Earlier this month, Apple announced the arrival of its new mobile operating system: iOS 12. One of the features which is highlighted as part of iOS 12 is a new app called Measure, which is described as “an augmented-reality app that works as a virtual ruler to measure length or distance using your iPhone’s camera.” Immediately following the announcement, we received many questions about what this meant for the future of My Size and our smart measurement technology.
To answer these questions, I first want to clarify a few things about the Measure app and our own technology here at My Size. First, and most importantly, Measure is not a technology that is developed for industries like retail, where apparel sizing constitutes much more than simple length and width measurements. Many companies have tried – unsuccessfully – to measure body size through photographs alone.
MySizeID.com utilizes the sensors – not the camera – of the mobile phone to take body measurements which provides a more accurate measurement and also reduces privacy issues of transmitting photos of consumers in some level of undress. MySizeID is also intended for use by consumers AND retailers, not just the end consumer. For retailers we provide a white label app/SDK that can easily be implemented into an existing Android or iOS app, as well as integration into an e-commerce and m-commerce website and a dashboard system for data management. In short, our technology provides a total solution; it’s not just another measurement app.
The same goes for the shipping/parcel industry, where couriers also need to know volumetric measurements, and seek out technology that can make logistics more efficient. Our BoxSizeID solution provides a richer feature-set than a camera-powered mobile application can, as BoxSizeID is not affected by background light conditions or contrast between the measured object and the background, like the camera was in iOS 11.4.
In most shipping/parcel centers, there are thousands of packages which are all very close to each other and in different lighting conditions. Using just a camera to measure a package requires the user to have some distance from the package, as well as optimal lighting conditions – something that just doesn’t exist in a warehouse environment. Once again, our BoxSizeID utilizes the sensors inside of a mobile device to take a measurement, not the camera, and works with both Android and iOS. Our technology for surface and body measurement has also been granted multiple patents over the years.
Last, it’s important to point out that while the Measure app will be made standard on every Apple device moving forward, their global market share of smartphone devices was only 14.7% as of Q12017 , which was a decrease from the same quarter a year prior. Android still represents the vast majority of the consumer mobile device market (85%), including within the shipping and parcel industry that utilizes rugged handheld devices, and which BoxSizeID currently serves.
Ultimately, we remained laser-focused on our own technology on our continue penetration of the retail/apparel and shipping/parcel markets. We believe Apple’s entrance into the smartphone measurement market validates the need for the technology, and we also believe that our solutions are best positioned to provide the benefit businesses are looking for to impact their bottom line.
– Ronen Luzon, CEO, My Size, Inc.
