Augmented Reality (AR) is a concept that's been around for sometime and for those who've never come across the technology before it involves enhancing the real world with an electronic device, usually a smartphone or tablet.
For example, when looking at a street through your smartphone's camera information about what you can see is overlayed on your smartphone's display, Or alternatively, when your in a museum your smartphone can add more detail about the pictures/exhibit your currently aiming your camera at.
Sony have now released a new video showcasing their LiveAction Augmented Reality application. We're quite blown away by the new application which takes AR to the next level and we recommend you checkout the video posted above right now !
In the video Sony showcase the new LiveAction technology by overlaying a talking and moving visual representation of a Japanese lady over a picture. Amazingly, she then steps out of the picture and works around in the full 3D and then freezes enabling the user to view her full 3D appearance and even take pictures with her.
The possibilities of this new technology are endless and the museum example brought up earlier is definitely one area with huge potential. You could have a talking 3D virtual tour guide guiding you through all the exhibits. Or how about looking at some dinosaur fossils and then seeing the beast come to life on your smartphone or tablet !
Another thing that quickly popped into 3G's heads is what happens if you combine Sony's technology with a projector smartphone like Samsung's Galaxy Beam. The service could then easily be used on a wide-scale to entertain/inform groups of people at the same time.
It should be stated that the application is at a very early stage and sadly we won't see Sony's LiveAction AR application appearing on smartphones anytime soon.
Augmented Reality has been an area where a huge amount of research and development money has been invested in the last couple of years and it looks like it might finally be starting to pay off. We'll keep you updated on all the latest news regarding AR , including the progress of Google's AR Glasses and Sony's LiveAction AR application.
