Finally, an app that makes Google Glass seem like a good idea

In the early days of smartphones, apps that layered data over the real world—”augmented reality” apps—were all the rage. Point your phone’s camera at the street and the screen would show nearby restaurants and bars. Aim at a building to learn about its history. Or view a magazine through an augmented reality (AR) app and watch the ads comes to life (and who doesn’t want more from their ads.) It seemed like a nice idea. But it never really took off. The technology didn’t work very well. Content was limited in its scope. Users got bored once the novelty wore off. And it didn’t exactly change our relationship with ads.