Snap has now added many new features to its AR Spectacles just six months after the launch of its fifth-generation developer-focused glasses. The features available include support for GPS, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and compass direction sensors, which allow developers to create location-aware Lenses. This kind of an update has the potential to enable features to make such things as AR walking guides and guiding tools accessible to users based on geo-location-based data to increase interactions.
A standout among these emerging capabilities is NavigatAR, a Lens developed by Utopia Labs. It uses Snap Map Tiles to guide users with glowing arrows, facilitating movement from location to location. Another is Path Pioneer, providing building blocks for designing custom routes for indoor and outdoor AR walking routes to enhance physical exercise.
In addition to location features, Snap also launched an AR keyboard so that typing in the world of Spectacles is possible directly. The keyboard has full and numeric keyboards to facilitate easy typing. Improvements in targeting intent to reduce false positives during typing are included in the update.
Hand-tracking functionality has also been further developed, including phone hold detection and grab gesture recognition. These are intended to improve the user experience and provide developers with additional features that they can use to create interesting Lenses.
The Spectacles platform also features leaderboards, which enable developers to incorporate competitive aspects into their Lenses. This will give users friendly competition and a new way of interacting with AR experiences.
Snap is also inviting engagement from the community through the “Spectacles Community Challenges,” a monthly competition that will award the best developers $20,000. This will encourage innovation and creativity in the developer community for Spectacles.
Furthermore, Snap has introduced a discount for educators and students, reducing the monthly subscription fee by 50%. This move indicates Snap’s long-term goal of making AR experiences more accessible to a broader audience, positioning itself competitively against other tech giants like Apple, Google, and Meta.
Other fun Lenses include Peridot Beyond, where one can now play with and engage with their virtual pets as well as friends’ pets within the same session, and Doggo Quest, an app that gamifies walking the dog by recognizing pets and overlaying visual effects on top. The Basketball Trainer Lens introduces a holographic AR coach and shooting drills that automatically track scores using SnapML.
Generally, these announcements highlight Snap’s emphasis on driving the advancement of AR technology and creating a healthy developer community around its Spectacles platform.
