The short answer
An AR card (augmented reality card) is a real printed card — the kind you send in the mail — that plays a video when the recipient points their smartphone camera at the printed image on the front.
The video does not live on the card itself. It is stored online and linked to the exact pixels of the printed photo using a technology called Natural Feature Tracking (NFT). When the phone camera recognises the printed image, it overlays the video on top of it in real time — a technique called augmented reality, or AR.
The effect looks like something out of a Harry Potter film: a printed photo that comes alive and plays a moving image when you look at it through a screen. It is real technology that works in any modern smartphone browser, with no app required.
How is an AR card different from a QR code card?
A QR code card shows a square barcode on the front or back. The recipient has to find the code, scan it, and follow a link. It works, but it feels like a voucher, not a greeting.
An AR card uses the printed photo itself as the trigger. There is no separate code to scan. You just open the viewer URL in your browser, point the camera at the card, and the video plays on top of the image. The experience is seamless and magical — because the card looks normal until you hold a phone up to it.
The technology behind AR cards
AR cards from ARVideoCards are powered by WebAR — augmented reality that runs entirely inside a web browser using WebAssembly and WebRTC. No app download. No operating system requirement beyond a modern browser.
The printed image is linked to a video using NFT image tracking(Natural Feature Tracking). The tracking algorithm analyses the unique visual features of the printed photo — edges, textures, contrast patterns — and builds a fingerprint. When the phone camera sees that fingerprint, it anchors the video to the printed surface and plays it in real time.
This is the same family of technology used in industrial AR and museum experiences, now running in a postcard-sized consumer product.
What makes a good AR card?
The printed image on an AR card must be high-contrast and visually complex enough for the NFT tracking to lock onto it reliably. Plain solid-color images track poorly. Photographs with people, landscapes, or objects with clear edges work best.
The video attached to the card should be short — typically under 60 seconds — and filmed in reasonable lighting. The AR viewer scales the video to match the printed image, so vertical (portrait) and horizontal (landscape) clips both work.
Where can I get an AR card?
ARVideoCards is the only consumer service that lets you create a personalised AR card from your own video, prints it, and mails it to any address worldwide. The process takes about 3 minutes: upload a clip, pick the printed frame, enter the address, and pay.
The card is produced on demand and shipped by post. Delivery within Switzerland takes 2–3 business days. International delivery is 5–10 business days.
AR cards vs. other digital card formats
- vs. e-card: An AR card arrives physically in the mailbox and can be kept forever. An e-card is a URL that expires.
- vs. photo book: An AR card is one printed card that plays a video. A photo book is a collection of static photos with no video layer.
- vs. digital frame: An AR card requires no power, no Wi-Fi setup, and no device purchase. The card itself is the product.
- vs. video message: A video message lives in a chat app and gets lost. An AR card is a physical object that plays your video every time you hold a phone up to it.