Aurasma - Augmented Reality With a Purpose - The UpStream

Sometimes at events like ShowStoppers! at E3 2012 you are surprised by what products you find. Now, we all know about Augmented Reality (AR) - Sony even showed off their own implementation in the Wonderbook. So far, however, it has mostly been a toy and not really used for anything productive - until now.

Enter Aurasma. Their goal is to bridge the physical and virtual worlds, all through your phone or tablet. This system allows you to take a physical image and turn it into an interactive element. For example, if you use their free software and aim it at the Mona Lisa, you will be treated to a moving version of the image, talking to you. It is done entirely without ugly QR codes, which have become like modern day modem noise, keeping an advertisement or brochure entirely clean and professional. Companies have already used their product for Despicable Me, soccer teams and even Marvel has recently gotten involved to bring your comic book characters to life.

This is one of the coolest technologies I have interacted with, and it is great to see someone trying to eliminate the scourge that are QR codes. We have a great hands-on demo of the product after the break, and you can get the free app in either the Android or iTunes marketplaces right now.