E-commerce: issues with AR technology


Nowadays, e-commerce merchants can leverage AR technology to enhance shopping experience. This tech gives customers the opportunity to virtually try on clothes before buying them online. It involves using a computer, phone or tablet screen as a mirror reflecting a shopper while overlaying the chosen garments on his/her image.

Some researchers from Iowa State University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute conducted a study on the efficiency of this technology. They asked participants to use augmented reality to virtually try on a dress, select a size to order and then to wear the same item in real life. Afterwards, they had to evaluate both fittings for size, fit and performance.

There were mixed results for the AR technology. While participants were able to find the right size with the digital tool, they had trouble with evaluating the fit at the bust, waist and hips. The researchers suggested that it might be because the image of the dress was a 2D one. Moreover, the dress form’s hourglass shape did not match the body shape of all participants.

Nonetheless, despite these limitations, the respondents reacted positively to the tech. One of the researchers advanced that it “is still a promising technology, because AR can provide good visual information that improves consumer attitudes and purchase intentions”


Customers are excited about AR

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