Want to try on watches but can’t make it to the store? Tissot, maker of Swiss watches has a solution for you. Using augmented reality technology you are able to try any of a select collection of watches.

This magical experience lets you shop online for just the right watch. You can see a 3D model of each watch on your own wrist. Compare styles, seek the right color to match your outfit or decide which face size is appropriate for you. By activating the touch functions you can learn about the features of each watch.

Congratulations go to Tissot for a perfect matching of e-commerce and augmented reality. With this unique offering Tissot ensures that their consumer is engaged with their product and spends more time on their site. The AR application is both refined and informative. The experience is compatible with both Windows and Mac systems. The only draw back is the hefty download. For Mac it weighs in at a whopping 85 MB.

Download the marker:

Tissot Touch Collection

Download the AR Experience:

Windows or Mac

Video of Experience:

This Wednesday April 21st, I will be attending the Augmented Reality Conference. A one day part of the Emerging Communications Conference at the Airport Marriott in San Francisco, CA.

The AR Conference is the world’s first and largest commercial augmented reality event. Industry leaders will be sharing their expertise on a variety of AR related subjects. Topics range from a presentation on crowd sourced traffic apps by Di-Ann Eisnor, Community Geographer, of Waze to the applying the advancement of desktop applications to the future of mobile AR, presented by Blake Callens, Senior Software Engineer at Zugara.

This conference is going to be a place where the future of the marketplace will be molded. The advancement of AR is changing the way that consumers experience their products and promotions. As with other industries in the past few years AR is helping to put the power back in the consumer’s hands. When the consumer decides how and when they experience a promotion the relationship is enhanced.

Other industry leaders presenting will be Bruno Uzzan of Total Immersion, Peter Meier of Metaio, Dana Farbo of Acrossair, and Mark Rolston of Frog Design. Take a look at the full schedule here.

Keep up on the AR Conference news throughout the day on Wednesday by following hashtag #arconf on Twitter. I will also be providing updates on the sessions via Twitter. You can follow me @mdusing.

When it comes to retailers embracing new technology Target® is working to stay top. With the latest version of Target’s iPhone app the retailer shows just how serious they can be about shopping with technology.

One of the biggest advancements in version 3.3 is the addition of a barcode scanner. Powered by Occipital a Boulder, CO based app developer. The barcode scanner allows guests to build shopping lists (TargetLists) and price items right in the aisle. TargetLists include managing wedding or baby registries, wish lists and daily shopping items. Scan any item in stores and access the product details, reviews and store availability.

With 3.3 Target brings you Daily Deals. Much like Amazon’s Gold Box Deals, each day Target offers special discounts available only for a limited time. The deals are available through online ordering only but do include free shipping.

And lastly Target makes it easier for their guests to ask questions with contact us and feedback features. Way to go Target! When retailers take the time to innovate and listen to their guests sales improve and the relationship grows. iPhone users told Target how they wanted to use their app and Target has shown they can listen.

Visit Target app on iTunes or text “APP” to 827438 (TARGET) to receive a download link.

What do you get when you combine Swiss design and a classically great typeface? Helveticards. These Swiss inspired cards are sure to delight any card playing guest, from type enthusiast to the poker shark roommate. The cards are printed on premium quality, high gloss, white core playing card stock. Packaged in hard plastic case.

Better hurry the pre-order for the first run ends at the end of today (April 14th).

Adidas is ushering in a digital age in footwear with their new Originals AR Game Pack shoes. That’s right augmented reality on your feet.

The shoes come in a set of five colors exclusive to select Champs Sports locations and Eastbay online. The experience is part of Adidas’ virtual Originals Neighborhood. Wearers will be able to hold their shoe up to a webcam unlocking a challenging gaming experience and exclusive content with the AR codes on the tongue. Users play games by using the shoe as a controller. New games will be launched each month starting in February and ending in April of 2010. Shoes range in price from around $70 to $99.

The games come in a variety of flavors. Starting with a Star Wars game where the user fires blue paint balloons at Stormtroopers. In the second game the user skateboards through a 3-D neighborhood performing tricks and navigating their way through obstacles. The third game being released in April is more musically oriented. Users become their own DJ and create beats.

From a retail perspective; Adidas is doing a great job engaging their consumers by creating a lasting conservation. Not only do they engage with their consumer in-stores and online during the purchase experience; they keep them coming back for more. Consumers will show their pride for the brand by wearing their products around as well as engaging online. The experience builds the brand and makes consumer feel a part of something exclusive and cutting edge. Word of mouth and digital WOM will be huge spreading the message of Adidas’ innovation. It’s great to see a brand staying fresh and taking a risk of trying out new technology. Let the conversation begin.

What do you think of the shoes, another gimmick or actually a good use of AR in the marketplace? Leave a comment below and let us know.

Want to buy a pair check out these styles online:

Superstar LTO

Forum Mid

Teaser trailer for the online experience:

Follow Adidas Originals on Twitter at @adi_originals

UPDATE:

Finally found a link to all the shoes on Eastbay.com You can see the line-up here

Also got my hands on a pair and have been trying to get them to work. Turns out that most of my problems were because of my work firewall and port blocking. Video of experience and tips/review to come shortly.

Augmented reality has hit the mainstream. The first AR app to make it to the iPhone app store was Metro Paris Subway by French developer PresseLite. Unfortunately you need to be in Paris to experience the AR features of the app.

Lucky for us, with the latest release of Yelp you can experience augmented reality on the iPhone 3GS for yourself. Yelp is a handy location based directory app for finding restaurants, bars, banks, etc. in your area. In order to use augmented reality in the Yelp app you need enable a hidden feature called Monocle. Follow these simple steps:

1. Grab the app here, Yelp.

2. Launch it and shake your phone. You need to shake it 3 times. TUAW got it working with one good shake, while other TUAW bloggers needed more than 3.

3. A message appears indicating that you’ve activated “Monocle.” That’s what they call the AR feature.

4. A monocle button appears on the top right of the app. Press it.
( Directions provided by: www.tuaw.com )

Now its time to play. Launch the Monocle augmented reality feature by clicking the new button in the upper right corner. As you move the phone around you will see your surroundings through the iPhone camera. Pop-up style windows display nearby business in their corresponding direction related to your location.

Note: Monocle only works on the iPhone 3GS.

For a more in depth review check out this video from GearLive:

Best Buy jazzed up their normal Sunday circular this week with the presence of augmented reality.

The circular ad directs the consumer to a website (BestBuy3d.com.) At the website the consumer can hold up the back page of their circular and see a Toshiba laptop in augmented reality. By creating some engagement with their normal Sunday ad Best Buy is able to create a little buzz and bring their consumer a unexpected experience. Best Buy is able to draw even more attention to its $499 (loss leader) laptop special. In turn hopefully getting more consumers to visit their store.

The electronics superstore used this tool to introduce their new TwelpForce Twitter® service. If a consumer needs help or has a question about anything electronics, they can just tweet to @TwelpForce. Best Buy employees will reply with a speedy answer to their inquiry. A handy service no matter where the consumer is or what their question?

image courtesy of Geekologie blog.

Digital is making its way into the retail space. New tools have made it to the mainstream and are changing the way we shop. One such tool is Augmented Reality. For those who don’t know, augmented reality often referred to as AR, is the combination of real-world (live) and computer-generated data, where computer graphics objects are blended into real footage in real time.

So how does AR work? In its base form, you present your webcam with a high contrast marker. This marker is either printed from your computer or on a product itself (examples to follow).

You may have heard AR, but in retail? Most executions of augmented reality in general have been little more than, “Wow, that’s cool.” Retailers and brand giants like Walmart® and Procter & Gamble are taking notice and even flirting with the technology.

Walmart ran a print ad in People Magazine promoting their back-to-college your zone collection with an augmented reality twist. Their print ad encourages you to visit a website and see your room in AR. The room changes from various styles available at Walmart. Mainly an eye catching advertisement, but it does highlight the variety of styles available at Walmart for your college room necessities.

Procter & Gamble recently rolled out a similar campaign based in print. Highlighting the “magic” of AR technology, the print execution was developed for their Always tampon brand. The execution was targeted at 15 year-old girls and little more than a magic show. The teenage girl prints a marker from the website, featured in the print ad, and also installs a web plug-in. Then she is greeted with a top hat and a bunny rabbit, accompanied by the messaging “incredibly soft,” a feature of Always products.





However, some brands are taking this new tool and creating wonderful enhancements for their products and giving their consumers that same “wow” presence.

The USPS has a wonderful execution to help patrons choose the right box for their shipments. Accurately named, “Which box fits your shipment?” this dramatically simple execution helps you choose the correct size box for your shipment while saving you time. Instead of waiting at the post office with a line of angry patrons behind you; you are able to test it out in the comfort of your own home. This tool gives you a better idea of the cost to mail your item.





The USPS creates some great buzz for their brand by breathing life into what is generally a mundane experience (mailing packages). Through this interaction the customer not only gets the information they need, they might even come away with a pleasant feeling for their national postal service. Amazing, I know.

Want to learn more about Augmented Reality and see more examples in the retail space? Stay tuned here. New posts coming as more brands venture into this media along with an AR section of the website for easy access to Augmented Reality executions.

UPDATE:

The Procter & Gamble Always campaign is based on the idea that the product, “Works Like Magic.” This FSI (featured below) in the P&G BrandSaver which appeared in newspapers over the weekend adds some evidence to why magic and AR was used with the campaign.

Which green detergent should I use and how well does it work?

When it comes to green laundry detergent, my knowledge was extremely limited. Like most consumers the only brand I had really heard of was Seventh Generation. So I needed to do some research.

I was unable to find a good rating system of green detergents online. So like any blogger, I turned to the advice of my peers. What green laundry detergent have bloggers found to work?

The top three in the results of my research were as follows.
(well, actually 4 if you count nuts)

1. Sun & Earth- rated the highest by green laundry bloggers this detergent is not only good for the environment it does the best job.

2. Moutain Green- rated second across my blogger sources. This detergent was easier for me to find. I purchased some at my local Sprouts or Sunflower Market. Whole Foods however, did not carry this brand in my Colorado.

3. Bio-kleen- rated as third but still great for the environment and the easiest of the list to find. This brand in was present on the shelves in almost all my surrounding grocery stores.

The Best for Mother Earth: Soap nuts or Soapin. This is an all natural solution that does not come traditionally pre-packaged. You buy the nuts in bulk and use some in each load of laundry. Unfortunately I’m not aware of the best source to purchase these amazing laundry nuts.

So why no Seventh Generation? The rating on various blogs and in my personal experience was that Seventh Generation simply did not do a great job cleaning. On tougher stains it came up short. Great for the environment until you do the same load twice.

Want to get some green cleaning products for yourself and can’t find them locally? Try CleaningGreen.com



Read for yourself, here are my sources:

GRIST – IT’S A WASH: A review of six green laundry detergents

Inhabitat – Green Laundry Ball

Sprig – 10 Green Laundry Detergents

In all fairness after posting about Pepsi, I wanted to post about some cool Coca-Cola news. The Coca-Cola Company has created some clean-designed summer-themed cans. By taking their logo and some iconic summer items, Coca-Cola has created seasonal relevance to their product. What better way to enjoy an ice-cold Coke than on a summer afternoon in the sun?

It’s great to see a company make such clean packaging design using their logo and simple icons. Granted, this brand is extremely recognizable to every consumer in the world. The cans perfectly capture the outdoor feeling of summer and connect with where their product is being consumed.

So when you’re going to hangout with some friends this summer – be it on the patio, around the pool or in the park – make sure to grab some cool summer Coca-Cola cans on your way and hangout in style. Not sure how long they will be around though, they are listed as “limited edition.”