Zappar WebAR

connell · May 9, 2019, 2:55pm

Hey everyone!

I’m super excited to announce the beta of the web version of our technology

What is it?
Zappar WebAR is the same Zappar app technology but running in the web browser rather than a separate app you install on your phone. Users can scan and enjoy Zappar content in the browser without having to download any apps. You can access Zappar WebAR here:
https://web.zappar.com/

Why is it so cool?

Most existing Zappar content works in Zappar WebAR without modification
Most features of our platform are supported in the web, and where there are gaps in functionality (which may be due to browser constraints) we’ve implemented graceful fallbacks to improve the user experience
Users don’t need any special web browsers; the version of Safari or Chrome that came with their device should work

Why is it ‘beta’?

We make extensive use of new web browser functionality to make this work, and so we expect that Zappar WebAR will not be as stable or featureful as the Zappar native mobile apps while browser technology matures and our implementation is road-tested. In particular:

larger content experiences may hit memory limits faster in the browser than they would in the app
browsers don’t give us as much control over the camera as native apps do, so tracking may suffer a little
lots of the performance optimizations we have in the native apps aren’t available in the browser, so things may be a bit slower

What’s coming?

In addition to improving Zappar WebAR as we go, we’re making changes to ZapWorks to better integrate WebAR support into your content development workflow.

Summary

We recommend that you direct users to the native Zappar apps while the web version is in beta. In the mean time feel free to try your content out at https://web.zappar.com/, and let us know how you get on! We’d love to hear your feedback - what works, what doesn’t, etc

Cheers,
Connell

tsguterres · May 10, 2019, 6:33pm

Is there a way to launch the WebAR app loaded with a Zappar content from a link? For the native app i can use the Deeplink ‘https://zpr.link/z/’ and would like to do the same with the WebAR.

seyed.kamali · May 11, 2019, 9:56am

Hi Connell
I have excited to hear about this good and convenient feature please let me know if I want to add this link to my home screen and use it what should I do? I added it in my home screen but when I tap on it I see this message in screen shots.
Thanks
Miri
ARshow Agency

connell · May 11, 2019, 10:17am

Hi @tsguterres,

Great question, and the answer is… yes

The format is like this:
https://web.zappar.com/?zid=z/…

Where that last z/… bit is the same z/… bit from the zpr.link deep link.

There are some extra other options that you might like to add:
rs=0 <- hides the rescan button
menu=0 <- hides the menu button

So that would look like this:
https://web.zappar.com/?rs=0&menu=0&zid=z/…

Let me know if that works for you

Cheers,
Connell

connell · May 11, 2019, 10:21am

Hi @seyed.kamali ,

Unfortunately Apple use different settings for sites that are launched directly from the home screen which means we can’t access the camera We’re hoping that will change in future versions of iOS since we agree it would be convenient!

Cheers,
Connell

seyed.kamali · May 11, 2019, 10:47am

Thanks Connell

technology · May 11, 2019, 7:38pm

Hi
So if i just add the last bit of this deep link - https://zpr.link/z/TNQl1c

To https;//web.zappar.com/?zid=

It will open the scene in my mobile browser?

Doesn’t seem to work when i try it

connell · May 12, 2019, 9:25am

Hi @technology!

It’s just the z/… bit that goes on the end, like this:
https://web.zappar.com/?zid=z/TNQl1c

Let me know if that works for you

Cheers,
Connell

technology · May 13, 2019, 6:46am

Hi yes that works.

Presumably with WebAR there’s not way to also put a UI on the screen?

Thanks

connell · May 13, 2019, 9:16am

Hi @technology,

Which of our tools are you using (e.g. Widgets, Designer or Studio)? The WebAR platform should work in the same way as the app does - so you can build UI elements in Studio projects in the usual way

Cheers,
Connell

somnath678 · May 13, 2019, 10:33am

Hey @connell first of all congratulation for launching webAR :)…

It really works well for my project and I hope ppl will find it more interesting compared to dedicated AR mobile application.

I am curious to understand that, all feature which works in the mobile app will work exactly the same in the browser also? Or is there any certain limitation/advantage?

I personally find webAR image tracking much better than the mobiel app AR but I also got some issues with sound playing. ( Sent mail to support@zappar.com as well)

Thanks,
Somnath

jgcordoba · May 13, 2019, 1:52pm

Hello, I see that it does not work inside a mobile device if it is embedded in an iFrame. Only if it is a direct link.

Any solution or improvement?

It would be interesting to be able to embed it in an iFrame within an APP, thus avoiding having to download the Native APP from Zappar.

Thank you.

technology · May 13, 2019, 3:35pm

Using Studio - a basic interface with buttons that lead to images opening, sounds and so on. Basic pointer down events…

Seb · May 23, 2019, 10:29am

Hi @technology,

As Connell mentioned, you’ll be able to build your own UI and functionality as you would normally for any of your other Studio experiences.

Essentially, the beta WebAR support means that your experiences can be viewed in-browser as they would be through the Zappar app.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

All the best,
Seb

technology · May 31, 2019, 7:44am

Hi
Just trying to use this link in WebAR - https://web.zappar.com/?zid=z/w3Go1c

And the button interface doesn’t work at all. Any reason why that would be?

Thanks

George · May 31, 2019, 4:03pm

Hi @technology,

Seems to be working fine for me.

Don’t forget that WebAR is still designed to be used for mobile devices, it’s an alternative way of viewing Zappar content without downloading the app. Mouse input is not something that is currently supported by WebAR.

Hope this helps.

George

technology · May 31, 2019, 4:48pm

But it works for a bit then the buttons stop working…

shan · May 31, 2019, 4:52pm

Hi I tested with with world tracking on a S9 and it says device does not support world tracking so I assume ARCore cannot be accessed in webAR? Or are there any plans to add it in the future?

hadleverest · July 2, 2019, 8:42am

Will there be an update of the WebAR soonish? It’s just to me that it’s not yet ready to share with customers but at the same time the app-download is such a big hurdle to get people involved. Would be amazing to hear back from you

George · July 2, 2019, 9:05am

Hi @hadleverest,

Another one of the amazing benefits with WebAR is that we can update it constantly, without the need to wait or download an update on the user end.

Since the release we have been fixing bugs with experiences made in our Widgets and Designer tools. You may have noticed that these now function as they should now.

@shan, world tracking is currently not something that our WebAR tech supports. We are working on it!

We will continue with the frequent updates on our forum and will let you know when WebAR is out of the Beta testing state.

Hope this helps.

George