Snap is making a huge step forward in the world of augmented reality by adding its popular shopping features directly to its standalone AR glasses, Spectacles. This change means that AR experiences will no longer be limited to the phone screen; instead, they will be more immersive and hands-free.
This opens up a new world for both brands and consumers, where digital try-ons and product visualization are not just features of an app but a natural part of how you see and interact with the world.
New Snap Tools enable immersive commerce
The new Snap OS powers the latest generation of Spectacles, which is more than just hardware. This new operating system is designed for natural interaction, so users can use their voice and hand gestures to move around menus and experiences.
With a latency of only 13 milliseconds, the Snap Spatial Engine lets digital lenses be placed in a user’s environment in a way that looks and feels real. This is the most important technology that makes it seem real and believable to see a virtual piece of furniture in your room or try on digital sunglasses.
This progress is based on Snap’s long history of success with AR shopping. The platform was already a big player in virtual commerce before this hardware leap.
Since January of last year, over 250 million Snapchat users have utilized AR shopping lenses more than 5 billion times. This indicates that the platform is a wonderful place to explore products interactively.
Brands have already seen wonderful results. Studies indicate that using AR can help people make more confident choices, which can lead to conversion rates going up by up to 94% and product returns going down by 25%.
Snap made user-friendly creation tools so that businesses of all sizes could use these experiences. Brands can use the Lens Web Builder to make branded AR try-on experiences without knowing how to code.
Furthermore, new technologies like AR image processing make it possible for businesses to turn their current 2D product photos into AR-ready assets, which makes the production process much easier.
Snap’s Camera Kit lets brands add the same AR try-on technology directly to their apps and websites for a more seamless experience. This lets customers see products without ever leaving the brand’s digital store.
Here are some examples of how brands are already using Snap’s AR shopping technology to great effect:
You can now shop without using your hands
The addition of these powerful shopping lenses to Spectacles starts a new chapter. Developers are already making shared experiences for the platform. For example, ILM Immersive is making immersive adventures that let users connect with the Star Wars galaxy, and the LEGO Group is making interactive games.
This change from a personal phone screen to a shared, wearable display changes the way people interact with each other while shopping in AR. Now, friends and family can enjoy and make decisions about the experience together in the same room.
Snap is helping to make this future happen by giving developers the hardware and tools they need to make the next generation of AR experiences through its Spectacles Developer Program.
Snap is not only predicting the future of shopping; it is also building it, one pair of glasses at a time, with cutting-edge hardware, easy-to-use software, and a proven AR commerce ecosystem.
