Dell Technologies has announced a first of its kind augmented reality app for IT repairs, the Dell AR Assistant. This free application (available on both IOS and Android) provides a step by step augmented reality experience to help customers replace parts on their Dell systems, enabling the next generation of consumer repairability.
AR Assistant users can see their devices and how to repair them using mixed reality and informational overlays on the machine being repaired, leveraging a smartphone camera. The app also has an augmented clone technology on select systems, which displays a cloned server in any desired space and allows a full 360 degree interaction.
Dell’s AR Assistant guides users through servicing and repair procedures for more than 100 Dell PCs and servers in seven different languages. Dell is currently working to add over 20 additional systems by the end of the summer.
The aim is to enable consumers to easily repair devices themselves where they are able to and ultimately reducing repair time for issues that can be resolved by the users themselves, with a little help from Dell. The app’s development was fast tracked during the early months of the pandemic when technicians were unable to visit people’s homes. Currently the use of the Dell AR Assistant is dependent on proper diagnosis first, then ordering parts through the technical support team. The future plan is to make parts more readily and easily available for sale online for an even easier customer experience.
The Dell AR Assistant also upholds Dell’s wide-reaching and longstanding commitment to sustainability. By making parts more accessible, replaceable and reusable, Dell can exhaust fewer resources and keep more circular materials in the economy, while helping customers extend the life of their systems.