The past few weeks has all been about concepts – clients seeing the potential of using Layar for their business, and wanting it to do so much more!
This isn’t a bad thing, as all technology needs to be pushed to make it better, as long as the results don’t stray too far from its intended use. It’s very much like someone inventing a screwdriver with a hammer attachment – maybe it was a good idea at the time, but does everyone who uses a screwdriver, need a hammer? Certainly not, which is why we have two separate tools for two different users.
The same goes for Layar. It’s a browser of sorts, only the content it serves is location based and the view port is an augmented reality one. Should it be made to do ‘other things’ that it wasn’t intended for?
Since it’s release just over a year ago, it has gone through three major revisions with another one due anytime soon. The revisions have seen the introduction of 3D, the Layar Stream which shows you the most relevant information without having to do a search and Floaticons to allow users to engage socially through Layar.
The key point here, has Layar become anything other than what is was intended to be – that is, a reality browser for location based points of interest?
I would say not. In fact it has grown into its market quite nicely and has been adapted to fit new opportunities where there are clear benefits.
The concepts we’ve been working on push the limits of what Layar is capable of, at least in its current state.
Indoor use hasn’t been possible yet due to poor positioning from blocked GPS/cell-towers, but this should all change when the image recognition software (if we can achieve a users location) and Skyhook Wireless WiFi positioning are added.
Huge data grids have also proved to be a problem as Layar can only show a maximum of 90 POIs at a time. Not bad considering the screen size, but when we want to display over 300 POIs, it kind of puts a spanner in the works and makes you think very differently about how and what Layar can be made to do.
We have found a solution for this but we also thought, maybe we should just create an app that does what we want. The downside is clearly the costs involved.
To create a location aware, augmented reality app for multiple platforms, and to provide ongoing support and updates as needs change would require a full-time team working on a solution for the best part of a year.
In comparison, developing a ‘layer’ for an existing platform takes anything from a week to a few months. The device fragmentation and updates are all taken care of and you save money, lots of money.
The concepts have proved one thing, that there are many unusual, never-done-before applications for the Layar browser and we haven’t even scratched the surface yet.
To sum up, Layar is what it is, an augmented reality browser. It will surely grow into something we can’t possibly imagine over the next 12 months, and a lot of the changes will be driven by clients pushing us to try new concepts. Keep those concepts coming in; you’re the ones who will define the future of Layar.
