Augmented Reality App Development

Award Winning Augmented Reality Apps

Our in-house, UK-based, AR app development experts are ready to help you build an augmented reality app with long-lasting value.

We take the same, proven approach to augmented reality app development as we do all the successful digital products we build – by bringing it back to the underlying digital business objectives.

AR turns a leap of faith into something tangible, exciting and interactive. The sofa in the room, the extension on the plot, the machine on the factory floor. With new ways to visualise it puts guidance, data and instructions in the same field of view as the work itself. All helping drive less uncertainty, fewer questions and quicker decisions.

At Sonin, our AR app development experts work with clients across different industries to prove the value behind the possibilities offered by augmented reality. That’s how we’ve helped everyone from global Petrochemical companies to national sofa manufacturers drive tangible business value

Case Studies

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Facial Dynamics

Making facial rehabilitation possible from home. Helping patients take control of their recovery.

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Nabru

Transforming Nabru’s customer experience with a 3D sofa builder.

Our Approach

User Research

To make the right decisions about whether an augmented reality app will help or hinder your business, you need to hold all the cards. User research collects all the contextual information you need to align everyone in the right direction.

User research and discovery workshops provide your team with an unbiased and definitive look at what your users want, why, and what’s getting in their way.

This approach also shows you where your own business goals intersect with those of your users and where new features and emerging technologies can make a difference to the desired results you need to deliver.

User Research

Design Sprints

Design Sprints offer a shortcut to a successful augmented reality app. They’re rapid, low-risk, and only require a small investment. A product can solve many different problems, but the more focused your idea is and the fewer potential problems it solves the more likely it will deliver the results you need it to.

Design sprints align everyone behind a specific problem and a specific solution idea to test with real users for rapid and actionable feedback. This is essential if you want to understand the real value any new or emerging technology like Augmented Reality apps offer to your business, your employees, and your customers.

Design Sprints

Prototyping

Prototyping drastically reduces the time and cost it takes to bring a successful augmented reality app to market. We start with quick and simple low-fidelity prototypes to get feedback from your users fast – whether they’re your customers or your team. This helps us figure out if our ideas are going to actually solve the problems you and your users are facing.

Once we’ve got something that works, we polish it up into high-fidelity prototypes. These give your stakeholders and your users a taste of what the final augmented reality app user experience will look and feel like. By testing these, we get more detailed feedback we can use to fine-tune every detail before investing time and resources in bringing it to life.

Our approach to augmented reality app development means we get better feedback quicker, which makes the whole process faster and saves you money.

Prototyping

Your Trusted Technology Partner

Like every emerging technology, augmented and mixed reality apps offer the opportunity to win a competitive edge and gain market share. Our approach to augmented reality app development makes sure you gain that advantage and market share.

Separating the hype from the proven value to your business can be a challenge. That’s where Sonin can help. We act as your trusted technology partner to advise on how augmented reality apps can benefit your business, industry, and solution. More importantly, we can offer an objective, unbiased and data-driven app development process that proves whether augmented reality is the right technology that’s going to deliver the right results.

This is made possible by our team of augmented reality experts who understand not just the latest hardware powering the platform but the software and backend infrastructure supporting it as well.

Your Trusted Technology Partner

User Research

User research and discovery workshops provide your team with an unbiased and definitive look at what your users want, why, and what’s getting in their way.

User Research

Design Sprints

Prototyping

Our approach to augmented reality app development means we get better feedback quicker, which makes the whole process faster and saves you money.

Prototyping

Your Trusted Technology Partner

This is made possible by our team of augmented reality experts who understand not just the latest hardware powering the platform but the software and backend infrastructure supporting it as well.

Your Trusted Technology Partner

“

What's most impressive is Sonin's personal touch, appetite to understand our mission, and care into producing an app that is going to change people's lives.

CCO – CleanTech ScaleUp

Frequently asked questions

Interested to know more about building an AR app?

Explore some common questions below or reach out to discuss

What can augmented reality be used for in business?

AR helps to move guidance, data or products into a person’s view of the real world.

This can help users when decision need the context of the real work if that’s, visualising shape, position or movement.

We’ve used AR over a host of projects to help with everything from demonstrate working parts of ships, to designing 3D sofas and helping patients through rehabilitation.

Do users need special hardware to use an AR app?

No, modern iOS and Android phones support augmented reality to the level needed for most use cases.

Occasionally some features maybe need vendor specific features, such as the project we produced for Facial Dynamics, which needed Apple’s TrueDepth camera to track facial movement accurately.

From the offset we will guide you around if there are any specific features that would lead your users to need specific phones

How much does it cost to build an AR app?

Costs vary depending on factors such as the 3D content (models, textures, product variants), if there is tracking required and how accurate it needs to be, and if it is a new app or a feature being added to an existing app or a standalone product.

If you have a project in mind please reach out and we’ll be happy to discuss approaches

How do we know AR is worth it before building a full app?

As always we recommend carrying out research before starting any project to ensure that you are building the right product for your end user.

From there we suggest building out rapid prototypes to further validate the idea before moving to a full build. This ensure that’s the feature really delivers value rather than just provides a flashy exciting gimmick.

Which industries use augmented reality apps?

AR can be used across all industries, typically it’s seen a lot through retail (for visualising products), healthcare (for visualisation and guidance), field services (for instruction and location) and property and construction (for visualisation and design).

However, any situation where interaction with the world or increased levels of tangibility are great candidates.

Can AR be used for training or field maintenance?

Absolutely, AR can provide step by step guidance through tasks, help field engineers locate assets and help trainee’s visualise tasks with a greater fidelity.

How long does it take to build an AR feature?

Often when building an augmented reality feature into an app the production of 3D models can be the longest timeline.

If you have existing models then AR features can be fairly fast to implement and sit in line with usual timelines.

If you don’t yet have models then we can help you in getting these produced through our partner network.

What 3D content do we need for AR?

Depending on the feature you’re looking to have implemented you may need 3D models and textures to display in the app. However if you are looking to display overlays through a camera view you may well not need any specific assets.

As part of the project process our team will work through with you all requirements and build out a timeline factoring in the production of everything needed.

Ways we can help

Every business is different. The way we work reflects what you need from a partnership and evolves over time in line with what you need to meet your objectives

Consulting

The right thinking, without the build Helping provide insights, expertise from across the industry and an independent point of view. Ideal for when you have in house capability but need guidance and new opinions. We bring the strategy, expertise and objectivity to solve a specific challenge or shape what’s next.

Product Teams

Everything you need to Build the Right Product. Our own dedicated teams set up to deliver your product end-to-end. Pre-built, high performing with the perfect mix of capabilities for your product. There to deliver the right outcomes from strategy through build to growth and adoption, bringing everything needed to deliver the right result

Embedded Teams

Our people, your team, one goal Our specialists join your team and work as one of you, embedded in your processes, your tools and your goals. Ideal for bringing in additional pace to an existing team, or adding complementary expertise into your delivery teams

Managed Teams

A dedicated team, without the overheads A dedicated team working on your behalf. Delivering the output of a high-performance agency team, with the benefits of a full in-house capability – and all without the overhead of managing it.

iOS App Development

With expertise and a deep understanding of Apple’s evolving ecosystem, our dedicated team of iOS app developers are committed to the seamless launch of your native app across Apple’s multiple device types

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Android App Development

With over 15 years of experience our dedicated team of Android developers are experts in Android app development. Whether you’re looking to build an app for smartphones, or something more custom, our tried and tested process has been proven to deliver across a variety of sectors

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AI Development

We’ve been helping our clients accelerate their operations, streamline performance and introduce new services, through artificial intelligence since before the world had ever heard of Chat GPT

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IoT App Development

From Headphones and Kettles to Fitness Monitors, Asset Trackers, and Medtech devices, we have over 15 years’ experience building mobile apps that integrate seamlessly with Smart Devices.

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