Spark AR and Lens Studio are both platforms for creating augmented reality experiences. Comparing Spark AR vs Lens Studio is a tricky job because Spark AR is owned by Meta(Facebook) and used in Instagram filters, whereas Lens Studio is Snapchat’s proprietary AR tool, and both are parallel to each other.
Spark AR Studio and Lens Studio are the top AR tools out there, and both have good features, but also have some pros and cons.
Spark AR Studio vs Lens Studio
The Spark AR is made for Facebook Camera, and also works with Instagram and Oculus. Whereas Lens Studio only works with Snapchat. Excluding platform compatibility, let’s discuss which AR tool is best.
Which AR software has better Scripting
Both Lens Studio and Spark AR allow you to add a custom script, and make it run according to your need.
- Lens Studio – Javascript
In lens studio, scripts are written in Javascript, and also have a bunch of Helper Scripts(pre-defined scripts) to add interactivity. With the help of Javascript, your lens can respond to touch inputs, and you can create a mini-game.
- Spark AR – Javascript/Typescript
The Spark AR allows you to write scripts in Javascript and Typescript. It has 2 programming languages that give freedom to the developers. But in terms of scripting, users found Lens studio is slightly better compared to Spark AR.
Which AR has better UI
Both tools have a similar UI as Unity Game Engine, making it easier for game developers to switch to AR. Also, they both offer rapid performance, rendering, and deployment with similar system requirements. However, Spark AR provides a unique advantage with a Dark and Light Theme, while Lens Studio is limited to Dark Mode.
The significant difference is that you can preview and test your lens within the IDE or pair it with your Snapchat. But with Spark AR, you need to download a dedicated Spark AR Player to test your filters.
Spark AR vs Lens Studio Face Recognization
Face recognization is much better in Snapchat because the AI is trained with a huge amount of samples. After all, most people use it to take selfies.
On Instagram, users consume more and create less, making it a recommendation engine that keeps users addicted to scrolling. However, with fewer users taking selfies, the AI training sample size is limited.
Lens Studio vs Spark AR Surface Detection
Surface detection is a little better in Lens Studio, and again it is the same reason. Snapchat’s rear camera is widely used to place dancing Bitmoji on the floor, and it has more samples for AI to get trained.
The features are similar in both Augmented Reality, but we are discussing accuracy. Both Lens Studio and Spark AR Studio have Face detection, object detection, position tracking, etc.
Speech Recognization
- Spark AR Voice UI – With Spark AR you can tweak the voice input to make it sound funny, dramatic, or whatever you wish, but it doesn’t have speech recognization.
- Lens Studio Voice UI – Lens Studio has speech recognization with transcription enabled. You can add voice commands to your filters to make them more interactive.
Conclusion
In the end, it’s not about which software has better features, both the tools have similar features with a slight differentiation. It depends on your purpose, If you want to develop a filter for Snapchat, Lens Studio is the only option. If you want it for Instagram/Facebook, except for Spark AR Studio you don’t have any other option.
There are tons of ways to make your Snapchat and Instagram filter profitable, you should decide what you are interested in.
For starters, remember that people use Snapchat to take selfies that make them look better than they are, whereas, on Instagram, the AR filters are widely used to play games such as Guessing Age, Guessing Nationality, and so on. So you should be clear with your purpose.