Guess Who? A new way to identify people

         The Astonishing Tribe, a Swedish mobile software firm has been developing a new augmented reality app called Recognizr. This mobile application allows you to get some information (name, address, phone number…) about a lambda person. By pointing your mobile device at a person’s face, you will have data on persons and their social networking life.

Recognizr works by matching the most distinctive features of the face such as the eyes, nose and chin. Then, the app turns the face into a 3D model, and checks it against a database. After recognizing the face, the person’s social networking profile icons will display. These icons (twitter, Skype, business card…) will allow you to access to personal information and, by tapping on the Twitter icon for example, you will see the person’s Twitter address and his/her last tweets. You will also be able to save the information right on the spot.

Since the first version called Augmented ID, the recognition process and the interface’s design have been improved such as the icons, now more visible and easily movable. To set up an account, take a picture of yourself and then set your associated sites by dragging icons onto your face. You can share as little or as much as you desire and users will only see what you choose to share. Of course, you will receive details about the person you’re looking at only if he or she also signed up for Recognizr. Watch the video demos of both Augmented ID and Recognizr. Judge for yourself! (Click on the following links: Augmented ID; Recognizr)

Recognizr, a revolution in the world business meeting? It’s very true that this app could become a daily-life tool for you, as event and tourism professionals, since it helps to identify people, developing social networks and sharing data. Among its features, the application could also help you to improve efficiency and time-saving (direct and speed downloading of personal information).

Moreover, you can get involved in the environmental protection, you wouldn’t to bring business cards or printed version of professional presentations anymore. All would be shared directly with your smartphones. Recognizr is also a new tool to transfer knowledge, as everything become very easy, fast and available everywhere and every time.

However, Recognizr could face ethical issues: privacy data and information control are two of them. Indeed, even if you can choose what personal and professional information you want to share, you cannot always control who exactly will access to it and their intentions. For instance, confidential reports could be downloaded by external people during presentations or very personal information could be wrongly used. Another disadvantage of this mobile app is the feeling of uncomfortably of people and particularly speakers being track by attendees with their smartphones.

This app also comforts the wish of the Generation Y to meet and share virtually, but is it the real way to make contact? Creating a network where people never interact physically to each other: is it the near future of the industry? Please give us your opinion!

 

Key Words: Recognizr, recognizing, application, information, social networking, share, identify

 

Source: Perez, S. (2010, February 24). Recognizr: Facial Recognition Coming to Android Phones. Retrieved January 11, 2012, from Read Write Web: http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/Recognizr_facial_recognition_coming_to_android_phones.php