For many, the biggest Tango announcement at CES was the launch of the ASUS ZenFone AR. Until now, the usefulness of Tango has been limited, with only a limited number of apps being available, as well as only one phone (prior to the ZenFone AR) which is compatible with the technology. Now, though, there are the first indications that support for Tango is growing. Firstly, thanks to a new partnership with clothing retailer Gap.
What the partnership brings to the table, is something that is certainly unique and is sure to save Gap customers a huge amount of time and effort when it comes to purchasing clothes. The end result of the partnership is a new Tango app which is expected to become available on the Google Play Store soon. With the app, customers will be able to virtually view clothes on a mannequin and get some insight on how well the clothing will fit them. Customers will have the option of choosing between a number of different mannequins (which vary in both size and shape) in order to pick the one that fits them best. Once the mannequin is chosen, the user is free to select any of the items the company offers in the size and color that they prefer and, because this is AR, the user will be able to walk around the mannequin and view the clothes from any angle. As a last bonus, if the user decides to purchase any of the items, the purchase itself can be made directly from the app.
With AR yet to become mainstream, apps like this one are sure to test customer reactions. But, with the popularity of the technology only increasing, as well as the ever-growing popularity of online purchases, apps like this may well be the future of online shopping, be it clothes or otherwise. Only time will tell how Google can expand the technology over the next few years, but with the arrival of a new Tango-enabled smartphone so early into the year, it’s likely that the number of other companies releasing new Tango-enabled devices will only increase.