The Current and Future State of AR in Entertainment

Like virtual reality, augmented reality systems are only now starting to fulfill their potential. As devices push technology to its limits, progress had remained slow for years, but recently, development has been rapidly accelerating. Contemporary interest in AR is bigger than ever, with immense possibilities in what's soon to come.

Looking at what these systems can do and how they might be integrated, it's exciting to ponder what's around the corner. With next-gen tech not far away, more immersive AR landscapes could fundamentally reshape how we look at entertainment if developers take the right approach.


The Next Generation of Systems

The next big steps in AR systems all continue to move towards the ideal of a wider field of view, lower weight, and more accurate tracking. Most promising of these systems are those by Google and Apple, two companies that have already invested heavily in VR and AR tech.

According to recent rumors, the coming Apple Glasses won’t be ready until 2026. These are expected to follow a dual AR/VR headset from the company, which is predicted to land in early 2023. Price is currently unknown, with broad predictions that the system could cost anywhere between $1,000 - $3,500. Given Apple's emphasis on premium goods, a higher price is more likely, though units could also be subsidized to grow initial growth.

The implementation of AR will depend highly on the software, and how well it is built to manage existing systems. An example of this idea could be seen in how HTML 5 was designed from the ground up to better cater to mobile systems. Thanks to this software investment, mobiles no longer have the problems browsing websites that they once did, and this could also apply to how AR integrates with the next few years of entertainment.

Source: Pixabay

The 'Now' and the 'Soon'

When we think of AR and entertainment, the first thought usually goes to video games. This is thanks to systems like PlayStation VR already putting in a lot of work, but AR tends to be underrepresented compared to its cousin here. As it now stands, the biggest AR games still tend to revolve around the ideas popularized by Pokémon Go. Titles like The Walking Dead: Our World and Jurassic World Alive follow this concept, and while they’re fun, they’re still limited and built on longstanding gaming concepts.

Future AR in video games could see enormous changes with the advent of smaller and more mobile headsets. One of the most exciting possibilities is found in combat titles, as we already see in games like laser tag. With VR, these types of games would be brought to a new level, where simple battlefields could be expanded to massive AR environments. These could include virtual explosive weapons, zombie hordes to fight back, and the best combination of gaming and exercise to date.

AR still has some practical use cases that it can learn from the world of VR. For example, sports fans are beginning to be able to take advantage of VR technology to watch games in virtual stadiums. This adds to the many new ways that technology is bringing us closer to sports and that in-person experience.

When combined with many innovations in the world of sports betting, such as live results and in-play bets, the best betting websites are constantly evolving to bring a range of accessibility features that take us closer to the action. SBO has compiled a list of the best licensed sports betting sites that you can filter by category based on your needs, making it simple for you to sign up and place wagers on your favorite sports. The biggest of these websites are international hits, so they're not without the means to move into the AR sphere too. With AR, online sportsbooks could project features of these services within a player's home.

Movies could be a little more complicated to implement, where advancements could be found in both bigger screens and improved social communication. With AR, a person could project a movie theatre-sized screen, to bolster a sense of scale. This is already possible in VR, but AR could permit additional points of reference for greater appreciation. AR could also allow users to stream virtual avatars of their friends into their homes, to hang out and watch shows and films even from thousands of miles away.

Source: Pixabay

Though we've probably got at least another decade before AR begins to uncover its true potential, its current progress means that even incremental upgrades will be groundbreaking. It might not seem to outsiders, but this is a technology that will eventually come to dominate. Not just in entertainment, the possibilities in communication, healthcare, navigation, and work are too great for the systems to ever fade away. It’s a matter of when, not if, and when could be sooner than we think.






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