room design app using photos

DesignMyRoom – Very Useful Tool For Virtual Interior Design

DesignMyRoom launched this afternoon – It's a new product from a company called Swatchbox Technologies that allows people to decorate a real room virtually via a photograph of the room and DesignMyRoom's library of stuff. Previously the company, which has been around for 11 years, sold 2 million copies of desktop software that has similar functionality as the online tool.

If you thought MyMiniLife was cool, wait until you spend some time playing around with this.

The first step is to pick an empty room, or upload a photo of your own room. You then start decorating it by adding a floor, paint, fixtures, furniture, etc. I made my own room during testing – see the before and after photos above. I also made the project public, so anyone can log in to it and make changes. Have at it.

Objects can be resized, rotated and moved around the room. The next step, the company says, is to allow users to upload their own images and insert them into the room. They've also paid attention to details – notice the shadows behind the clover and the lamp, for example, and the light coming into the room from the windows.

It also would be great if they created an embeddable version of the projects (something I assume they'll do eventually).

There is a clear and really good business model here – selling people the real stuff once they've seen it virtually in their room. The company also makes money through product placement and other advertising.