The Best tools to get you started in Augmented Reality (AR)

Using these tools will help you launch your AR solution a lot faster.

Building AR Solutions especially at the early stages can get pretty tough sometimes, you search ‘how to build an AR App’ online and you see a lot of options and keywords you probably don’t understand.

I know this because I faced the same thing many times before eventually having a full understanding of how best to go about it.

Working on a project is the fastest way to learn and that is why I’ve curated a list of tools and their use-cases to help you start launching experiments and solutions.

Before we get started, this guide assumes you have a basic understanding of AR. If you don’t you can read this thread I wrote about getting started with AR.

In my experience, there is one main question you need to answer that’ll help you pick the right tool to use.

“Where do you want your app deployed” This could be Social, Web, Mobile, or Headsets.

Let’s talking about these in detail. Where you deploy your app matters because different platforms have specific tools that can be used for them. here are some examples

Social AR:

Usually in a form of “filters” or “effects”. These experiences can be deployed from a user account and hosted on a social media platform like Instagram or Snapchat.

It has the lowest barrier to entry and works well for brand engagements because of its easy social media reach.

the tools used here are:

• Spark AR - Instagram and Facebook

• Lens Studio - Snapchat

• Effector - TikTok
  
  

Web AR:

These are usually hosted on a website and are the easiest form to share and interact with. Commonly found in eCommerce websites and AR Campaigns.

some tools used here are:

• Zapworks

• Vectary

• Minsar

• 8th Wall

Mobile AR:

This form of AR requires the user to download an App from their store and is usually a lot more powerful than Web and Social AR experiences.

tools:

• Reality Composer

• Unity Mars

AR Headsets:

This has the most immersive experiences and is seen as the future of AR. Recent examples are the Microsoft Hololens 2, Snap Spectacles. Other tech companies are working to develop theirs.

Best tools:

• Unity

• Unreal

Each of these tools has its pros and cons ranging from pricing to difficulty but I promise if you check them you’ll create amazing experiences.

If you’re new to AR development, I’ll suggest you start in this order: Social, Web, Mobile then HMDs.

Really can’t wait to see what you’ll build!

If you enjoyed this, kindly share comments, and give feedback. In the meantime, you can check out a new project I’m working on called “Voyager”. It’s an Immersive Fashion solution using AR and NFTs. Join the waitlist here: