Hololens and Bricks and Mortar

Retail is struggling. But a lot of people miss it. Mixing the two could create some interesting and profitable efficiencies.



WinBuzzer

Microsoft has shown it is not quite ready to give up on the physical shopping experience just yet. For example, last year we discussed the company’s efforts to compete with Amazon Go. Microsoft is reportedly working on bringing an automated shopping experience to bricks and mortar locations.

As the company pushes more into retail, it could be Mixed Reality that changes the physical shopping experience. Of course, Microsoft has done more than most to develop Mixed Reality and make it viable in real-world scenarios.

A recent Microsoft Patent shows a method for placing shopping buttons within a virtual reality render. As you may know, Mixed Reality blends the virtual with the real, so this shopping button would interact with real world environments and objects.

"“Disclosed is a system and method for mixed reality that includes a holographic button (eg, a 3D object) that can be downloaded from a provider’s website. The holographic button allows a user in the mixed reality world to order the article by interacting with the holographic button. The user in the mixed reality world can place the holographic button near a relevant real object. Whenever the user interacts with the real object through its mixed reality (ie virtual interaction with the real object), the holographic button may appear so that the user can order the element associated with the holographic button.”"

Google Opening Retail Store

Cool that they're going to start doing some more showcasing. They apparently want more control of what they're showing than 

The Chicago meat-packing district is a curious first location, I'm not sure why. If I were going to guess, I'd say that it's easy access.

If you're in any major city in the US, Chicago is a day trip. (You can fly there and back, easily without an overnight stay.) And it's well served by international airlines. (Nonstop to nearly everywhere. )

The District is easily accessed on public transportation from O'Hare Airport. (about an hour and a half)


SFGate

• Google is near to signing a deal to take control of 14,000 feet of retail space in Chicago's meatpacking district, according to the Chicago Tribune.
• This would be Google's first-ever permanent retail store, putting it in a league with fellow tech titans Apple and Microsoft. 
• If the report is correct, the opening up a retail shop to serve as a showcase for Google products is logical. The list of the company's gadgets is long and getting longer.
•  The company said it doesn't comment on "rumors and speculation."

Thousands of retail stores....

I'm always hesitant about articles like this, but they're appearing more and more. The degree to which they're legitimate remains to be seen.


A Bing Translation

As the title says, and full General in counties and cities building thousands projector phone retail stores across the country, fenwenbuqu to others.

Current smartphones become more and more the same. Despite the fingerprint recognition, 3Dtouch, dual camera, surface technology highlights appear on the screen, but is hard to change the sign of the decadence of the potential.

We went to watch a giant screen film, play a game LOL, edit text, shows a copy of the PPT had to go to a cinema, open a laptop, find a conference room has a projector. And the portable phone is have ability to handle these operations, but limit the screen closed and operations experience.

Smartphone development more and more TV, PC, trend micro-laser projection technology is the key.

Breaking framework for mobile, mobile phone, PC, giant-screen combines unparalleled full using first generation MEMS laser projector phone.

Visualization will revolutionize retail

What's very interesting about that for MicroVision is that the Most economical way to get good large screens into retail spaces is going to be small projectors (that are always in focus.)

SONY's first projector engine with MicroVision technology I see mainly as a "proof of concept" for portable use -- standalone, perhaps in tablet computers or as an attachable accessory. When it's been used up that way, that same engine will have application in Auto HUDS, and digital signage, such as the kinds of digital signage and shopper tools they're talking about in this article.

I work pretty hard to objectively focus on what is going on. So far things aren't outside the parameters of what I have expected. For my first assessments of a situation, I assume that the parties involved have reasons for what they are doing, and that what they are doing makes sense based on those reasons. 


From TechRadar

Visualisation technology has the potential to drive innovation across all industries, however, the retail sector has a number of use cases which give a whole new meaning to the pastime of window shopping.

Since the dot com boom retailers have clamoured to get their businesses online to expand their addressable market. In recent years, retail has undergone a revival with even the most tech-savvy companies like Apple, Microsoft and Samsung all standing up bricks and mortar stores to garner the benefits only a retail environment can bring.

"Virtual reality has the potential to combine incredible retail experiences with the comfort and price advantage of online shopping," Pernar says. "There's endless potential in creating virtual reality retail spaces that would be too costly or outright impossible in physical reality."

For example, 3D scanning customers and recreating virtual reality versions of items like garments that are based on the same patterns given to a tailor enables shoppers to see a VR version of themselves walking up and down a runway wearing a virtual dress they are thinking about buying.