The smell of grilled sardines fills the promenade and mingles with the perfume of tourists. Amid the smoke from the embers and the sound of the waves, summer unfolds its most classic routine. But this year, there's a new ingredient in the mix: wearable technology and augmented reality apps that promise to enhance the beach experience.
Augmented reality to not miss the perfect grilling point 🐟
Several developers have launched apps that geolocate the beach bars with the best octopus and the terraces where the sardine is at its exact point. Using the phone's camera, the user sees overlaid data such as cooking time, the type of wood used, or the crowd level. The logic is simple: optimize the coastal gastronomic route. However, GPS fails when you get under an umbrella, and the heat makes the battery last less than an ice cube in the sun.
The new sensor that detects the exact moment of I already got stained 😅
After testing three different apps, I've come to a conclusion: technology still can't measure the most critical factor of summer. I'm referring to the precise instant when the sardine fat splatters and stains the white t-shirt you put on for the Instagram photo. The latest generation sensors fail miserably. The only reliable algorithm remains survival instinct and a pack of wet wipes in the backpack.