The whole concept of the Google Cardboard was to put your smartphone close enough to your eyes. It’s a VR headset but isn’t made for mixed reality setups like Microsoft’s HoloLens. Building on the likes of Google Cardboard, Holokit is an interesting DIY solution for an instant augmented reality experience.
The new setup is instant, cheap and quite simple. Instead of a hefty projection system, a pair of mirrors reflects the display of the smartphone onto an angled, semi-transparent Fresnel lens — so the user can see both image and the world around it. Meanwhile the phone is in position to use the camera and sensors to track the world in front of you.
The half mirrored glass creates an optical illusion, however its not as simple as the Google Cardboard. The setup requires mirrors and a special Fresnel lens set to make it work. Currently the HoloKit only supports the iPhone 7 and Plus, Pixel phones and Project Tango hardware. Amber Garage, an AR outfit founded by Botao Hu, plans to release the code and other documentation next week on GitHub.
