The main differences between virtual reality and augmented reality
Since we are at the beginning of an era that seems increasingly defined by innovation and digitalization, we have chosen to distinguish between two notions that in our opinion will be one of the pillars of the society of the future, given the vast possibilities of use in various fields. The two notions analyzed by us are two types of realities, virtual reality and augmented reality.
The distinction in short
Virtual reality, or VR, is a technology that transposes the user into a virtual environment generated entirely on the computer, for example in the middle of a safari or on the back of a flying dragon.
On the other hand, augmented reality, or AR, uses the outside world in which we live, and with the help of a device, such as a mobile phone, adds real-time digital elements. One of the best-known examples globally is the Pokemon Go game, but more handy and somewhat more durable over time are the filters used by applications such as Instagram or Snapchat.
Of course, in addition to the two types of realities mentioned above, technology has advanced, making the emergence of a new notion possible. It is about the mixed reality that combines VR elements with AR elements, the real world with digitalized interaction, but this technology is still developing and we will keep more details for a future article dedicated to its evolution.
The distinction in detail
The concept of virtual reality is not as complicated as it seems. With the help of a special headset, the user projects in front of the whole visual field computer-generated content or real content, but processed and transposed digitally. With the help of sensors, the headset is synchronized with the user's movements so that the experience is completely authentic. Of course, the range of these VR headsets is very wide, from the most advanced state-of-the-art to the simplest that can transpose you into a virtual reality with the help of a headset-mounted mobile phone. But, no matter how powerful the VR headset you use is, we can guarantee that the first experience of this kind will be hard to forget and the desire to repeat it will be hard to control. If you want to know more about the evolution of VR technology, we especially recommend the article When did virtual reality appear and how has it evolved over the years? which you can easily find on the 24 VR Blog.
Augmented reality, unlike virtual reality, does not transpose you into an environment created entirely in digital, but harmoniously combines digital elements with the surrounding world through the filter of a device. The processing power and resources required to generate augmented reality are much smaller compared to those of virtual reality due to the simple forms of use that have appeared so far.