What Is Phygital?

Are you familiar with the relatively new buzz word, "Phygital"? It's a term that describes the blending of the physical and digital worlds. It's a concept that's been around for a while, but implementations of phygital have exponentially increased starting in 2020 thanks to Apple and Google integrating a QR code reader natively into iPhone and Android camera apps.

The idea is that the physical and digital worlds are becoming increasingly intertwined, and that this is changing the way we interact with the world around us. In this blog post, we'll take a look at what Phygital is, and how it's changing the way we augment the physical world with contextually-aware digital experiences.

Phygital Categories: Low-Cost & High-Fidelity

While low-cost QR codes and high-fidelity AR devices like Apple's Vision Pro share a similar function of melding the physical and digital worlds together, both serve very different use-cases and do not compete with each other. The following is a brief overview of these two categories of phygital.

Low Cost Phygital

QR codes are the most well known implementation of phygital technology today. Simply put a QR code is a low cost transport mechanism that commonly links physical and digital together providing value to the consumer. Near Field Communication (NFC) is another low-cost phygital transport mechanism that is used every second of every day as it is the primary technology that facilitates financial transactions via credit cards and mobile payments on devices such as the Apple Watch, iPhone, and Android devices. Just like QR, it can also be used as a transport to digital experiences. Most importantly, low-cost phygital is accessible by almost all consumers with a smartphone, making it the most popular category of phygital today.

High Fidelity Phygital

Augmented reality devices like the Meta Quest, Snapchat Spectacles, and the Apple Vision Pro are all examples of high-fidelity phygital products. These devices are immersive on a whole new and exciting level. While they are great for specific use cases like gaming, training, and entertainment, they are not practical for on-the-go, everyday use.

The Future of QR Codes

QR codes, as a low-cost and widely supported phygital transport mechanism, have a bright future. Despite assumptions that high-cost phygital devices such as Apple Vision Pro will replace low-cost phygital technology like QR and NFC in the near future, it is expected to be decades before QR codes become obsolete. Until then, QR and NFC technology will remain the most accessible and practical way to integrate your physical world with digital relevance.

QR Code Market Validation & Statistics

Now that you have solid foundational knowledge of phygital and QR codes, the following websiteplanet.com article provides compelling statistics and market validation that QR codes are here to thrive over the next decade.