Header Banner
Next Reality Logo
Next Reality
Mobile AR News
nextreality.mark.png
Apple Snap AR Business Google Instagram | Facebook NFT HoloLens Magic Leap Hands-On Smartphone AR The Future of AR Next Reality 30 AR Glossary ARKit Dev 101 What Is AR? Mixed Reality HoloLens Dev 101 Augmented Reality Hololens How-Tos HoloLens v. Magic Leap v. Meta 2 VR v. AR v. MR

Apple's ARKit 3 Casts Next-Level Illusions via Meisai AR App

A hand reaching towards a laptop keyboard.

Now that iOS 13 is in the wild, developers are starting to show off the magical augmented reality powers ARKit 3 can deliver.

One shining example comes via the new Meisai AR Filter app, developed by Japan's Kitasenju Design, which is capable of producing visual illusions that would make Doctor Strange retire from sorcery.

The app leverages the People Occlusion and Motion Capture features from ARKit 3 to cover users' hands with real-time (and sometimes psychedelic) digital patterns and animations.

Conversely, the app can segment the background and replace it with the virtual backdrops, giving the user a makeshift green screen set up.

Meisai can also display digital clones of a users' appendages, creating a trippy scene for viewers.

The free app is available now on the App Store, but only ARKit 3-compatible iPhones and iPads can run the app.

Meisai is more than just a funky good time. It also serves as a demonstration of just how far ahead of other mobile AR platforms -- such as Snapchat, Google's ARCore, and Facebook's Spark AR -- Apple's ARKit is when paired with the latest iPhone and iPad hardware.

Are these kinds of AR features enough to get anyone with an iPhone X or older to upgrade to newer-generation hardware? That depends on whether other developers get on board.

Cover image via Kitasenju Design/Vimeo

Apple's iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 updates are packed with new features, and you can try them before almost everyone else. First, check Gadget Hacks' list of supported iPhone and iPad models, then follow the step-by-step guide to install the iOS/iPadOS 26 beta — no paid developer account required.

Related Articles

Comments

No Comments Exist

Be the first, drop a comment!