Skip to main content

Amazon retail stores could use augmented reality to sell furniture, appliances

Amazon HQ
Ken Wolter / Shutterstock
Amazon’s brick-and-mortar ambitions could be about to head in yet another direction with a store selling furniture and home appliances that uses augmented reality (AR) to help customers choose their goods.

Seattle-based Amazon is considering a plan that would let customers use AR technology to see the goods in different kinds of setups, a person claiming to have knowledge of the matter told the NY Times.

A number of firms already offer apps that let you see how virtual furniture and other goods would look in your home, so Amazon’s apparent plan doesn’t sound particularly groundbreaking, according to what we currently know. IKEA, for example, launched an AR app four years ago that lets you use a smartphone or tablet to superimpose furniture into rooms in your home.

However, Amazon’s plan appears to confirm its ongoing interest in exploring opportunities for businesses with physical locations, rather than simply relying on its web-based venture for revenue. Amazon is already operating five physical bookstores across the U.S., the most recent one opening in Chicago just last week. And the company hit the headlines recently when it started testing a grocery store concept — Amazon Go — where customers can walk in, grab what they need, and leave without hitting a cash desk; the system’s incorporated technology causes the cost of the items to be automatically deducted from the shopper’s account.

The Times’ report said the ecommerce giant is also looking into the idea of building stores “similar to Apple’s retail emporiums.” But rather than displaying iPhones and iPads on the tables, the store would showcase Amazon’s steadily expanding inventory of hardware items, including e-readers, tablets, and Echo speakers.

Of course, it’s possible that the proposed AR-based store won’t even make it past the research stage, especially if Amazon decides it’s too hard to implement or considers the potential reward too small. As the Times points out, “groups within Amazon are often encouraged to come up with zany initiatives,” with many presumably abandoned early on.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said five years ago that he had little interest in building physical retail stores unless he could come up with something unique. Amazon Go is certainly just that, and Amazon Books offers a slightly different take on the traditional bookstore, but whether a concept mixing AR with furniture and appliances manages to convince executives that it’s an idea worth pursuing remains to be seen.

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5, Surface Pro 9 heavily discounted today
The Surface Pro 9 in laptop mode on a table.

Microsoft's Surface devices are well known for their versatility and performance, but they command premium prices. That's why there's always high demand for Surface Laptop and Surface Pro deals, as who doesn't want to enjoy a discount when making a huge investment? If you're interested, Best Buy is offering the Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 at $300 off, which brings its price down to $1,000 from $1,300, and the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 at $540 off, which lowers its price also to $1,000 from $1,540, ahead of the arrival of the consumer versions of the Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10. You need to push through with your transaction as soon as possible if either of these bargains caught your attention, as we're not sure how much time is remaining before they disappear.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 -- $1,000, was $1,300

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 is a traditional Windows 11 laptop that's powered by the 12th-generation Intel Core i5 Evo processor, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, and 8GB of RAM. It won't match up to the performance of the best laptops, but it's going to be more than enough to handle daily tasks for work or school. The laptop features a 13.5-inch PixelSense touchscreen with vibrant colors and sharp details, a battery that can last up to 18 hours on a single charge, and a 512GB SSD that provides ample storage space for your files. The Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 also comes with a 720p webcam and dual far-field Studio Mics for clear video calls.

Read more
The best MacBook to buy in 2024
Apple MacBook Pro 16 downward view showing keyboard and speaker.

Now that Apple has started outfitting its laptops with its M3 generation of chips, it's time to take another look at which is the best MacBook to buy in 2024. That’s not always easy, though, as buying the newest MacBook isn’t always the right decision. Apple has several tiers of performance, as well as various sizes, which can further complicate the matter.

What’s more, you can also still get M1 and M2 MacBooks, some from Apple’s own website and some from third-party retailers. But are they still worth your money? Our guide should help you decide.

Read more
9 best laptops of 2024: tested and reviewed
The MacBook Air on a white table.

To earn the crown as the best laptop in 2024, a device needs to have it all: gorgeous design, killer performance, a productive keyboard, long-lasting battery life, and much more.

Each of the laptops below has been vetted thoroughly by Digital Trends. Whether it's an affordable Chromebook or a top-of-the-line gaming laptop, they've all been subjected to real-world testing, as well as benchmark and battery tests, to collect enough data to objectively pit them against each other.

Read more