Augmented Reality iPhone App Helps You Find Your Mummy

@Justinpaulson: That was my point (In my first comment on this thread). The "hell of a lot of data" comment was to Purple Monkey's suggestion that it might have been uploading the video and comparing it to Google street view.

@Justinpaulson: To be honest, if I were at a large festival I'd take my beater phone and call my friends rather than risk a shiny new 3GS!

Also, "Enable AR" was a bad choice of words. I should have said allow augmented reality apps in the app store.

I'd have to say that the usage of this app would be much cooler than just "find your mommy." The headline is a bit misleading.

Imagine you are at a large festival and have lost track of your friends. This app could be used easily to locate your friends and make your way to them.

@craig_16: All you need to "enable AR" is the ability to overlay information on live camera feeds. This is part of the newest SDK.

@rcast1986: are you near a lot of electromagnetic interference? I haven't had many problems with mine, works great!

@craig_16: These apps wouldn't use much more data than similar apps that exist and display information on a map. They would just display the data differently, in front of you as you turned instead of on a map. FOr instance the new mastercard app pulls a lot of information and places it on a map. You could easily use AR to display them right in front of your camera display and pull no additional information from the net.

@ValerioB: I don't have a 3GS so I don't know what you mean.

You can do turn by turn without a compass if thats what you're talking about. "Dumbphones" have been doing it for years.

@ SkiBumCU: Oh I think there are lots of great things they can do with it. Thats why I said I thought it was the main reason for the compass. Other then the "oh thats neat" factor why have one? Its so that you've got another plane that the iPhone can use in physical space. Once I realized that I figured out all kinds of stuff that it could be used for.

@craig_16: your friend is right

ValerioB

@tande04 mile island in the sun: Actually it doesn't recognize the direction you are going. the map/gps/compass are independent. I figured that out while in a cab.

ValerioB

What's next, you need to turn it on to find your wee-wee in the men's room?

Speaking of augmented...perhaps they can substitute a larger wee-wee while they're at it!

Noobs-R-Us

I want to see an augmented reality application based on "They Live." Or better yet, I'd like to see a fanfiction remake of "They Live" using an iPhone instead of the sunglasses. Extra points if RRP makes an appearance in it.

@craig_16: Ummm...kinda. Go to the Apple store and try one for yourself. When I bought my 3GS I realized how lame the compass is, even though it was honestly one of those little features I was most excited for after using a 3G. It's just so...lame. It doesn't work very well, at least not in my experience, and I have to keep doing a figure 8 motion with my phone to configure it or whatever. You have to constantly keep pushing the "find me" button twice to get it working since every time you hit the next step in directions or even move the screen it turns off. Maybe that's something that'll be fixed in the next update but knowing Apple, probably not.

@tande04 mile island in the sun: Lots of developers are pushing AR apps fast so that they can bank on the buzz being generated by the tech. Just wait though, truly useful AR apps are on the way...

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Well, the update still doesn't allow developers to view or manipulate live camera data, so stuff like this still has to use the compass (and as such, is still limited to the 3GS) in conjunction with the accelerometer for direction-figuring-out-ish-ness....

All they've added to the SDK is the ability for developers to "officially" overlay data onto a camera view, like we did with Email 'n Walk.

rootyb

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Just have to get her a twitter account.

"Purple didn't make his bed. Again. Will talk to him at lunch."

Skeetz

@tande04 mile island in the sun: Well, I've personally used it a LOT in Google Maps.

rootyb

@Skeetz: Haha, this app should come with a mood indicator. If she's in a bad mood and likely not to pay for your meal it could notify you to stay away.

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

@craig_16: Huh, I could see where that would be handy.

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: If she's paying I'll go to lunch!

Skeetz

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Yeah, that would use a hell of a lot of data!!

@tande04 mile island in the sun: I have a friend who recently got a 3GS. Apparently the maps do orient themselves depending on which way your facing. I'm picking myself one up in a month or so... no more turning my iPhone round while navigating!

@craig_16: The app stills needs to constantly download information about the world around you. It knows where it is, sure, but it also has to show you info about everything (landmarks et all) and that takes bandwidth because you're constantly moving to get new info to download within range. If you're downloading all the info at once for a city sized area that's still a huge amount of info downloaded (just all at once) although you could do that over wifi if that were the case... but that's still impractical as you would use up too much space on your phone.. better to be live streaming info

Skeetz

@craig_16: Yeah good point. I guess i forgot about the compass piece. I was thinking it was using the GPS to determine your location and the video to determine your orientation which would mean it was actually comparing the video feed to some Google streetview database or something to determine which way you are facing.

In general though, I think augmented reality apps can use a lot of bandwidth depending on how they are used.

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

@Justinpaulson: I didn't know a future API update did allow for augmented reality. I was just pointing out the fact that if it was profitable, then Apple would surely allow it unless there was some other underlying reason they wouldn't want to allow it (i.e. ATT complaining about bandwidth)

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

@tande04 mile island in the sun: For when you are lost in the Alaskan wilderness with only your iPhone and...... well that's all you need since it has a handy dandy compass.

BTW there is no service where you are lost.

That makes 2 good reasons for a compass.

artzm

@Justinpaulson: You don't need a compass for turn by turn. It knows where you're going based on the direction that you're traveling.

I hadn't thought about maps adjusting to orientation. Do they even do that? They don't on the G1. I thought even on the 3GS all it did was show a little cone for the direction that you were facing.

The only reason (or at least the main reason as I understood it) that the G1 had it was for the google maps street view integration.

Let me rephrase it to the only "good" reason I could think of for it was AR. Everything else is just a silly gimmick.

@crumb: Possibly to show Apple how enabling AR in App Store apps would allow them to demonstrate more reasons to buy the 3GS rather than the 3G. Saying it has a compass doesn't sound exciting in the least, but demonstrating how that compass could be used in applications might make people a bit more enthusiastic about the 3GS.

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: Surely an app like the one shown above would pull no more data than a similar app that just shows the locations on a map? I mean, once you have the locations of the people, the app can then do all of the other work with its GPS and compass.

@Purple Monkey Dishwasher: huh? This comment doesn't make a lot of sense. If apple allowed people to use the camera (which they do in future APIs) then the apps in the store WOULD make apple money. Clarify?

Why is the video presented as a commercial for the iPhone rather than a preview of the app they're trying to promote? Puzzling.

@tande04 mile island in the sun: turn by turn directions and maps that adjust to orientation.

@rootyb: I can't think of another reason for the compass but regardless its good to see they opened it up.

@tande04 mile island in the sun: I wonder if they are disallowing it due to pressure from ATT. I can see these augmented reality apps taking up a lot of bandwidth.

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

@royoftroy: I've been seeing so many of these types of posts recently...
"ZOMG! The iPhone //insert tiny issue that will probably be fixed soon//? I'm so glad I have my //insert other brand of smart phone//."
It just reeks of fishing for reasons to justify your purchase over the iPhone.

@tande04 mile island in the sun:

I'm not sure it was the reason for the compass, but the lastest version of the SDK (3.1b2) has "officially" added the ability to do stuff like this, so expect to see lots of them in the future.

rootyb

So why did apple bother with the compass if they're not going to allow developers to use the API (framework, whatever) that would let them make AR apps?

I assumed that was the whole reason for the compass.

Thats not where I put you comment...

Hah, I expected this app to take pictures of things and say "Are you my mother?" and then say yes if it matches a picture of your mother, no if it isn't, and "You are a SNORT" if it's a picture of a backhoe.

Carol Nichols

@royoftroy: As soon as Apple figures out a way to make money off of it, it will be there.

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

I'm guessing this only works if the other person (in this case mommy) also has the iPhone with this app installed in which case you can't quickly run away when your mom is trying to have lunch with you because she also knows where you are.

Purple Monkey Dishwasher

@royoftroy:

Yeah because the app store is so limited as is.

Sarcasm.

Kerr

iPhone API doesn't allow augmented reality? Wow, thank God I have a G1 and don't have to worry about all that craziness...

royoftroy