AR websites are sites powered by augmented reality to drive user engagement, increase sessions, and boost sales.
Whether you want to implement a virtual try-on feature or add an interactive experience for your e-commerce business, AR makes it real.
This post will help you know the benefits of augmented reality in web apps featuring:
- 10 best AR websites and examples
- 6 reasons to use augmented reality in websites
- 4 steps to add AR experience to your website.
10 Best AR Websites & Examples
As we’ve mentioned before, the common application of web AR varies from virtual try-on to eLearning, advertising, and many other fields.
Here, we’re going to cover some of the most prominent use cases of augmented reality website apps.
Banuba
Banuba provides a web-based AR-powered SDK with face filters and an AI-enabled video editor that are on par with those of Snapchat or Instagram.
Web AR is a perfect choice when you need a no-app cross-platform web-based AR experience.
AI face tracking capabilities help drive user engagement and boost your product’s growth.
It allows users to unleash augmented reality in real-time or via post-processing.
The key SDK features include:
- 1,000+ ready AR face filters and effects
- Facewear try-on
- Virtual AR makeup
- Hair & eye color
- AR-powered beautification
- Background removal
- SFX & Voice Changer
- 3D Renderer
- Filter Editor + Scripting
- Sample Filters & Documentation
- Support & Consultancy.
Banuba Face AR SDK | AR Websites
Saatchi Art
Saatchi Art is one of the largest AR websites and online stores that sell works of art, integrated an AR feature called View in My Room into its website.
Thanks to this function, any user can preview what paintings will look like in the apartment before buying it.
BRONI&BO
Broni&Bo is an augmented reality website and accessories store that offers users an online fitting of their ties and bow ties.
This allows customers to see which color suits them best.
James Allen
James Allen is a jewelry retailer which also offers an augmented reality website with a virtual try-on feature.
Customers can be sure the ring or necklace matches their complexion and overall style before purchasing it.
DFS-Furniture Preview
DFS is among the best AR examples that helps users virtually put furniture in their interior and not bother with going to the store to do manual measuring — the AR function will do it.
Garena Free Fire x McLaren
Immersive Web AR Experience is a great opportunity to interact with the iconic car in your space. You can move it around, change its color, and even take a picture of a McLaren parked in your own garage.
Nine Perfect Strangers
Nine perfect strangers is a web-based augmented reality website app created to promote popular TV series.
Users can become a part of the show and meet the main characters in real-time.
Earth Day
Earth Day is among the best AR examples with an eLearning basis created in honor of Earth Day 2020.
The app was designed to teach the kids about Earth and how to take care of our planet.
8th Wall
8th Wall showcases a variety of face masks, holograms, and other effects for an immersive AR experience.
Space Portal
Space Portal is a fun AR solution that can help you feel like a real astronaut and travel to space to explore the mysteries of our universe.
We hope you had fun exploring AR on the websites we’ve picked for your inspiration. The good news is you can get into developing something similar right away with Banuba’s SDK.
4 Steps to Add Augmented Reality to Websites
Augmented reality uses special sensors to distinguish real-life objects from inanimate ones and create a holographic illusion that overlaps the physical environment around you.
That’s why, unlike virtual reality helmets, augmented reality websites don’t completely immerse you in the virtual world.
Instead, they complement (or augment) existing objects with virtual items.
And unlike mobile AR, the web-based best AR examples require a working camera, an electronic device with a screen, and a stable internet connection.
Seriously, you don’t even have to go to the App Store or Google Play to download and install them.
Web-based augmented reality sites are accessible through a link or a QR code.
Web AR isn’t platform-dependent either — most modern browsers are compatible with it.
Chrome and Safari use WebXT and ARKit, but there are plenty of third-party SDKs that deliver augmented reality experience through these browsers.
For example, Banuba WebAR SDK.
It is a software development kit engineers can use to implement web AR into websites.
So, how do you activate AR in your browser?
- The camera takes a picture of the object and the surrounding environment.
- Then the camera sends it to the web app through a browser.
- The built-in software helps identify object placement and insert virtual items or effects into the browser to imitate the movements of the real image.
- The effects or items can then be added to the image.
And all this happens in a matter of milliseconds!
6 Reasons to Use Augmented Reality In Sites
Studies have shown that the conversion of visitors to customers can be 40% higher thanks to the use of AR.
A virtual try-on experience gives users a feel of how an item would look in reality and, according to statistics, increases purchase satisfaction levels by 73%.
By placing your face in front of a mobile phone or computer, you can easily transform your look, add some makeup, remove imperfections from your skin, change the color of your hair, or wear a scary mask and send the picture to your friends.
Not only is this fun but it also can come in handy for video calls or conferences.
For example, Banuba offers an advanced AR solution for video conferencing and video communication that can enhance your appearance with embedded filters, augment your face, or change the background.
At this point, you may be thinking, how is web AR better than mobile AR? The answer is simple: despite the more limited functionality, web AR has a broader scope for application. The main advantages augmented reality websites can boast of are:
- The ability to run on any device, while the mobile version is not supported by lots of legacy devices
- Greater accessibility — there’s no need to download it on your device, which makes AR website accessible to a wider audience
- Web AR renders a more detailed image, so it’s a great option for large screens
- Web-based augmented reality applications are faster to build, while mobile apps, especially native ones, take longer to develop
- Web apps can be integrated into existing applications
- You can make your AR-powered website into a Progressive Web App (PWA), so the user can download the icon directly to their home screen
Conclusion
Having started as a fun gag, web AR has transformed into a complementary tool for businesses.
It improves the customer experience, boosts sales, and adds extra functionality to their websites, like animation, 3D model placement, virtual try-on, and playing games. Eager to build one yourself?
Send us a message, and we’ll tell you all about our advanced SDK for building augmented reality websites.
