The Two Frontiers of our Technological Future
There is no dearth of evidence to depict the wonders of technology in the 21st century. In, fact, our age is ripe with such marvels taking place almost every other day. And crucial to this and possibly the future of technology, are the two hallmarks of the digital world - Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality – transforming our realities ad infinitum!


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Now it’s possible that these terms are becoming way too common in our daily lives but the possibility of using them interchangeably exists too. And here lies a small problem. Because both render our realities slightly different from what they are. Both enable our realities to become a little more interesting than what they are. But both render this possible in their own unique ways and we cannot possibly mistake one for the other. This is particularly why we need to acquaint ourselves a little more with what Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality entail, especially since they form a part of our lives in abundant and mysterious ways.
Decoding the Two Realities
Catch me if you can: The Reality-Augmenting Pokémon Go!


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Let’s take a moment to understand what happens in the famous location-based, mobile phone game - Pokémon Go. Needless to say, almost every smartphone user has ventured into the fantasy world of Pokémon and tried to catch as many as possible. But what exactly do we do in the game?


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We catch Pokémons. That don’t exist. Not in our real world anyway. But we catch them through devices we call smartphones by actually moving around and going to new places where we could potentially encounter them. And we know where to find them because the game, like Google maps, has a map of its own where you can spot the intriguing creatures and then go get them. The game uses GPS technology since it actually taps into your location in the real world and then enables you to move around (in the real world) to track down a Pokémon (in the game world). If you see one in a park, you actually walk, run or drive to a park to catch it. If you want to catch a water-based Pokémon, you might have to actually go near a water body.

The game, in essence, works on a peculiar union of the real world with the one inhabited by our dear Pokémons. And you feel as if you’re cohabiting both.
“I Expect you to Die” A taste of Virtual Espionage
Now let’s switch to a different game for a moment.


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This one’s about spying. So you can actually don your 007 hats and get a hands-on experience of classic espionage! Only that you do everything in the game. Or everything you do only happens in the world created by the game. Unlike in Pokémon Go, you don’t actually go about walking around to parks or lakes in the real world to enable something in the game world. You probably just sit on a couch or stand in a lobby - wearing your VR headset. And you don’t feel that you cohabit two worlds. You feel you cohabit only one – the game world.
The Two Peculiar Realities: An Explanation
Subtly or not, the two little explanations above, about two different games give us a slight idea about the differences between Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Although both allow us to interact with a fantasy game world, the manner in which they render it possible differs. Pokémon Go is an augmented reality-based game while “I Expect you to Die” is clearly a virtual reality homage to espionage.



The former combines elements of both the real and the game world. Our interactions with the fantasy world of Pokémons coincide with our interactions with our real surroundings. It augments our reality by placing Pokémons in it. It uses GPS, so it knows where we are in the real world and it uses that to show us Pokémons accordingly. And when we look through it to spot Pokémons in the game world, we actually move around in the real world to get to them. And it makes us think as if the Pokémons do exist in those real-world locations.


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The second game is very different. Firstly, we play it wearing VR headsets. Because these headsets are the gateways to the espionage world of the game. And when we play it, we don’t actually move around like we do in Pokémon Go. The game doesn’t interact with the real world to merge it with its own and create an immersive and augmented experience. Instead, when worn, it creates a reality of its own. And we get a first-hand experience of being a spy in that reality - the one the game creates for us and which the headset enables.

We actually inhabit the virtual world of the spy we are in the game and for those few moments, it becomes our world. We feel we are in that car or that building and that we’re shooting people or being blown up to pieces. And we have no sense of whatever’s happening in our real world.
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality: Defining the terms
Augmented Reality


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In essence, augmented reality (AR) enables a view of a real environment which is modified by a computer through the addition of sounds, pictures, haptics or other data. In a way, it works to modify or enhance the manner in which we perceive reality. However, in doing so, it doesn’t let us completely sever our contact with reality. We are perfectly aware and perceptive of the real world. Only that it has been enhanced in certain ways by augmented reality technology. It helps us interact with the real world in an intriguing and immersive manner.



The Daqri Smart Helmet, for instance, is an AR-based helmet used by industrial workers. It enhances their environment to raise situational awareness. It helps them envisage data like never before and enables better monitoring of things. Even your funny Snapchat filters - that show you things in the space that surrounds you – are loosely based on AR. Or the tennis we play on our dear Nintendo Wii is also partially based on AR. You hit an ace in the game only when you replicate that movement outside of it – in your real world.
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality (VR), on the other hand, creates its own reality. It is like simulating the real world. And this world you can only access through specially designed VR headsets. It enables your complete presence in a virtual or computer generated world. When you access it with VR headsets, you can actually move around and do things in that virtual space. It is like a sophisticated version of watching a 3D movie. When you put on the 3D goggles to watch a 3D movie, it lets your brain create a sense of depth and space. And this is what enables a more immersive experience. Because it creates an illusion that you’re actually a part of that reality. This is what VR does - on a grander scale.


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Ypu perceive and feel everything that happens in that game, movie or anything that a VR headset gives you access to. You’re not just a spectator. But you’re the doer in a world which a computer categorically creates. It lets you explore and interact with the simulated reality while enabling a profound sense of depth and space.
Application and Concerns
The applications of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are immense. Space, medicine, entertainment, video-games, and cinema and so on- their applications are almost omniscient. Virtual reality is used for education and training, engineering, healthcare and so on. Augmented reality is employed for commerce, industrial design, workplace, music, medicine etc.

Although they form the pillars of our technological future, there are concerns regarding privacy, health and some ethical concerns too. Such concerns do pose questions about how much and to what extent should we engage with both Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. And we should indeed, ponder over them.
In Conclusion
To put it simply then, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are two distinct technologies. Both are equally engaging and futuristic, but using them interchangeably is simply wrong. Because they differ in various ways.


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Maybe this small and silly analogy will roughly help to clarify the difference even more. Everyone’s watched Avatar, right? So, virtual reality is like Jake Sully experiencing the marvellous world of Pandora through his Humanoid avatar. While augmented reality is akin to Parker Selfridge using his superior gadgets to check out the entire terrain of Pandora. And also retrieving mass information about its various aspects. While the former involves experiencing Pandora by being a part of its universe (the actual body is remotely located), the latter is like sitting astride with one leg in each world – Pandora and yours (with a perception of both).

 

 

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