Augmented Reality is evolving rapidly and it is only a matter of time before it becomes mainstream. Among the smartphone and smart handheld device manufacturers, Apple has been the biggest endorser of this technology. This is quite evident from how it has been trying to introduce AR to its devices and working hard for it to have a more agreeable future. AR has been around for a while but it never seemed to have stepped out of the teething phase. However, with iOS 11 ARKit recently presented to the world by Apple, it seems that it won’t be long before larva metamorphosizes into an adult.
Well, that’s about the future. The present too has some AR gifts ready to be unpacked. Apple’s iOS 11 ARKit brings some fun, exciting and even useful Augmented Reality apps to us. Whether you consider yourself an early adopter of technology or are just an enthusiast, here is the list of top 10 ARKit apps you can try. I am confident you will love these best ARKit apps for iPhone. Take a look!
1.Sky Guide AR
Stargazing is the favorite past time of many; Sky Guide AR takes the sky experience to a whole new level. Star locating apps have been a part of the iOS inventory for many years. But, nothing compares to the thrill this AR Kit is capable of providing. The sky apps before would have you point the camera to the sky and tell you the location of a start or constellation using GPS. Sky Guide AR goes a notch further. It overlays the sky with meaningful information when you point the camera to it.
All you need to make sure is that the sky is in clear line of sight and there are no obstructions. The overlays are in the form of the star you are pointing towards appearing more pronounced or a more discernible illustration of the constellation. What’s surprising is that it works during the daytime too. However, it is definitely more fun at night. And, Sky Guide AR works even if there is no internet connection, GPS or cellular service. This app is available for $3.
2.Housecraft
Thinking about buying a new piece of furniture but cannot envisage how it will really look in your living space? Thanks to Housecraft AR app, it is now easy to visualize how an item will actually appear at a particular spot in your house. This could be extremely convenient. You don’t really have to haul in the furniture all the way to your house only to realize it’s a misfit.
Housecraft is different from IKEA Place, which we will talk about next. It is not a shopping platform. The app is free and does not lead you to any ‘buying’ link. It has a pretty impressive collection of furniture items that look almost natural. The downside is if you are looking for more than just fun and really wish to buy something, you will have to look up for it on any other platform, such as IKEA. This is truly one of the best ARKit apps for iPhone.
3.IKEA Place
IKEA, the Netherlands based company is one of the biggest suppliers of the furniture items. This company has operations all over the world. One of the biggest challenges with buying furniture items is that you cannot really tell how it will look in the space unless you have literally placed it there. This is where the company’s AR app for iOS comes into the picture. Just like HouseCraft, this app lets you virtually place any item from their inventory inside a space. This gives you a fair idea as to how the furniture item will appear when it is physically placed on the same spot.
IKEA’s AR app only has the products the company sells in your region. That’s why buying the item becomes easier. Once you have made the choice, you will get the link for online purchase and the item will be delivered to your doorstep.
4.Domino World AR Game
Domino show fascinates many of us. But, most people have only seen it on TV or perhaps in YouTube videos. When you topple the first tile it topples the one next to it and the tiles just keep toppling the subsequent tiles until the last one has fallen. Putting the domino tile one after the other and making a near endless trail of it takes a lot of time and patience.
Thanks to Domino World AR you can put up a domino show anywhere without having to place the tiles physically. Using this app is very simple. All you have to do is point the phone camera at a plain surface and hold down the start button. Now move your phone to create the long trails of domino tiles. You can buy this game for $1.99.
Domino World AR on the App Store
5.AR MeasureKit
AR MeasureKit is an incredible augmented reality app that lets you measure the size and dimension of the objects in the real world. This app maximizes the potential of ARKit technology and provides accurate measurements of the objects. Now you no longer need to pull out and drag the tape measure to find how tall high is the roof or how wide is your bed. AR MeasureKit offers a wide range of measuring tools including the ruler, marker pin, trajectory and more. It can even measure the height of a person.
The tool may not yet be ready to be used by the engineers but I am confident it will evolve and replace the physical measuring methods in the years to come. The app is free to install and use as long as you just want to use the ruler. In case you want to unpack all the measuring tools you can buy the app for $2.99. In my opinion, this is totally one the best ARKit apps for iPhone that’s worth your money.
AR MeasureKit on the App Store
6.Hair Color
If you wish to get your hair colored, you will want to make sure you do it right. If not, you will end up with awkward looking hair for a while. Even when you get it sampled by the hair stylist, the results may look vastly different. Luckily, we have the Hair Colour AR app that tells you how exactly a particular hair color will go with your face and overall personality. This app works only on iOS 11 and makes use of the ARKit platform provided by Apple. You can try several hair colors in almost no time. What’s more incredible is that the app works in the real time. So, even if you are moving your hair it will continue to work. The app is free but there are some in-app purchases.
7.Edmumnds
Whether you are planning to buy a new or used car, Edmunds is the place where you would like to land at least once before you make the decision. This web portal offers you the reviews and prices of all types of cars. You can even buy new or pre-owned cars here. Edmunds is known for offering value to its customers and readers and now it takes things a notch up with the AR app. With the help of this app, you can now determine how a car you are planning to buy will look in your garage or even driveway. You can also determine whether the car will fit in the parking space or your garage. This app is completely free to use. There are no in-app purchases as well.
8.Giphy World
In last few years, the animated GIF images have become extremely popular. You see them everywhere; on Facebook, Twitter, and even in your WhatsApp messages. If you love GIFs, Giphy World will be a great deal of fun for you. This app puts the GIF images all around you in the physical world using the AR functionality of iOS. There is a huge library of GIFs this app pulls the images from and lets you place them anywhere you want. Whether it’s your living space, park, cafeteria, or your backyard, you can have GIFs raining everywhere.
This app lets you create a collage of GIF animations around you. That’s because once you place the GIF in a spot it doesn’t move even when you move your phone around. Giphy World is free.
GIPHY World: AR GIFs+Stickers on the App Store
9.Porsche AR
Love a Porsche? Well, who doesn’t. Porsche is one of the most popular German line of cars and other automobiles. If you would like to have a near to real-life experience of Porsche without having to buy it, try the Porsche AR app. This app will virtually place the Porsche car of your choice anywhere in the real world. You can choose any car you like from their collection. But that’s not it! You can also try a car in different colors, interior set up and wheel designs. You can check how the customized car will look in your garage, parking space, driveway or just about anywhere where a car can fit. What’s even more amazing is that you can sit behind the wheels and test drive the car. Yes! All of it using the AR app.
Porsche AR – Imagine on the App Store
10.World Brush
Artists paint the nature and the world; on the canvass of course. But, with World Brush augmented reality app you can paint the world in real-time. You can paint or repaint anything you want. Whether it’s a building, a car, walkway, roads, or trees, you can recolor them with your brush. The app also lets you save the painting for others to see. But, for the others to be able to see your painting, they should be in exactly the same spot where you painted and must also have the World Brush app. The users can even like or dislike your painting. And, if you don’t want others to see your painting, you can mark it as private. World Brush is free with in-app purchases.
