Category 4 of 5
Tracking approaches
This is the layer underneath every platform in the other four categories: the actual technique used to anchor virtual content to the real world. Picking the tracking approach usually narrows the platform choice faster than starting from the platform.
| Option | What it is | Cost | Learning curve | Distribution | Offline capable | Vibecoding fit | Used in |
|---|
The pattern worth noticing: everything with a "used" entry above is a technique
MediaPipe or MindAR handles for free, in-browser. Everything still marked "not yet used" either
needs specialized hardware (LiDAR), a pre-scanned physical reference (object tracking), or a
real backend (cloud anchors). None of that is out of reach, it is just a different, larger kind
of project than a single WebAR page.