exists. In fact, researchers keep finding evidence that AI is far from perfect and can introduce similar biases as those held by people. From an AI algorithm that kept black patients from getting the same quality of medical care as white patients, to hiring algorithms that learned to prefer male candidates, it’s clearly early days for the technology.

 

Golf (PGA) & BasketBall Use Data To Create Augmented Reality Apps For Fans

Jennifer Kite-Powell

ORLANDO, FLORIDA – MARCH 10: Matthew Fitzpatrick of England hits a shot during the final round of … [+]

GETTY IMAGES

Sports are dominated by data today from the sensors on the field to the players’ uniforms and helmets. Since the introduction of the NFL’s virtual reality yellow first-down line in 1998 at the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals game, sports have become a hotbed of technical innovation in an attempt to improve the sports world and bring fans closer to their teams.

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferhicks/2019/11/30/these-two-sports-use-data-to-create-augmented-reality-apps-for-fans/#2a0c6c585f09

The PGA Tour’s in-house innovation lab

To get to an augmented reality (AR) app, you need data. For the PGA Tour, that started back in 1983 with their first electronic scoreboard system to 2001 where that system evolved into the Shotlink platform.

Steve Evans, Senior Vice President, Golf Technology, PGA Tour, said that Shotlink is a real-time data collection system of the attributes of every shot on the course in real-time.

During the Arnold Palmer Invitational, March 4-10, 2019 in Bay Hill, Florida, Evans said the team collected data on close to 32,000 shots. That data includes where the player is hitting the shot from, to where the ball ends up on every shot. With those coordinates they can compute distances – from the tee, from the last shot, etc., and with that data, they can also map the golf course so they can create a more enhanced description of where the ball is.

Evans said they do this to get data to tell stories, compute statistics and present computer visualizations for the fans. All of that data became the backbone for the creation of the PGA Tour AR app which rolled out in spring 2019.

Scott Gutterman, Vice President, Digital Operations, PGA Tour said they were the first sport to incorporate augmented reality (AR) with live data. PGA Tour AR app shows shot trails, distance to the hole, etc.

 

Evans says that all of the PGA’s technology development is done in house as part of their PGA Tour Innovation program which started in 2016.

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AR in Basketball

In November 2019, the Sacramento Kings gave fans a new interactive AR features in their King app.

The Sacramento Kings partnered with Imagination Park Technologies to create new engagement features for fans during Kings home games in their Sacramento Kings + Golden 1 Center app.

“AR technology literally puts the game into the hands of our fans,” said Ryan Montoya, CTO of the Sacramento Kings. “We’re always looking to enhance the fan experience, and ImagineAR gives us more opportunities to do that by allowing fans visiting Golden 1 Center to interact with our building and team in new ways.”

The new app will feature AR scavenger hunts, in-arena photo opportunities with digital players, sweepstakes, giveaways and interactive sponsorship campaigns.

The Sacramento Kings is one of the most tech-forward teams in the NBA. In 2014, they were the first NBA team to accept Bitcoin as payment in the Golden 1 center arena.

Réalité augmentée et virtuelle s’invite chez Thomas Cook, Jaguar Land Rover et BAE Systems

Parmi les entreprises utilisatrices de la réalité augmentée et virtuelle, les britanniques sont loin d’être à la traine. De nombreux exemples prouvent la capacité de ces technologies à répondre à de précieux usages.

L’hôpital de Newcastle utilise la plate-forme de formation de réalité virtuelle Osso VR pour préparer les chirurgiens à des interventions difficiles. (crédit : D.R.)

Si la réalité virtuelle (VR) et la réalité augmentée (AR) sont présentes depuis longtemps dans le paysage et l’imaginaire technologique, elles ont toujours du mal à convaincre les entreprises de leur valeur. Mais ces technologies commencent à montrer qu’elles peuvent être mise en pratique et répondre à de précieux besoins. Au regard de ces progrès, des preuves croissantes des apports possibles de ces technologies et d’une offre toujours plus riche et plus abordable de casques HMD, ResearchAndMarkets.com estime que le marché de la VR et de l’AR passera de 7,9 milliards dollars en 2018 à 44,7 milliards de dollars en 2024. Voici comment certaines entreprises britanniques expérimentent les applications de la VR et l’AR et contribuent au dynamisme de ce marché.

Thomas Cook

Le voyagiste Thomas Cook a travaillé avec Visyulaise, un « studio de réalité étendue », pour produire une série de films en 360 VR qui permettent aux clients d’explorer des destinations potentielles dans les agences Thomas Cook avant de réserver un séjour. « Grâce à notre collaboration avec Visualise, Thomas Cook a été le premier voyagiste à proposer de la réalité virtuelle dans ses agences. Nous avons été cités pour de nombreux prix d’innovation et nous avons constaté que le visionnage de contenus VR se traduisait par un bon taux de conversion, c’est-à-dire que les clients réservent souvent leur séjour après avoir vu un de ces films », a déclaré Lynne Slowey, responsable du contenu numérique chez Thomas Cook.

Jaguar Land Rover

Les concepteurs et ingénieurs de Jaguar Land Rover se sont appuyés sur la VR pour développer de nouveaux véhicules et visualiser les modèles en 3D. Le personnel du Centre de réalité virtuelle du Gaydon Design and Engineering Complex du constructeur s’appuie sur ces simulations pour voir certains composant en grandeur nature ou le véhicule complet. Le constructeur parvient ainsi à optimiser le processus de fabrication et de conception. « Grâce aux résultats obtenus par le centre, le travail en réalité virtuelle a permis d’accélérer le temps de développement de la toute nouvelle Jaguar XJ et de la Range Rover Evoque qui sortira l’année prochaine », a écrit Andy Richardson, directeur du groupe Jaguar Land Rover Simulation au Royaume-Uni.

BAE Systems

BAE Systems a intégré de l’AR sur le pont des navires afin de permettre aux officiers responsables de la sécurité de travailler à l’extérieur de la salle des opérations et de continuer à suivre les données tactiques et autres informations vitales, où qu’ils se trouvent sur le navire. Le projet bénéficie de l’investissement de 20 millions de livres sterling dans les applications AR et VR destiné à renforcer les systèmes critiques, déterminants pour les capacités de combat des navires de guerre. « Ces technologies peuvent apporter un avantage en cas de guerre maritime et améliorer considérablement l’appréciation d’une situation et l’efficacité des équipages à bord des navires de la Royal Navy », a déclaré Frank Cotton, responsable de la technologie des systèmes de combat chez BAE Systems. « Notre expertise en matière de systèmes de combat et nos investissements dans les technologies du futur nous permettront de continuer à fournir des capacités innovantes à la marine ».

National Health Service (NHS)

Le NHS propose des thérapies par la parole aux personnes sujettes au vertige. Le NHS utilise la réalité virtuelle pour les aider à surmonter leurs peurs en les exposant progressivement à des scénarios pouvant provoquer les symptômes du vertige. Un test a permis de constater qu’un traitement par VR réduisait la peur des hauteurs des participants de 68 % en moyenne. Le système est désormais proposé aux utilisateurs des services TalkingSpace Plus et Healthy Minds spécialisés dans le traitement des personnes souffrant de dépression, d’anxiété et de stress. « Parce qu’elles savent que la situation n’est pas réelle, elles arrivent à se mettre en danger pour ainsi dire, en sachant que ce sera sans conséquence », a déclaré Barnaby Perks, CEO d’Oxford VR.

Hôpital de Newcastle

L’hôpital de Newcastle utilise la plate-forme de formation de réalité virtuelle Osso VR pour préparer les chirurgiens à des interventions difficiles. Le système utilise des dispositifs haptiques pour reproduire la manipulation d’instruments médicaux et l’analyse des données pour simuler objectivement les actes chirurgicaux. « Nous avons acheté leur système pour former nos stagiaires orthopédistes et leur permettre de réaliser virtuellement de petites interventions de chirurgie du genou », a déclaré le Dr Naeem Soomro, directeur de la chirurgie robotique à l’Hôpital de Newcastle. « Une fois qu’ils auront acquis ces compétences, nous espérons qu’ils seront opérationnels pour effectuer des opérations sur des cadavres d’abord et en situation réelle ensuite ».

ASOS

ASOS a collaboré avec l’entreprise HoloMe spécialisée dans la réalité virtuelle pour créer un « défilé virtuel » qui permet aux acheteurs de vivre depuis leur salon une expérience d’achat de vêtements basée sur la réalité augmentée. En pointant leur caméra sur une surface plane, les utilisateurs de l’application du géant du shopping en ligne peuvent voir un modèle 3D évoluer dans les vêtements de leur choix. « La réalité virtuelle nous permet de transposer l’expérience d’achat dans l’espace physique du consommateur et de la rendre plus intime », a déclaré Janosch Amstutz, CEO de HoloMe. « Nous sommes ravis de voir que notre technologie sert de nouveau moyen de communiquer avec le client ».

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Tom Macaulay, Computerworld UK (adapté par Jean Elyan

Why Virtual Reality Matters to Marketing [Infographic] | Social Media Today

Source: Why Virtual Reality Matters to Marketing [Infographic] | Social Media Today

March 10, 2017 Andrew Hutchinson

Virtual reality is seen as the next big shift, the closest thing a digital environment can provide to actually being present and in the moment.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg may have summed up the coming VR shift best – in a Facebook Live Q and A session last year, Zuckerberg noted that the internet has advanced from mostly text, to photos, and now video.

“But the question you have to ask is ‘is video the end of the line? To me, that’s what VR is about – that presence, feeling like you’re actually there with someone.”

Indeed, Zuck has a point – people gravitate towards the most accessible and advanced medium within their capacity to share their experiences. Right now, that’s video, the closest thing you can get to re-creating a moment. But soon, VR will be the thing.

And along with that increased attention comes increased opportunity for marketers. So how will virtual reality change marketing? This new infographic from WebPage FX provides an overview of the current state of play for VR and where things are headed – and how marketers can tap into the next big shift.

Disney Infinity might make its way to Microsoft’s HoloLens

Disney Infinity might make its way to Microsoft’s HoloLens.

It’s only natural for an entertainment corporation as massive as The Walt Disney Company, with IP holdings that span the likes of Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm, to be exploring the potential of virtual reality. It’s something John Vignocchi, VP of production at Disney Interactive, the division behind toys-to-life platform Disney Infinity, confirmed when we chatted a few weeks back. But when it comes to Infinity, the future focus seems to be weighted more toward augmented reality. “We’ve had multiple meetings and discussions with Oculus, multiple meetings and discussions with Sony about Morpheus, multiple meetings and discussions with Microsoft about HoloLens. We’re very interested in that space,” Vignocchi said. “There’s the socialization problem right now with VR, but augmented reality is very exciting.”

The issue of isolation in VR isn’t new. It’s a hurdle Sony PlayStation addressed onstage during its E3 presentation last month and one Worldwide Studio head Shuhei Yoshida is determined to overcome with a range of new Morpheus demos (see: RIGS). But despite the inroads being made toward socializing VR gameplay, Disney Interactive head John Blackburn remains unconvinced it’s the way forward for the local co-op baked into the family-friendly Infinity.

“My own experience with these devices right now is that I feel like they almost cut directly against what we’re trying to do, which is experiences that can involve you with somebody else,” Blackburn said. “The idea of kind of creating that family memory and playing it together is really core to the experience we’re trying to build. And so when you put a lot of these headsets on, it’s almost isolating in a way. Until we can get over that piece of the technology, it’s not as interesting to me.”

Which is why Blackburn hinted that if Infinity were to pick a side in the VR vs. AR battle, it’d likely come out as a HoloLens project. And when you consider the parallels between the crafting of Infinity‘s Toy Box creation mode and Microsoft’s recently announced HoloLensMinecraft project, the prospect doesn’t seem too far-fetched. Though, that’s not to say Disney Interactive’s completely ruling out VR.

“You kind of look at Microsoft’s HoloLens stuff where you can kind of see through,” said Blackburn. “And that one’s kind of interesting from that perspective because I can see everybody else around me. But yes, we’re absolutely interested in that space because the Toy Box itself is kind of a very interesting concept of ‘I’m in the world I built.'”

Apple Acquistion Of Metaio: Legitimate Augmented Reality Tech

Once thought of as gimmicky or primarily for gaming applications, Augmented Reality (AR) technology has the ability to quite literally reshape the landscape in many markets, with new capabilities from simple telepresence to industrial and architectural design, to navigation and tracking. Google GOOGL -1.52% has been heavily behind the technology for a while now, with Google Glass and their Project Tango tablet, and Facebook/Oculus recently moved in on AR firm Surreal Vision. Now it appears Apple AAPL -1.11% is apparently turning its gun sights on the market space as well.

Earlier this week, it was announced the Apple had acquired AR technology developer Metaio, a seasoned veteran in the space that has been around for over a decade, if you can believe that. Apple didn’t have much to say about the acquisition but the move itself speaks volumes. Metaio develops AR tools that use 3D tracking capable devices for development and deployment of Augmented Reality apps.

The most natural, immediate application for Metaio technologies would be with Apple’s iPad line. Tablet platforms have the light-weight portability you need for carrying a 3D mapping-capable device but also have enough mechanical area to house the additional circuitry and camera technology required to implement the design, not to mention the additional CPU and graphics horsepower required.

Samsung is making a VR headset for its phones and tablets

Samsung is making a VR headset for its phones and tablets.

BY BEN GILBERT  @REALBENGILBERT  MAY 22ND 2014, AT 11:30:00 AM ET 248

Samsung is known for its ubiquitous Galaxy smartphones and tablets, popular smart televisions and, most recently, smartwatches. The Korean consumer electronics giant is about to enter another major new category: virtual reality headsets. We’re told by sources close to Samsung that a virtual reality headset is not only in the works at the company’s mobile division, but it’s set to be announced this year. The urgency is said to be a measure of beating Facebook’s Oculus Rift and Sony’s Project Morpheus to market. Some developers already have early versions of the headset, which — at least in the development stages — is powered by flagship Galaxy devices (think: Note 3, Galaxy S5). The consumer model, however, is said to require the power of next-gen, unannounced Galaxy phones and tablets.

First things first, what are we talking about here specifically? A peripheral. We’re talking about a virtual reality headset — along the lines of Oculus Rift, but more akin to the Android-powered GameFace Labs prototype (seen below) — created by Samsung, powered by Samsung products. This is not the rumored “Galaxy Glass” project.

We’re told it has an OLED screen, as good or better than in the second Rift dev kit; it’s not clear how the headset connects to your phone/tablet, but we’re guessing it’s a wired connection rather than wireless. Given VR’s reliance on immediacy, a wired setup is a requirement (any lag introduced breaks the immersion, and often makes people sick). It’s also not clear how, or if, Samsung’s VR headset tracks head movement depth-wise. In the case of both Project Morpheus and Oculus Rift, separate cameras face the player and track depth by reading sensors on the respective headsets.

Beyond beating the competition to market, Samsung’s said to be targeting a lower price tier with its headset. Don’t expect anything too low — we’re still talking about a VR headset — but the idea again is to undercut Oculus and Sony. Unlike Galaxy Gear smartwatches, we’re told that Samsung’s in-house OS, Tizen, doesn’t play a part in the VR headset.

This is a device meant for use with games. What type of games? Android games! Sure, but which ones? That’s certainly the question. Great games make the platform, and VR games are especially tough to crack given the newness of the medium. One thing’s for sure: most major games won’t work on VR as direct ports. Something like Minecraft VR makes sense on paper, but does it actually play well?

That question, and many more surrounding Samsung’s VR headset, remain a mystery. For now! Perhaps you know more? We’d love for you to get in touch! We’ll have more on Samsung’s virtual reality plans as we hear more; for now, the official line from Korea is, “Samsung doesn’t comment on rumor and speculation.”

GOOGLE GLASS FOR FITNESS – Race Yourself – Virtual Reality Fitness Motivation

Google a pensé à tout, avec son application Race Yourself pour Google Glass, qui a pour but de rendre votre footing beaucoup plus fun.

Avec Race Yourself, votre course se transformera en jeu avec plus d’une trentaine de modes différents. Cette application donne une toute autre dimension au sport sous bien des aspects puisque vous pourrez fuir devant des zombies, faire du vélo, courir contre des adversaires virtuels ou bien encore sprinter devant un rocher qui menace de vous écraser. Vous pourrez également affronter votre propre fantôme. Du footing mais pas seulement, car une fonctionnalité pour le ski est prévue où il sera possible de franchir des portes virtuelles. Mais attention, Race Yourself n’utilise que la réalité virtuelle et non la réalité augmentée.

En savoir plus ? http://hitek.fr/actualite/application-race-yourself-google-glass_1593

Social Highlights 6 : Quelle réalité pour les médias augmentés ?

Great Stuff by Moxie Paris

Social Highlights 6 : Quelle réalité pour les médias augmentés – Moxie Paris – septembre 2013