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Samsung's Galaxy XR Mixed Reality Headset Now Available for $1,800
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This seems to be more targeting the Meta Quest Pro with its pricing, general design and the ability to use the device without a light shield. I think Meta messed up the Quest Pro because in terms of specs it never differentiated itself from the Quest 2 or 3, but a headset which gives the option to not use a light shield seems interesting.
And this Samsung one supports PCVR, win-win
BTW, Quest Pro design for anyone who doesn't know - the Samsung one is very similar, just grey
And this Samsung one supports PCVR, win-win
BTW, Quest Pro design for anyone who doesn't know - the Samsung one is very similar, just grey
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Maybe I'll eventually grow to want one, but this product category doesn't excite me at all at the moment, regardless of features or price.
What code is that how to wait for other companies to bring products out and wait to see if it’s a success then tweak it a bit & over charge for it then say it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread is that not how the Vision Pro came about?
The biggest problems with the Meta and Samsung-Google VR devices compared to Apple's, are the words "Meta" and "Google".
No, they haven't.
They have BOTH lost. Apple for bringing out a device that is just plain unaffordable for all but the super wealthy - and with a use-case that many who now own it say its just gathering dust now....
And Samsung for copying Apple yet again but still being colour blind to the fact that a $1800 device is STILL too pricey for its benefits.
Meta have hit the spot with the Quest 3 whose capabilities parallel that of the Vision Pro in many (but not all) ways and has a 500 price tag.
If you price a VR headset north of 1000 it wont sell regardless.
Google could have enabled it as there’s a developer toggle to get iPad apps AVP compatible but they’ve chosen not to. There was a 3rd party app available for a few weeks after the original was released but Google issued a ‘cease and desist’.
This product segment is and will always be a niche, not because of lack of tech or too high price - but because there are simply not enough people that are actually interested in the use cases. Make it infinitely powerful and completely free, I’m still not walking around with that thing strapped to my face.
Samsung releasing a competitive product does not take away from Apple vision. While there is clear inspiration for material choice, the design is the standard Ski goggles design with halo head strap Sony pioneered.
Meta Quest Pro uses same design
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Not even close... not even on same league as AVP, although they ripped off the form factor, user interface and user experience as usual.
Vision Pro would have been a success if it had been at this price.
Samsung today announced the launch of the Galaxy XR, a new mixed reality headset that will compete with the Apple Vision Pro. At $1,800, the Galaxy XR is $1,700 cheaper than the new M5 Vision Pro, but it is much more expensive than Meta's Quest VR devices.
Samsung says that its headset was created with a "human-centric design" that's meant to provide long-term comfort. The headset has a frame design that is supposed to distribute pressure across the forehead and the back of the head, providing support and minimizing facial discomfort. A detachable light shield offers deeper immersion by blocking out light, but the headset can be used without it. The headset weighs 545 grams (1.2 pounds) with the forehead cushion, so it is lighter than the Vision Pro. The Vision Pro with Dual Knit Band weighs between 750 and 800 grams.
Samsung included 4K micro-OLED screens with a resolution of 3,552 x 3,840 and a 109-degree horizontal field of view. There are 29 million total pixels with a 6.3-micron pixel pitch and 96 percent DCI-P3. There's a 72Hz default refresh rate, with 60Hz and 90Hz also available. Included cameras and sensors add support for hand and eye tracking.
The XR is powered by a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chip from Qualcomm. There are two high-resolution passthrough cameras, six world-facing tracking cameras, four eye-tracking cameras with iris recognition used for authentication, and a 6.5-megapixel camera for taking 3D photos and videos. The headset also includes five Inertial Measurement Units, a depth sensor, and a flicker sensor. Samsung is selling optical inserts for vision correction separately.
Other features include two 2-way speakers and a six microphone array, Wi-Fi 7 support, Bluetooth 5.4 integration, 16GB memory, and 256GB storage. Like the Vision Pro, the Galaxy XR has a separate battery pack with two hours of runtime (2.5 hours for video watching), but the headset can also be used while the battery is being charged.
The Galaxy XR headset runs the Android XR platform, which Samsung developed alongside Google and Qualcomm. Google's Gemini AI is integrated at a system level, so it can understand the user's surroundings with the Galaxy XR cameras and microphones. According to Samsung, Gemini in the Galaxy XR is designed to feel like a "new type of AI companion."
Here's some of what Samsung says the headset can do:
Samsung is working on multiple form factors for future products, including AI glasses. Alongside Google, Samsung has teamed up with Warby Parker for its future smart glasses products, and it is also working with South Korean glasses brand Gentle Monster.
- Gemini in Google Maps can be used to navigate to any location and users can ask for personalized suggestions about nearby places.
- Users can use natural language to ask Gemini to find the content they want to see on YouTube and get more information about the video they're watching.
- With a passthrough mode, users can see the physical world and draw a circle with their hand to search for information about any object in their field of view.
- 2D photos and videos can be auto-spatialized to add depth and dimension, similar to Apple's spatial photos and videos.
- Shows can be streamed on a 4K screen that feels like a personal theater.
- Sports fans can watch multiple games at the same time.
- With XR games, Gemini offers real-time coaching and tips.
The Galaxy XR is available for purchase in the U.S. starting today from the Samsung website and Samsung Experience Stores. It is priced at $1,799.99, and Samsung has a 24-month financing option.
Early adopters will receive 12 months of access to Google AI Pro, YouTube Premium, and Google Play Pass. Samsung is also selling a Galaxy XR Travel Case and Galaxy XR Controller for $250 each.
Article Link: Samsung's Galaxy XR Mixed Reality Headset Now Available for $1,800
Please show me another product that does Spatial Personas at any price.
People definitely would’ve been more open to trying it and less critical of this product for that price yes.
If you have AVP at the price of a high end iPhone with the promise you can have a movie theater experience anywhere you are, more people would’ve given it a shot and whatever negatives it has with weight and apps would’ve been much less. People judge things far harsher when they are more expensive.
It actually is original, they've had VR for quite some time now, and the software that it's running is lightyears above what the AVP is able to do. And even with the Apple tax at a cheaper price point.
Real AI? "Okay, let me work on that." ... for nearly every query.
Apple's upgraded Siri will be leaps and bounds better than what we saw in Samsung's cringeworthy copycat demo. Kudos to Apple for not rushing out a half-baked Vision Pro and Siri.
I said it is “VR (and MR)” product, yes it offers wide spectrum of modalities. (Mixed Reality encompasses Augmented Reality and Augmented Virtuality).I hate to break it to you, but Apple's spatial computer is *not* a VR headset. You're literally surrounded by your real world when you put it on, just like glasses. When you open an app, it opens in your room. It doesn't transport and replace your world with full digital content.
There *are* VR experiences on Apple's spatial computer 100%! Immersive Video and Environments, both which are loved. But that's not what the product is solely about. All about blending that digital content goodness into your real lifenothing like the crappy Miiverse clone that Facebook wants you to be in 24/7
The Vision Pro's introduction from TWO years ago was far more polished than what Samsung just showed us.
Everything that Samsung and Google are bundling in for "the first 12 months" just screams of desperation to get sales. Bribes galore.
Is Apple in trouble with a major competitor undercutting them on price by 50%? Yes, but at the same time, Samsung just validated the Vision Pro market. There's a bright future for both headsets.
Everything that Samsung and Google are bundling in for "the first 12 months" just screams of desperation to get sales. Bribes galore.
Is Apple in trouble with a major competitor undercutting them on price by 50%? Yes, but at the same time, Samsung just validated the Vision Pro market. There's a bright future for both headsets.
Ironically, the MacBook Air was Apple's response to the pathetic "netbook" market... underpowered laptops that offered a terrible experience. Apple comes out with the Air offering the "full Mac experience", not an underpowered one. But it still took another 10 years before the Air now defines what all laptops aim to be, since the introduction of Apple Silicon.
The Vision Pro is a good example... Apple released a no-compromises Vision product out of the gate, and more affordable, and just as capable versions will follow. Samsung echoed that with their introduction saying "We're just getting started"... which means that the market and technology is still in very early days.
More people will buy the Vision Pro, even at twice the price, simply because Samsung is validating the market.
No the problem is these are headsets and that they don’t have longevity as a platform no matter how much technology companies push it with fancy tech inside now individuals will point to the 2nd meta headset and say look how many units that sold but the next one’s units are on the floor according to reports.