The Versatile Applications of Various Types of Holograms
Brands are embracing holographic displays amidst a general shift to more creative forms of customer outreach. Growing demand for holographic displays is evident in the market size, which was valued at $38.6 billion last year. Moreover, increased uptake for and application of holograms is anticipated—the market is expected to reach $43.9 billion this year and more than double to $94.9 billion by 2032.
So, what are businesses using holograms for?
In the past, hologram applications and use cases have mainly been industrial, where they are leveraged to showcase product configurations and inner structures and workings. In fact, holograms have been celebrated for improving and accelerating product development by enabling improved collaboration and faster, easier, less costly prototyping.
But today, the scope of application for holograms is expanding: holograms are becoming a staple in marketing and are even taking center stage in entertainment. Hugo Boss’s Spring/ Summer campaign this year included 33-foot tall holograms of supermodel Gisele Bündchen and South Korean actor Lee Min-ho that were beamed before the city’s renowned Tower Bridge. Mercedes-Benz created awareness of its “blind spot assist” feature in Berlin using a holographic prism. Fashion and automobile marketers aren’t the only ones either. Entertainment industry marketers have also been dabbling with holograms. Late rapper Tupac was “resurrected” at Coachella a decade ago, and more recently, musician Drake appeared on stage with a hologram of his younger self.
In this blog, we’ll explore the applications of various hologram formats beyond industry-specific use cases.
Notable hologram formats and applications for businesses
There are a wide variety of hologram display formats, which, in turn, offer a variety of applications for holograms in the business world. These innovative formats enable innovative customer-facing applications of holograms, including marketing, improved UX, entertainment, and more.
For the large part, Holo displays are visible to the naked eye, and your audience would typically not need special glasses to view them. That said, some types of holograms call for a unique lens. Both categories relate to similar hologram display applications; only how they are viewed varies.
Let’s take a look at some of these applications across both categories, starting with holograms that do not require wearables.
Here, moving holograms are generated by LED lights affixed to the holo fan’s blades. What you get is a dancing, spinning hologram.
Applications for this type of hologram:
- Retail environments where you may want to showcase a product from all angles, like this Adidas promo.
- Entertainment events, as a centrepieces or as part of the decor, or even to highlight headlining artists and brands.
Cost implications: Rs 20,000 to Rs 4 lakh for the hardware, determined by features like dimensions and hologram resolution.
Holo Boxes
This hologram format is the stuff of science fiction movies of the past, where you can actually showcase people, products, and experiences as life-size holograms. The concept of the holobox can also be expanded to create a holo wall, giving you a more comprehensive display area.
Applications for this type of hologram:
- Telepresence, or showing up virtually at another location like this hotel chain that uses holographic telepresence via a holo box to offer assistance to guests without needing a special employee onsite for the job. Or this exhibitor who showed up at an expo, possibly without ever leaving his office.
- It may also be used to showcase real-estate projects to potential buyers, development partners, homeowner associations, and regulators.
- Holo boxes can also be used to showcase automobiles, as BMW has done here.
Cost implications: Rs 45,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh for the hardware, corresponding to dimensions and other factors impacting hologram quality.
Holo Pyramids
This type of hologram, also sometimes referred to as a holo cube, has traction and multi-taction features, allowing single or multiple users to control the hologram as they view it.
Applications for this type of hologram:
- Showcase smaller products to customers, like priceless jewellery, at exhibitions or priceless artwork at remote auctions.
- Display food products at food courts, fast food chains, and quick-service restaurants.
- Display processes in education or behind-the-scenes presentations to customers or B2B clients.
- There is also a new concept of “desktop companion” that is pegged on this type of technology.
Cost implications: Rs 60,000 to Rs 1.3 lakh for the hardware.
HoloScreen
As the name suggests, this type of hologram displays holographic images within a sort of transparent screen.
Applications for this type of hologram:
- Best for retail and exhibition-based displays or even “coming soon” or “visit this exhibit” announcements at art galleries and museums
- It might also work for telepresence and other displays we talked about under Holo Box and Holo Wall.
Now we look at two types of holograms that need additional hardware and the wearables that go with these types of holo displays.
Holo Beam
This point cloud data streaming technique projects holographic images into the user’s environment, allowing for interactive experiences. While it calls for additional hardware, it comes with another big positive: it will enable you to send holographs over the web. It falls more under the category of real-time 3D visualization rather than holograms by strict definition, but it definitely merits a mention when on the subject of holograms. Observe how it works here.
Holo Table
This hologram format allows you to create holographic images rising from a table.
Applications of this type of hologram:
- Product displays
- Experience showcases
- Avant-garde gaming
Useful in product and experience display but also avant-garde gaming.
HoloLens and HoloLens2
These are mixed-reality headsets developed by Microsoft. These wearables overlay holographic images onto the real world and can be used to view the above two formats of holograms.
Cost implications: Pricing: Approx Rs 3 lakh.
Holograms: A whole new approach to promotions and entertainment
Hologram formats and applications must align with your brand’s goals. Whether it’s for marketing, telepresence, or product showcases, choosing the right type ensures a better ROI. Beyond these early decisions, consider the intricacies of execution, ongoing maintenance, and future upgrades to keep your displays impactful and relevant. With the right strategy, holograms offer limitless potential for creativity and customer engagement.
magineu can support your holographic display journey from concept to execution, maintenance, and upgrades, drawing from the expertise developed from working on immersive experiences for top brands. Contact us now to brainstorm ideas.
