Amazon retail stores could let you shop in augmented and virtual reality

Amazon could soon give customers the option to part with their cash through a physical store equipped with virtual and augmented reality.

According to a report from the New York Times, the potential store would offer a look at home and furniture wares in a number of different room setups, similar to how many companies already offer alternative looks through a VR headset from home.

Instead of looking online and trying to figure out how a desk or couch would fit in with your room, you would simply use the store as a bridge to help settle arguments on items.

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The company's ambition to add physical stores to its online mix is well known, with the report noting it could also look to challenge tech rivals by building Apple-like cathedrals filled with hardware such as the Echo speaker.

This is all very much in the preliminary stages, and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has said in the past, the company won't delve into this without being able to offer something unique. The concept of augmented reality stores certainly ticks that box, alongside the recent test of its grocery store, Amazon Go.

Even still, there are stumbling blocks for Amazon to overcome before we're all wandering around trying to pick out a new chair. Primarily, there's a chance the tech just simply isn't worth implementing passed a research stage. As the New York Times mentions, the folks over at Amazon are encouraged to come up with 'zany initiatives' — likely leading to many being abandoned.

If we're being optimistic about this potential project, though, it's worth pointing out that Amazon is the ideal candidate, in theory, to pull something like this off. After all, this is a company that is in the process of making same-day drone deliveries a thing.

Source: New York Times