Can Apple make the future Augmented…
Is augmented reality going big with the help of Apple?
You’ve probably heard of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) and even used them in some capacity. AR though is going to become big, possibly even bigger than smartphones in the future.
Overlay the world
Augmented reality has always shown promise to change our lives but has never really delivered on that promise or been available in any meaningful mainstream way that has allowed its adoption to take off. Think back to the days of the Google Glass, it looked revolutionary but was flawed as well as being before its time.
AR today though has been focused more on industrial and business uses rather than targeted towards mass consumption in society. It has allowed companies to provide richer experiences and interactions which in turn have led to greater engagement with products.
The benefits in industries as well are pronounced. Take the Hololens from Microsoft.
This is where Microsoft has a distinct advantage over other providers. As one of the forerunners of XR technology, they have massive amounts of experience with high-level enterprises such as:
Nasa: Microsoft has been supplying Nasa with VR hardware to help assemble the crew capsule Orion in record times.
Phillips Azurion: Using the HoloLens, Phillips Azurion is able to conduct minimally invasive procedures that combine 2D and 3D imaging to allow physicians to increase their focus and performance.
Bentley Synchro: By combining their 4D digital construction platform with the HoloLens, Bentley Synchro allows users to view complex construction projects in a mixed reality environment.
US Military: The US Army has just realized their first version of a custom HoloLens 2 for soldiers. Created for on and off the battlefield, the headset features live 3D maps, thermal imaging, and data analysis of the wearer’s vitals.
German company ThyssenKrupp uses Hololens for engineering and maintenance purposes allowing for greater response times as well being able to have essentially a virtual guide when needed.
Moving forward AR continues to provide practical application in many more industries from automotive, creative industries, education, and tourism. In fact, AR engagement is up over 20% since the start of 2020 with a conversion rate for consumers who engage with AR up over 90%, Source: Retail Customer Experience. If AR continues to grow and its uptake continues to provide experiences that draw people in it has the potential for exponential growth.
What we know so far about the Apple Glass
There are not many official details of the device or any official images just concepts floating around the internet. Patents appeared as far back as 2015 but it hasn’t been until more recent times that the rumor mill got into full flow.
Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously spoken about production happening in 2022 with others even going as far as suggesting that Apple disbanded its AR team and they weren’t going to be happening. However, with AR on the iPhones and AR also making an appearance in the Xcode software I think we can say that Apple definitely has an eye on AR and VR.
According to a report from Bloomberg in 2019:
The Apple AR Glasses will bring information from your phone to your face. Specifically, the eyewear “are expected to synchronize with a wearer’s iPhone to display things such as texts, emails, maps, and games over the user’s field of vision.”
I think it is likely then that we see something that utilizes the power of the iPhone to help bring features to the AR device.
Some other rumors hint at a dedicated app store for third-party applications as well as small 8k micro OLED screens not much bigger than an inch which can be put onto chip wafers to create those small displays that are perfect for AR devices.
Beyond this, it's difficult to pin down anything that could be a certainty with so little information in existence. If you really want to see what you can find out you can always have a search yourself and see what you can find in the rumor maze.
The Apple effect could be the key.
My hot take on the uptake of AR lies with none other than Apple. The company that brought us the iPod, that stole the show with the iPhone and helped bring about the mobile technology revolution of the last 15 years could be just the force we need to bring an AR revolution full force into the minds of the mainstream.
Don’t get me wrong though they haven’t started this path in the same way Google, Samsung, and Oculus have in recent years but do they have that pull and hype surrounding them that Apple seems to have had in modern times.
From the days of the iPod to the first iPhone in 2007, the iPad, AirPods most recently people have been drawn to those products not only because they are seen as premium but also because they just work. One of the most difficult things I feel that tech companies have is, making products that people want, but also being able to make them in a way that makes it easy for consumers to use them. Apple has managed to achieve both of things with great success just look at the stats courtesy of Comparecamp
In the first quarter of 2020, Apple shipped out 36.7 million smartphones worldwide.
iPhone revenue for the first fiscal quarter of 2020 amounted to $55.96 billion.
Apple shipped out a total of 215 million units of the iPhone in 2019, for total sales of $229 billion and a revenue of $28.9 billion.
For the first fiscal quarter of 2020, Apple’s Wearables, Home and Accessories division had a revenue of $10 billion.
In 2019, the category had net sales of $24.4 billion and was Apple’s fourth most profitable division.
Apple has shipped a total of 43.4 million units of wearable devices in the fourth quarter of 2019.
The company accounted for a 36.5% market share of worldwide shipments of wearables in the same period.
Apple sold 58.7 million units of AirPods in 2019, generating $6 billion in revenue and a 54.5% market share.
With an expected $15 billion in revenue for 2020, AirPods are projected to become Apple’s third-largest product by 2021.
There’s no denying Apple's huge role and influence in technology across the world, and this is exactly why I believe Apple making their own AR glasses is really going to move the adoption to the next level. Apple typically produces products in such a way that they only really come out with new products and features when they can implement them in such a way as to have the maximum effect or when the market has matured enough that they can comfortably come in with something and know it will sell and perform well.
In those days of the iPod and the original iPhone, it was different, they came in with something that really was different and captivating. Today with stiff competition from so many manufacturers they have taken an approach that leans towards not being the first out of the blocks but the first to really nail down the design and functionality. In fact, they have been so good at how often have we seen other companies copy or make products that are seemingly very similar. It’s happened a lot and this why my take is on Apple coming to the table with an AR device that not only looks the part but works how people want it to work. This is when I feel we will see a big takeoff in AR tech that isn’t aimed at business and industry but is for mass-market consumption.
Keep your eye out. Let's see how it all pans out.
