AR vs VR: Which One Emerging Technology to Choose in 2020?

Who hasn’t heard about AR/VR technology? 

The technologies are making an unpredictable difference in the business world, and not just in the gaming and entertainment sector in the form of Pokemon Go or Dinotrek. The two are extending the world beyond the physical dimensions and so, the range of opportunities possible in the business world.

This has not solely made everyone interested in distinguishing between AR and VR, but also pondering upon which one leads the show. A clarification of which you will get by the time you reach at the end of this article.

To begin with, let’s check upon the benefits of the two technologies individually first.

Advantages of Augmented Reality in businesses

When looking into the Augmented reality benefits for businesses, the technology is revamping the industries in different ways. For example:

1. Healthcare – Thanks to AR, it has become even easier for patients and healthcare professionals to diagnose even the minor symptoms and enjoy/deliver a better health service. It has also turned out to be an effective way to perform critical surgeries while accessing sensitive information about the patients in real-time.

2. Education – The technology enables educators to introduce different augmented elements into the teaching and learning environment to engage students effectively. Also, it is making it possible for them to understand the concepts beyond what’s written in the textbooks. 

3. Manufacturing and Supply chain – AR is enhancing the manufacturing and supply chain sector by adding different digital elements to the buildings that direct workers about the way to take to find/place any material or product.

4. Real Estate – The AR technology is easing the process of buying, leasing, and selling of property by showcasing a 3D model rather than describing the same via text.

With this attended, let’s look at what Virtual reality offers to businesses worldwide.

Benefits of Virtual Reality in businesses

1. Retail – VR is enabling shoppers to try all the latest apparels and accessories in 3D environments and this way, relish the fortune of in-store shopping while sitting on their favorite couches at home.

2. Marketing – The technology lets companies to promote their products and services in a highly competitive and engaging manner; resulting in better outcomes.

3. Healthcare – By taking advantage of virtual environments, medical students and healthcare professionals can study concepts and practice them in a highly effective manner. Something resulting in better results at the end.

4. Legal – Just like that in the case of healthcare, the virtual reality technology is also transforming law and practice industry by providing the practitioners with a real-like environment where they can prepare for the next hearing and everything that results in deriving better results.

Now as we have uncovered what the two technologies bring on the table for business people, let’s focus on the technology trends to see which one will rule the world.

AR/VR trends to watch out this year

1. Wider range of AR avatars

While AR avatars are already getting a huge momentum in the market, they are going to be more popular in the coming years. More fictional characters will come in the limelight to appeal to the target audience and influence them. They will be introduced to the business processes in numerous ways, such as navigating boards inside and outside of the physical stores, and/or robots promoting the business products/services.

2. Integration of AR in self-driving cars

Secondly, Augmented Reality is also getting popular among autonomous devices. Business people are integrating AR into self-driving cars to redefine the way users move and travel across the city. Especially in the form of voice assistants and in-car AR options.

3. Emergence of WebAR

Earlier, it was required to download and install a mobile application to enjoy AR experiences.

But now, in 2020, the webAR has come into existence, which made it possible for users to get familiar with and harness the potential of AR on web browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. This is further helping with lowering the barriers and extending the facilities.

4. Remote assistance via VR

VR technology is also going to be one of the top trends for the year 2020.

The technology will let technicians to see everything at the site in real-time, assess the media files and comments, and share the right advice even when working at some other site or are stuck in traffic far away from the location.

5. Application of Virtual Reality in the education sphere

While technology is already revolutionizing in the education industry, it is anticipated to make the difference in the future too. 

The technology will encourage distance learning this year. In other words, it will introduce the concept of VR classrooms where students from different parts of the world can join and reap the benefits of learning virtually.

6. Advent of XR in healthcare domain

Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR) are coming together as Extended Reality (XR) to transform the healthcare industry. XR is empowering medical practitioners to swipe between the three technologies to induce higher efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity within the same application

7. Rise of VR-powered advertisements

Lastly, the use of Virtual reality (VR) in the advertising industry is also one of the top trends to consider this year. 

The technology is expected to aid companies in creating environments like that of Star Wars and presenting their content, or better say delivering the message, in newer and far more engaging content forms. And this way, capturing the attention of a wider local/global audience and gain higher ROI.

As you might have noted from above, both Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are reshaping the world in far better ways than ever before. They are, in fact, collaborating together to come up as core pillars of Mixed Reality (MR) and Extended Reality (XR). This clearly implies that when looking into who is the winner among AR and VR technologies, the answer is both. It depends entirely on your business needs which one is apt.