overlaid on real. The speed of uptake of the ANW will be moderatedby the speed at which useful applications are developed, the speed with which the necessary hardware becomes pervasive (and usually cheap) and the unpredictable development of a "killer application" that will take
the market by storm. Like any technological revolution it requires advances in a wide range of engineering, from software to hardware through to manufacturing technology and intelligent algorithms capable of applying the new data usefully.
The pieces to the Articulated Naturality (AN) revolution are already in place. Smartphones will continue to improve on the basic features required for augmented reality and they will soon have the specification for accessing the ANW. AN will mean users will be closer to the information they want, when they want it and that's a strong selling point for people living in a the modern, information-empowered environment. AR navigation is a simple, useful way to get around though it will take a change in user behaviour to see people walking around viewing the world through their phone. Its likely that an audio-AR browser such as Toozla will be successful with people who prefer to be discrete or are sensitive to the risk of theft. The browser wars are really hotting up in early 2010. Layar is the most popular and is now preinstalled on Samsung's latest smartphone and other Android devices. Sites like Wikitude are offering geotagging to the mass market. Consumer digital cameras have GPS built in. The modern smartphone is capable of basic AR.
Its an exciting time for early adopters. Its an exciting time for businesses ready to access the new medium of AR and ANW marketing. Entertainment and social venues are likely to benefit from the potential of proximity-based electronic marketing. Magazines like Esquire have
already produced AR editions. New AR games are being released and it won't belong before the market sees releases from major games manufacturers. Slowly the industry behind AR and eventually behind the ANW will grow and the AN-capable phones will become the next must-have consumer gadget.
There is no immediate threat to the new augmented reality market and ANW other than a totally unheard of technology being developed that rapidly achieves the benefits and uptake. The consumer consciousness is fickle as always looks for the next fad and its likely that this factor may divert its attention away from the new ANW however it is merely a blank canvas for the architects and artists to create exciting and innovative ways to apply the potential of the invisible information world to every day life.
No comments:
Post a Comment