xTech Digest vol2(1): the not-seen-at-CES issue

INSPIRATION

Pretty soon you’ll be able to ditch all those headsets being plugged at CES and still be able to experience mixed reality if people like the folks at Theoriz in Lyon, France have their way. The Mixed Reality project uses a multitude of technologies – “audiovisual production, using in house tracking system (Augmenta) and Vive VR tracking technologies with real time video and projection mapping in space” – to create a reality-warping quasi-VR room.

Mixed Reality Subtitles…for Plays!

If you've ever used the Xray option on Amazon Video - the feature where you can see the names of the people in the scene, the title of the music, etc. - you've probably been dying to use it in real life. The National Academy in London is jump-starting the trend by providing mixed-reality subtitles for plays.

TECHNOLOGIES

DAQRI AR Glasses Now Shipping

Even though the name Daqri sounds more like an after-work cocktail than a serious work app, the good people there have developed AR glasses for professionals. It's really shaping up that VR is for games, and AR is for work - check out what they can do.

TRENDS

HARry Potter & StAR wARs

With franchises as big as Harry Potter and Star Wars, did you really think they'd ignore AR for long? D'oh, nope. Instead of kids getting hit by cars chasing Picachu, they can wander into traffic chasing Chewie and Dobby the House Elf.

AR Market Predictions reach $1Trillion

You know the hype train is running full throttle when the predicted market size begins to rival the annual US military budget. Deloitte Digital calls for AR to be a $1 trillion by 2050, but in the same study they say 88 percent of mid-market companies are already using some form of AR or VR. Hopelessly optimistic? AR is awesome and will be transformational – no need for the breathless hype.

MISC

·      Smellable VR is a thing.

·      Follow the AR footsteps of a half-naked man with hotsteps.

·      Watch 3rd Graders react to AR.