Shopify’s iOS 12 update adds AR shopping support for 600,000 stores

E-commerce platform Shopify now offers support for AR Quick Look, an iOS 12 feature that builds augmented reality support directly into the Safari browser.

TechCrunch notes that the move means that the roughly 600,000 online stores that run on Shopify’s platform can now build in the ability for customers to view products in augmented reality without having to download any additional apps.

A trailer released by Shopify shows off this functionality to view PureCycles’ bicycles before purchase to get an idea of the size and shape of the product before it arrives.

The usefulness of the functionality is likely to vary between different retailers. PureCycles reports that 50 to 60 percent of visitors to its site are on mobile, while 70…

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How to Ride a Bike at 184 MPH

Guts, legs of unobtanium, a friend with a drag racer, and a keen sense of aerodynamics are all key to Denise Mueller-Korenek’s mission: setting the bike land speed record.

Pandora’s newest playlist The Drop sounds a lot like Spotify’s Release Radar

Pandora is taking on Spotify directly with a curated playlist called The Drop. It’s similar to Spotify’s Release Radar, focusing on introducing listeners to new releases from artists they already like.

The two playlists have more than a bit in common. Both playlists from Pandora and Spotify are timed to the day that artists release songs on the platforms. (Fridays have been the industry standard since 2015.) They’re also both made by machines. Release Radar generates songs using Echo Nest technology to comb through every part of a song to determine what you like to listen to. The Drop, similarly, is based on algorithms, although Pandora hasn’t given much detail on how it works.

Pandora…

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