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Apple Buys Danish Augmented Reality Firm

Posted on October 10, 2018 by admin Posted in Business, Software, User Interface Leave a comment

What is is: Apple recently acquired a Danish augmented reality firm called Spektral.

It’s no secret that Apple is moving ahead with augmented reality as the next big feature of mobile and wearable computers. The initial use for augmented reality will bur in mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, but the long-term use for augment4ed reality will lie un wearable computers such as smart glasses.

To bolster their technology in augmented reality, Apple recently acquired aDanish company called Spektral. This company was working on technology that relied on machine learning and computer vision technology, handling object separation for video running at 60 frames per second.

Basically, it appears that the technology can block out unwanted areas and replace it with a green screen effect, replacing a background with a different background.

For example, you could point your camera at a person and remove the background to make it look like they’re standing in front of an ancient jungle filled with living dinosaurs. Spektral touted their technology as enabling mixed reality.

How green screen effects will be used will appear in the future, but for now, it’s obvious that Apple is pushing its resources into augmented reality for more than just the iPhone and iPad. Expect smart glasses in a few years that will eventually surpass mobile devices in the same way that mobile devices have largely supplemented desktop/laptop PCs.

Augmented reality and mobile computing (along with wearable computing) is the future, and Apple’s acquisition of Spektral simply confirms this.

Colleges Uses Wearables for ID

Posted on October 2, 2018 by admin Posted in Hardware Leave a comment

What it is: Several US universities are using Apple Wallet for student IDs.

In the old days, people used metal keys and photo ID cards to access certain buildings on a campus such as a dormitory. Now several universities in America are experimenting with using Apple Wallet instead.

Rather than force students to carry around an ID card, students can now use Apple Wallet in an iPhone or Apple Watch. Then they can simply scan their device to unlock doors in their dormitory.

Apple Wallet provides a safer, more secure way to verify that only students can access their dormitory. Unlike keys and ID cards that can be lost, stolen, or forged, t’s far more difficult to spoof Apple Wallet. This provides additional security and convenience for students.

Duke University, the University of Alabama and the University of Oklahoma are using Apple Wallet and more schools will likely follow. Of course, the big question is if schools require Apple Wallet, what will they do for students who don’t own any Apple products at all?

Most likely they can use Android instead, but in any event, this proves that wearable computers and smartphones are the hot new computing market while traditional desktops and laptops are not.

If you want to know where the future is going, it’s mobile today and wearables tomorrow. then again at the speed at which things change, wearable computers are already here and growing in use and popularity.

The Future is Wearable Computers

Posted on September 26, 2018 by admin Posted in Hardware, User Interface Leave a comment

What it is: At Apple’s latest event, the Apple Watch stole the show from the latest iPhone.

At one time, everyone used a PC to do everything from finding driving directions to chatting in real time with instant messaging apps like ICQ and AOL Instant Messenger. Then the world shifted to mobile computing with smartphones and tablets. Now many people rely solely on their smartphone to do many tasks, meaning they don’t need a PC as often or even at all.

The shift to mobile computing helped kill the growth of the PC market. Now the next big shift is moving from mobile computing to wearable computers. At Apple’s recent event, the Apple Watch proved far more interesting than the latest iPhone. Each iPhone offers more improvements but the Apple Watch is where all the major advances are occurring.

The Apple Watch is evolving into a real-time health monitor but also with optional cell phone calling. Now you can make and receive calls directly from your Apple Watch. Since the Apple Watch is with you at all times, there’s far less chance of misplacing your device to make and receive calls.

For elderly people, the Apple Watch adds a crucial feature that detects falls. If you fall and don’t get up, the Apple Watch will automatically call for help. The main difference between the iPhone and the Apple Watch is that the Apple Watch is with you all the time. That’s the crucial difference between mobile computers and PCs. You can’t take a PC with you all the time but you can take a smartphone with you.

Likewise, you can’t always guarantee you’ll have your smartphones with you at all times but you can guarantee you’ll have an Apple Watch with you at all times just as long as you remember to strap it on in the first place.

The smartphone replaced the PC because it let you take a computer wherever you happen to be. The wearable computer will replace smartphones because it not only goes wherever you go, but it’s harder to misplace or lose. The Apple Watch is the future of Apple and computing in general.

One huge problem with smartphones is that they keep getting bigger, yet an Apple Watch is far simpler to carry. Eventually, expect people to rely on the Apple Watch to make and receive phone calls, and then rely on an iPhone or iPad to do anything else such as watching videos or browsing the Internet.

The Apple Watch and wearable computers is the future of computing.

To read about the latest features of the Apple Watch compared to past versions, click here.

Museums: The Next Frontier for Augmented Reality

Posted on September 21, 2018 by admin Posted in Business, Education, Hardware, Software, User Interface Leave a comment

What it is: Museums are increasingly turning to augmented reality to improve their exhibits.

Museums typically consist of exhibits and a few placards with a handful of detail describing what you might be looking at. That’s been the museum experience for decades but now augmented reality is starting to change that.

To remain relevant and keep today’s crowd weaned on computers entertained, more museums are turning to augmented reality to make their exhibits come alive. The Smithsonian lends visitors a HoloLens headset sot hey can walk through a space shuttle with a virtual guide. Of course, handing out virtual reality headsets is time-consuming and expensive, so the next leap will come when museums start offering augmented reality experiences for people to use on their own mobile devices such as an iPhone or iPad.

Not only will this save museums the expense of buying an doling out equipment that will inevitably break, but it will also give users the chance to use their own devices to view augmented reality exhibits. Eventually, augmented reality will appear in smart glasses too, but until then, it’s far cheaper and easier to use existing devices that visitors likely already have rather than require them to borrow a virtual headset like the HoloLens.

Augmented reality is the future of museum exhibits because this allows museums to tailor the information to each visitor. For example, instead of reading placards in English, visitors could use augmented reality to view exhibit information in any language they wish such as Japanese, Arabic, or Spanish. There isn’t enough physical space for museums to display information in multiple languages, but augmented reality makes this easy to do to accommodate almost anyone.

Museums also spend money with TV screens and videos. Augmented reality lets museums skip all that and display videos straight on the user’s mobile device. This cuts costs while increasing versatility.

Augmented reality is going to change the world and it starts one niche at a time. While businesses might be slow to find uses for augmented reality, museums are finding its advantages. Today you’ll likely find augmented reality in a museum. Tomorrow, it will be in your everyday world such as shopping malls and restaurants. Watch for how augmented reality is used in museums because this will show the world how it can be used for businesses as well.

To learn more about the use of augmented reality in museums, click here.

Lower Life Insurance Premiums with the Apple Watch

Posted on September 20, 2018 by admin Posted in Business, Hardware, Medical Leave a comment

What it is: John Hancock is offering lower life insurance premiums for people who use a wearable computer to track their health.

Insurance companies are in the business of making money and to do that, they need more people to pay in than they pay out. To avoid paying out claims in life insurance, John Hancock is turning to an “interactive life insurance” policy. That means if people exercise and track their health using a wearable computer like an Apple Watch, their life insurance premiums will be lower.

The goal is to keep people healthy as long as possible so John Hancock won’t have to pay out life insurance benefits. Yet that shows how the Apple Watch and other wearable computers are proving valuable as real-time health monitors. To encourage people to use a wearable computer, John Hancock offers it as at a discount. The company’s goal is purely monetary, but the benefits means Apple Watch and other wearable computer users can stay healthy and enjoy life longer as a result.

For anyone still confused about the purpose of the Apple Watch, think real-time health monitoring. If you’re concerned about staying healthy and alive, then you need an Apple Watch. For those critics who don’t care about staying healthy or alive, feel free to ignore the benefits of wearable computers and take yourself out of the gene pool prematurely.

The wearable computer market is the next hot market after the mobile market of smartphones and tablets. At Apple’s last event on September 12, the company introduced new iPhones but the Apple Watch stole the show. Eventually, more wearable computers such as smart glasses will steal the show too, and the iPhone will just become another commodity like the Macintosh.

The future shifted from traditional PCs to mobile computing, then to wearable computers. The Apple Watch is just the start of wearable computing with smart glasses promising to become the next big product. Hopefully if you use the Apple Watch, you can improve your chances of being alive long enough to see and use Apple’s next wearable computer in the next few years.

The Future of Driving

Posted on September 19, 2018 by admin Posted in Business, Hardware Leave a comment

What it is: Electric cars are growing in numbers, which means traditional gas stations will soon become obsolete.

Gas stations exist to help motorists refuse. You need a separate area for gas pumps because you need a large storage tank to hold all the gasoline. Then gas stations essentially became places to sell food, drink, and automotive services based on the need for space to hold a gasoline storage tank.

Electric cars threaten all that. Gas stations may offer electric charging stations like gas pumps, but any other place can do that as well such as malls, coffeehouses, restaurants, and movie theaters. Unlike gas stations that need space for a large storage tank, electric charging stations don’t need anything more than a physical line to conduct electricity. That means electric charging stations can be put anywhere, not just in isolated areas like gas stations.

That means as more people embrace electric vehicles, gas stations are obsolete. Instead of stopping to get gas at a gas station, electric car owners will be able to stop practically anywhere they like to get an electric recharge. Currently, people go to gas stations and shop for snacks from a limited selection at a high price. Tomorrow, electric car owners will be able to go to their favorite supermarket or shopping mall and choose from a much larger selection of options at more reasonable prices.

The simple idea of electric cars will have a ripple effect on the rest of the car industry. Look for electric car charging stations to keep appearing in popular locations like shopping malls. Instead of looking for a convenient place to stop and get gas, electric car owners will first think about what type of food or entertainment they want, and then they’ll go to that location, skipping the traditional corner gas station altogether.

Electric cars are coming with stronger batteries, faster recharging, and lower prices. Whether they’re self-driving or not is irrelevant, and whether their entertainment system inside is CarPlay or something else. As electric cars gain in popularity, gas stations will sink in relevance. If you currently own a gas station, now is the time to sell before it’s too late.