Does Augmented Reality do it better

Imagine learning to drive a real car with a virtual driving instructor in the passenger seat or strolling around an art gallery and having a virtual guide pointing things out to you on your smart glasses. These are just two examples of what 'augmented reality' (AR) technology is beginning to offer us. Augmented reality simply means overlaying digital information onto the physical world via an electronic device, whether that’s a mobile phone, tablet, or smart glasses. It enables us to interact with a world that is enhanced by multimedia - reality, only e and with AR, unlike the totally immersive virtual reality (VR), we can still see what's going on around us. We can move about freely, whereas VR users are restricted to a smaller area. This means AR has more immediate practical applications. Although the pioneering invention of Google Glossary a few years ago never really took off, a number of other companies are now producing 3D smart glasses or head- mounted displays that have potential uses in business, education, health, defence, retail and science. Microsoft's HoloLens' 2 'smart glasses' use see-through lenses with a 2K resolution display. The experience creates a 52-degree field of view in front of the wearer, providing a highly immersive environment. The ability to stay focussed on what is in front of you, without having to look away from the work that you are doing, is one of the key advantages of smart glasses in an industrial context. Software can be integrated with the glasses, for example, to help technicians do repair and maintenance work. The glasses recognise a piece of equipment, bring up its service history on screen, and show the relevant procedures to carry out. Porsche' were among the first to introduce this method back in 2018, with their 'Tech Live Look' system. In addition to augmented reality on expensive headsets, there are also applications on cheaper mobile devices. Retailers such as IKEA' experimented with AR in the past, but their new IKEA Place app now allows users to scan their room at home and then drag and drop furniture into position, using the phone as a viewer. Inkhunter, a small Ukrainian companay, have created a very popular mobile app. It allows users to visualise tattoos with the exact placement, size and design anywhere on your body. "We've made it fun, easy and totally painless to try on as many designs as often as you like — without any regrets."