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When Snap CEO Evan Spiegel pulled off the surprise debut of the augmented reality version of Spectacles last week, it was one of the biggest moments in the company’s history. In one move, Snap moved from a primarily software-driven social media company to a legitimate hardware player. But how did it come together? • Don’t Miss: How to Get a Pair of Snap’s New Spectacles AR Smartglasses Well, it turns out that, just like the HoloLens before it, the new Spectacles also had a noteworthy prototype device that led up to the eventual polished version that we see today. Thanks to Snap AR Product… more

Last week, Snap powered through a mountain of important software and (shock!) hardware updates, as well as a few very big business partnerships. One of those partnerships is Disney World, but if you weren’t paying close attention, you might have missed how exactly you can bring Disney’s iconic characters into your real world via Snapchat. • Don’t Miss: Snap Now Lets You Build Lego in AR Remotely with Others, Reveals AR Tie-Up with Disney, Plus AR Business Tools The new Walt Disney World Resort Snapchat Lenses allow you to take a fully interactive selfie with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, or… more

Google and Snap held their annual conferences this week, and both companies managed to upstage their new AR software features with fantastic new AR hardware. After Snap unloaded a deluge of new AR capabilities and tools for creators and brands on Thursday, it dropped the mic with the reveal of its next-generation Spectacles, then followed up on Friday by acquiring the company whose technology helps make those Spectacles smartglasses. Similarly, Google unveiled several new AR features for Search and Maps, along with other tech advancements, during its I/O keynote, which concluded with the… more

The tech world was taken by surprise this week with the unexpected unveiling of Snap’s augmented reality Spectacles smartglasses. So far, the reaction has been incredibly positive, partly due to the fact that Snap has been underpromising the delivery of AR smartglasses for several years, making it seem like they were far off in the future for the company. Therefore, the device’s sudden debut felt more like a gift rather than an aspirational reach. • Don’t Miss: Snap Spectacles Finally Evolve into Full AR Smartglasses with Standalone Immersive Superpowers But now that the device is out in… more

The big day for Snap that resulted in the debut of brand new augmented reality Spectacles smartglasses is turning into a big week. On Friday, just as the company was still basking in the generally positive reception to its latest version of Spectacles, news dropped that Snap has acquired wave guide maker WaveOptics. • Don’t Miss: Snap Spectacles Finally Evolve into Full AR Smartglasses with Standalone Immersive Superpowers The deal not only gives Snap a huge leg up on its competition in terms of producing AR smartglasses in the future, but it also signals in no uncertain terms just how… more

The biggest win in the race for consumer augmented reality smartglasses to date belongs not to Apple, Facebook, or Google, but Snapchat’s parent company, Snap. In an Apple-style “one more thing” moment during the Snap Partner Summit keynote on Thursday, CEO Evan Spiegel revealed the next generation of Spectacles, which have finally evolved into standalone smartglasses capable of displaying AR content. • Don’t Miss: Next Snap Spectacles Expected to Include AR Displays, Report Says With dual waveguide displays, two RGB cameras, four microphones, and two stereo speakers, the smartglasses weigh… more

The surging activity in augmented reality in both the business and consumer sectors is being matched with a wealth of updates and partnerships from Snap Inc. On Thursday, during the company’s Snap Partner Summit 2021, a wide range of tie-ups and new features were unveiled, with some of the biggest brands on the planet joining the AR fray. • Don’t Miss: Samsung Just Gave Us the First Snapchat AR Smartphone, Sort Of Perhaps the most notable partnership is Snap’s new effort with the Lego company. Although Lego is known for allowing kids of all ages to use plastic building blocks to create art, toys, and even robots, now Lego fans will be able to build Lego constructs together, remotely, via a new feature from Lens Studio called Connected Lens. The new feature is available immediately via Snapchat. Snapchat’s Connected Lens feature Moving forward, the idea of two users collaborating on an AR model remotely via something as widely accessible as Snapchat is groundbreaking. Currently, a…more

Throughout Thursday’s virtual Snap Partner Summit, Snapchat’s parent company made a profound statement: If you use Snapchat, you’re a creator. Of Snapchat’s more than 500 million creators (aka daily active users), about 40% interact with AR daily to capture content. Don’t Miss: How to Use Your Favorite Snapchat AR Lenses on Zoom, Skype, Meet & Other Video Conferencing AppsConsidering AR’s appeal in Snapchat, it’s no surprise that Snap used the event to introduce a veritable plethora of new AR capabilities, headlined by the latest version from its Lens Studio platform for creating AR experiences. Snap Lens Studio 4.0 adds new AR capabilities in 3D Body Mesh and Cloth Simulation. The former improves upon the full-body tracking introduced in Lens Studio 3.4 with volumetric tracking, making AR effects look more realistic, and support for tracking multiple persons within the camera view. The latter enables creators to imitate the physics and look of textiles so that virtual effects can…more

For most mainstream users, LiDAR sensors for precision depth sensing remain the exclusive domain of Apple iPhones and iPads, but Google is helping Android device makers close the depth gap on the software side via its ARCore toolkit. After introducing new AR features for Search and Maps and previewing the mind-blowing Project Starline 3D video conferencing concept during its I/O keynote presentation on Tuesday, Google unceremoniously announced ARCore 1.24, which brings two new AR capabilities, Raw Depth API and Recording and Playback API, with the former enabling more realistic AR experiences… more

Snapchat’s first foray into augmented reality started with the selfie camera and face-tracking technology, with the app’s AR capabilities expanding from there. More recently, Snapchat creators have gained full-body tracking via Lens Studio, which begat virtual costumes such as Iron Man and Darth Vader. Snapchat’s AR superstar dancing hot dog has even joined the full-body costume party. Don’t Miss: Let Your Cat or Dog Join in Your AR Antics with These Pet-Friendly LensesSince then, several developers have come up with some more imaginative uses for full-body tracking. We’ve uncovered three Lenses that are perfect for adding some spice to your social media shared dance routines, if that’s your thing, along with a neat sci-fi-style experience and a fitness challenge. Let’s try them out… Catch Disco FeverIs disco dead? I don’t know, these things are cyclical. Don’t forget swing music had that brief revival in the ’90s. You could get ahead of the curve with the Star Burst, which follows…more