Virtual Reality (VR) is a fictional world that one is immersed in. There is no impression of the real world, and if you look through VR head gear, it feels as if you’re in a totally different world, kind of like an out-of-body experience.
Augmented Reality (AR) is the addition of digital information in the form of tags, labels, pop ups, etc. in your vision. You still see the real world around you, but with extra stuff, like this.
Pretty cool, huh?
The appeal of VR is the idea that one can be free from the clutches of reality, forget one’s troubles and let go of worldly connections. While VR can be used for stuff like military training purposes (boring!), the people at Oculus are thinking more along the lines of gaming (yay!).
The Oculus Rift headset is the cutting edge of virtual reality for video games. It was featured on Kickstarter, a funding platform for creative projects, where it raised $2,437,429. That’s a lot more than its goal of $250,000! You can order the developer kit from there.
AR, on the other hand, is not about escaping to another world, but about being more connected and efficient in the real one. It’s kind of like having a smartphone display on your eyes. In one corner, you can see the time. In another, the temperature. You can also communicate with friends on the go. And when you look at a building, a short list of information appears next to it. All this and more, as you walk down the street to grab a cup of coffee.
Codswallop? Not at all. Introducing Google Glasses.
Next thing we know, there’ll be Google Lenses, where the displays will be put into contact lenses. Sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie, doesn't it? Behold the future of Entertainment and Multimedia on the Internet.
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