At the Adobe MAX 2020 conference, Adobe announced an update to its augmented reality (AR) iOS app, ... [+]
Adobe’s AR toolset gets an iOS update and enters public beta for desktop.
Adobe Aero, the company’s augmented reality addition to Creative Cloud, launched at 2019’s Adobe MAX conference. Today, Adobe has announced Aero 2.0, as well as a new desktop version of the application that is now entering public beta.
Aero for Desktop
Until now, Aero has only been available for smartphone—and only publicly available for iOS. With the launch of Aero for Desktop, creators can now edit AR content on both Mac and Windows—though Android users should note that an iOS device is still required for viewing AR content.
Aero for Desktop is designed to increase productivity and precision for creators. While an iOS-based smartphone will be required to view any exported content, the desktop app allows users to assemble a simulated preview of what the experience will be with the larger screen real estate of the computer.
Adobe Aero for Desktop is now in public beta.
The desktop app also allows creators to directly access content from other apps, streamlining the process of creating, importing, and editing AR experiences. According to an official blog post published today:
“[Y]ou can see all the content that’s laid out on the canvas at one time, manage more sophisticated scenes, and make intricate design choices ... You can easily assemble scene assets and precisely edit their placement in a non-AR view, either before you test them in Aero mobile or while making adjustments to color and texture after prototyping in the real world environment on Aero mobile (iOS).”
New Features in Aero 2.0 (iOS)
In addition to its desktop beta, Adobe has included a slate of new features in Aero that are designed to amplify what creators can build and share in augmented reality.
“This latest update of Adobe Aero will further democratize the creation of AR content, enabling creatives of all experience levels to design AR experiences without code,” said Adobe VP and Head of Augmented Reality Stefano Corazza. “Aero’s new apps, on mobile and desktop, offer more control and precision than ever before with better interoperability—with other tools and across device—and enabling new formats.”
GIFs and PNGs
In both desktop and mobile, creators can now import GIFs and PNGs to aid with 2D animations, including the ability to set triggers to prompt content to play at specific times in AR experiences
Multi-track animation
In Aero 2.0, Adobe has introduced multi-track animations so that existing animations can be played sequentially, which Adobe hopes will help creators more comprehensively animate their AR experiences. Users can also enable 3D characters with pre-recorded animations.
Publishing
Share links in Aero now include the option to add custom thumbnails or generate a QR code, which can be posted anywhere, allowing anyone with an iOS device to instantly access AR experiences.
Behance “Discovery” tab
A new tab on iOS will now show curated AR content published by Aero creators. By tapping on a project in the Discovery tab, users will be able to bring the experience directly into their environments. Users will also be able to publish their own Aero AR projects to their Behance profiles.
