Target's Mobile Website Gains Augmented Reality Feature for Previewing Furniture

With the launch of ARKit, many app developers are building augmented reality experiences into their app, but Target is taking a different approach and implementing an augmented reality feature into its entire mobile website.

Target's new "See It In Your Space" option is designed to let you take a photo of a room in your house and then use augmented reality tools to determine how a piece of furniture will match with your decor.

Guests shopping the new Project 62 line can use the feature to place three-dimensional versions of real Target home products within photos of actual rooms at home, and move them around at proper scale to see how they'd look--all before buying the product.

Once a guest finds, say, a floor lamp or bedside table on Target.com using their smartphone, they simply tap the product's See It In Your Space button and follow steps to do just that.

Target isn't using ARKit for this augmented reality implementation, so there's no live photo viewing of furniture in the room, but Target's decision to adopt the feature speaks to how popular augmented reality is becoming with retailers.

Popular furniture manufacturer IKEA recently released an ARKit app for previewing furniture in the home, and similar apps are also available from companies like Anthropologie, Ashley Furniture, Wayfair, and more.

Right now, Target's augmented reality feature is limited to products that are part of its Project 62 line, with a limited number of furniture pieces and accessories supporting the in-home viewing feature. Target says the augmented reality functionality will expand to hundreds more products by the end of the year and thousands of products in 2018.

See It In Your Space is available on the Target.com website on any smartphone, iPhones included.