As smartphone makers and other tech giants move towards virtual and augmented reality, Google has announced that its first foray into AR, Tango will be shut down come 2018.
Tango, originally Project Tango, was launched in 2014 and used special sensors and cameras on devices to display virtual objects. ATAP, Google’s advanced technology and projects lab, developed Tango but it was soon succeeded by ARCore.
With ARCore now progressing quickly, Google feels that it doesn’t make sense to carry on supporting Tango. Google announced today that it will end the project on March 1, 2018.
https://twitter.com/projecttango/status/941730801791549440
Back in 2014, Project Tango was a new and exciting prospect as it enabled devices to utilise cameras and IR sensors to track and place objects, and was one of the first mobile options to do so. But, Tango soon started falling off the radar due to speed and accuracy issues. Also, the phones that supported project Tango were pricey due to the required hardware.
As of right now, ARCore only works on Pixel devices and the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. But, Google already has a host of other companies on board like LG, Huawei, ASUS and more.
Google believes ARCore is the future of AR and VR for the company thanks to its implementation. Even though ARCore can’t see in 3D, it works with the hardware already found on phones. That means that unlike Tango, no special sensors or cameras are required to make use of the software. Machine learning, something that Google showed off in the new Pixel 2 devices, is used to accomplish the same tracking that Tango required hardware for, which gives ARCore a leg up.
Even Apple’s ARKit focuses on the future of AR and VR, and other company’s decision to support ARCore means that more smartphone makers want to make use of the technology in its upcoming phones.
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