Augmented Reality Shopping: Best Buy and J.Crew Launch New Apps for Apple Vision Pro Users
Best Buy has introduced Envision, an app exclusively designed by the retailer’s team for the Apple Vision Pro, aiming to assist users in planning their ultimate home technology setup. Utilizing augmented reality, this app enables users to preview 3D models of their favorite products.
When wearing Apple Vision Pro, customers can now visualize 3D images of various products, including big-screen TVs, large and small appliances, fitness equipment, and furniture, to see how they will look and fit in their space before making a purchase. Shoppers can simply put on their Vision Pro, open the Envision app, and scroll through hundreds of options to see them digitally placed in their physical space. Once they find the right option, they can access product ratings and pricing, send the product directly to a friend through text/email, or open the product page within the Vision Pro Safari app to make their purchase online.
Brian Tilzer, Chief Digital, Analytics, and Technology Officer at Best Buy, said, “Best Buy Envision is another way we’re utilizing innovative technology to humanize consumer electronics like no one can. The app allows our customers to see, in a lifelike way, how technology will look and feel right in their own homes, delivering an immersive and personalized shopping experience.”
In a similar move, J.Crew has also launched a Virtual Closet app on Apple Vision Pro, developed in partnership with Obsess. This allows users to shop J.Crew products in an interactive, ultra-high-definition 3D environment. Utilizing SharePlay, a set of features for shared experiences while on a FaceTime call, users can chat with J.Crew's stylists or host group calls to get others' opinions on looks.
Halsey Anderson, VP of Marketing at J.Crew, commented, "The Virtual Closet is a first for the fashion industry, leveraging Apple's newest technology to immerse shoppers in a hyper-realistic styling experience with our brand. We're thrilled to continue our partnership with Obsess to use this cutting-edge device to bring J.Crew into an exciting new era of spatial shopping and styling."
The Virtual Closet app enables users to explore a curated selection of the brand's products while also being able to examine the texture and quality of the materials at a higher magnification than ever before. Through the app, users can use intuitive hand and eye movements to browse a selection of J.Crew items, mix and match pieces, and create an ideal outfit for any occasion, seeing how it looks on their personal in-app mannequin. The app also features realistic background scenes designed to inspire users to build a new wardrobe or update their existing one. Virtual Closet is an extension of the brand's web-based immersive experiences created by Obsess last year.
