The digital transformation of the design world continues with the immense growth in popularity of augmented reality (AR) apps over the last year or so. At the practitioners’ end of the scale, AR has the game-changing potential to influence design itself. But for design consumers, its benefit is the significant improvement it can offer to the experience of a design.

Thoroughly enhanced engagement and personalisation are key aspects of AR’s benefit to design consumers, and this potential has driven its phenomenal rise in popularity recently. 

But not all AR apps are created equal. Louis Poulsen recently announced its presence among a suite of top Danish design brands in the new Danish Design AR app for iPhone and iPad. “The Danish Design AR app uses by far the most sophisticated technology we’ve seen in an augmented reality app for interiors,” says Louis Poulsen CEO Søren Mygind Esklidsen.

The app allows you to freely place products in your real-world environment and create life-like walk-through simulations. “You can get a real sense of how the items interact with your space,” says Esklidsen.

Elaborating on the user experience of the virtual space, Jacob Østergaard, CEO of Danish Design AR developer Utopian City Scape, says: “You can walk very close to and around the furniture and lighting pieces and get a sense of the materials and craftsmanship, which we believe is a necessity to really experience these unique designs.”

The app (which must be used with an AR-compatible device) was designed for intuitive use by anyone, unlike many of the interior simulation programs that typically require a professional background in architecture and design. Objects can be placed, moved, rotated, and viewed from any angle.

The ability to take sharable screenshots or video within the app is on the mark with regard to the user-experience potential of AR. A fun and social experience – beyond the pure decision-making function at the heart of such a use of AR – capitalises on its potential to enhance our consumption of design.

The range of products in the Danish Design AR catalogue is growing and Østergaard expects it to reach 100 soon. Alongside iconic Louis Poulsen lamps are products from brands including Republic of Fritz Hansen, House of Finn Juhl, Erik Jørgensen, PP Møbler and more. Danish Design AR is available from the App Store.

Read another story about the future of AR in the built environment here.