Ever since the second-generation iPhone came out with GPS functionality, there has been a lot of interest in augmented reality. Essentially, augmented reality (AR) creates an enhanced view of the world by mashing up the real world with other information. This technology is gaining traction and there are some more innovations in queue that have interesting possibilities.

One recent example is Yelp’s new iPhone app, in which a view of a crowded New York street is combined with restaurant reviews. Another example is the upstart company Layar, which mashes up several sources of web-based data with the grid of the “real world”.

There’s a problem though… For consumers, the augmented-reality experiences is explicitly linked to iPhones and Android phones. This really limits the experience to a small subset of individuals, most of whom are early adopters.

But there are a few people working to break augmented reality outside the phone. MIT’s Media Lab is working diligently to bring a better device to market and the project leader, Patti Maes, shared the capabilities at a recent TED conference. “Sixth Sense” is a real-life prototype of augmented reality. This approach uses off-the-shelf items (phone, projector, mirror, and camera) and has some very interesting implications. Imagine going to a book store and while you are perusing through a book, the augmented reality device projects a book review from Amazon to aid in the purchasing decision.

Another potential direction for tech-enhanced reality comes from Jonny Chung Lee at Carnegie Mellon University, and he shares it via a YouTube video that has been viewed over seven-million times. His approach generates a full-3D experience and involves only a few tweaks to a stock Nintendo Wii. Not sure why Nintendo hasn’t picked up on this yet. To be fair, Lee’s idea lives more within the virtual-reality (VR) space, but it would be fascinating to see a mash up of VR and AR.

Update: A team of engineers has brought augmented reality to the game of pool (as well as a pool-playing robot):