Layar Reality Browser - Layar B.V.

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Important notes:
- You need an iPhone 3GS to download Layar, because the app makes heavy use of the compass to display the Reality View.
- If you experience problems with the app, restart your iPhone (switch it off and on) and most crashes should be solved.
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The Layar Reality Browser displays real time digital information on top of reality in the camera screen of the mobile phone. While looking through the phone's camera lens, a user can see houses for sale, popular bars and shops, touristic information of the area, play a live game, etcetera.

How do you use Layar?
Select a layer in the featured or popular section. Or search for a layer using any keyword in the search tab. Select a layer. Hold the phone in front of you. See information being displayed on top of the camera display view, by turning around you can point your phone toward the various points of interest. Adjust settings (filters) by clicking on the button in the top right corner. For all points of interest which are displayed on the screen, information is shown at the bottom of the screen. By clicking on the little arrow you will see how you can interact with that specific Point of Interest (POI). Use the map and list views to see all points in one screen.

What is Augmented Reality?
Wikipedia says: "Augmented reality (AR) is a field of computer research which deals with the combination of real-world and computer-generated data (virtual reality), where computer graphics objects are blended into real footage in real time."

What are layers?
Layers are the equivalent of web pages in normal browsers. Just like there are thousands of websites there will be thousands of layers in our application. A layer is the digital view that is added to the camera view. This is the first time that so many brands use one application to provide an augmented reality service on the mobile phone.

The Application

Why use it?
Layar is a tool to browse the world. It enables exploration, more informed decisions, serendipity and fun.

How does it work?
The Layar application works with GPS and compass to determine location and the direction the Phone is facing. The camera input provides the reality. The location is used to retrieve the layer information with coordinates and other relevant data. This is retrieved from the Layar server where all partner Layar information is collected and processed. This then is the combined, computated and displayed in the 'active' layer of the application. Still confused? On our site http://layar.com is a demo movie showing how Layar works in detail.