3 Reasons Why the Time is Right for AR

Augmented reality (AR) has had its fair share of spotlight moments: from the explosion of Pokémon Go, to wearables from Google and Snap, to social media filters that add glitter to dog ears to our environment. However, despite these high-profile use cases, AR has struggled to take hold on a larger scale.

There are several reasons behind AR’s lack of staying power in the market, including the technology’s early visual quality and a lack of affordable entry points (Google Glass retailed at $1,500 back in 2014). However, perhaps the largest inhibitor was a classic marketing issue; it didn’t solve a consumer need.

While applications such as Pokémon Go and an endless supply of social media face filters are great for entertainment, AR has typically lacked an application that solves a pain point that consumers encounter regularly. However, as technology has improved and consumer buying habits have shifted, particularly over the last year, the doors have opened for AR to become a regular and valued tool among consumers.

Previous predictions of an AR boom have fallen short, but with the evolving state of the market and demands for better experiences, we see three key arguments for why AR will finally have staying power.

1. The Technology Is Better

If you were to ask a marketer with 20 years of experience what their first reaction to 3D is, you might get a cringe. The visual fidelity of 3D and augmented reality has come a long way in…