Ever seen someone wearing an outfit you’ve been desperate to get your hands on? Or can your friend not remember where they got that pair of shoes? A new app called Style-Eyes is looking to court you (sorry, fashion conscious men: the app is initially focused on women’s clothing).
The app has been brought to life Mark Hughes, Bobby Pringle and Oisin MacFhearaí, using new image recognition technology developed at DCU's CLARITY Centre.
The way the new app works will be familiar to anyone who has used music identification software Shazam. To use Style-Eyes, the user just needs to take a photo of the clothes in question - whether that’s a fetching outfit on the street or the dress of a model in a magazine. The software then analyses the picture and scans through the offerings of 1,300 different clothing brands - including the likes of House of Fraser and Debenhams. The developers are promising 350,000 separate items are recognised. If you find the correct item, you can then opt to purchase it from within the app itself at a discounted rate.
The idea originated with Hughes, who said he was inspired to start developing the technology after his girlfriend spent weeks searching for a coat she had seen a stranger wearing. Hughes decided to team up with MacFhearaí and Pringle, with the former observing their software “can now analyse any image and identify characteristics like the shape, size, pattern or design of any piece of clothing”.
Pringle, head of Business Development with Style-Eyes, says that clothing companies were quick to jump on board. “79% of people use their mobile phone to help them shop, but it can be a really laborious process if you’re looking for something specific,” he explains. “What’s unique about our app is that it allows people to find what they’re looking for immediately, and the retailers loved that”.
Style-Eyes has already made waves, earning the Enterprise Ireland One to Watch award and securing Samsung’s support for a launch at Dublin Fashion Festival.
The free Style-Eyes App is now available on the Google Play Store, and will launch on the iOS App Store on the 11th September. Users can also upload photos directly to the Style Eyes website.
