Lowe's Gives Visualization A Makeover With Two New Augmented Reality Apps

New Measured and Envisioned apps leverage Apple's augmented reality framework, ARKit, to transform smartphones into simple, powerful, measurement and design aides

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Lowe's Companies, Inc.

Sep 25, 2017, 09:00 ET

MOORESVILLE, N.C., Sept. 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is launching two apps leveraging Apple's new ARKit capabilities – Measured by Lowe's and Envisioned by The Mine – to transform smartphones into powerful measurement and design aides.

Envisioned by The Mine allows users to view digital products from The Mine, a premier online destination for luxury home furnishings and Lowe’s Company, at scale, in their own space, leveraging new augmented reality capabilities Apple introduced with ARKit.

Unlike other apps, Measured hits the sweet spot between precision and play; users can get instant measurements and even share measured moments on social media, straight from the app.

An early example of Apple’s new ARKit capabilities, Measured by Lowe’s is one of the first accessible, easy-to-use apps using augmented reality to turn any iPhone model 6S or newer into a visualization tool to measure an object or distance within the phone’s camera view.

Measured, available for download at Apple's App Store today, is one of the first accessible, easy-to-use apps using augmented reality to measure an object or distance within the phone's camera view. Envisioned by The Mine (a Lowe's company) will be available in early October and allows users to view high fidelity digital images of furnishings at scale, in their own home or a commercial space, leveraging ARKit's augmented reality capabilities. Both apps build upon Lowe's leadership in developing augmented, virtual and mixed reality applications for retail.

"At Lowe's, we believe in harnessing the power of technology to solve every day problems," said Gihad Jawhar, vice president, digital development at Lowe's. "Beginning with the Holoroom debut in 2014, to the launch of Lowe's Vision last November, to the introduction of In-Store Navigation in March, Lowe's has been at the forefront of exploring how mixed reality technology can enhance the customer experience. We were immediately onboard to expand this capability into Apple's ARKit to help solve some of the most common visualization barriers in home improvement: measurement and design."

Measured uses the iPhone (6S model and newer) camera to allow users to measure anything in the real world quickly and easily, and save it for later. Unlike other apps, Measured hits the sweet spot between precision and play. Users can get instant measurements and even share their "measured moments" on social media, straight from the app. From measuring the height of a chandelier for a foyer to measuring the height of your child and sending it to grandma, the app is intended to be the everyday go-to tool for all consumers.

"We learned how much we actually measure on a day-to-day basis and set out to create a beautiful tool that would help people quickly and easily measure moments, as well as projects," said Jawhar. "The app's versatility and ability to address virtually any consumer measurement need, with both accuracy and an entertaining user experience, is pretty incredible."

Envisioned by The Mine, a premier online destination for luxury home furnishings, is a fully featured, end-to-end design and shopping app built specifically for ARKit compatibility for iPhone models 6S and newer. Customers begin their journey by navigating through The Mine's designer-inspired product catalog. Once an item is selected, users can immediately place a high-quality, accurate-to-scale 3D version into their room, and modify, rotate or duplicate. The app's photo mode then allows users to capture images, share and purchase. The app also integrates with TheMine.com to provide a seamless shopping experience with existing, high fidelity 3D models that are generated by Lowe's Innovation Labs proprietary 3D content creation and distribution technology called LIL 3D.

According to Michelle Newbery, president of The Mine, "Our customers come to The Mine for a seamless, high-touch shopping experience that combines design-inspired home furnishings with a personal concierge level of service. With our new app, we're taking this virtual showroom a step further to build customer confidence before they buy."

Lowe's continues to explore new and emerging technologies to provide helpful tools for customers and employees, including new consumer augmented reality applications, as they deliver advanced uses for retail.

About Lowe's
Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is a FORTUNE^® 50 home improvement company serving more than 17 million customers a week in the United States, Canada and Mexico. With fiscal year 2016 sales of $65.0 billion, Lowe's and its related businesses operate or service more than 2,370 home improvement and hardware stores and employ over 290,000 people. Founded in 1946 and based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe's supports the communities it serves through programs that focus on K-12 public education and community improvement projects. For more information, visit Lowes.com. The Mine is operated by Allied Trade Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Lowe's Companies, Inc.

SOURCE Lowe's Companies, Inc.