Apple released its Vision Pro headset in 2023, a device that lets you watch immersive video, take calls, use huge computer screens, place apps and widgets in front of you or move about in virtual worlds.
This week Apple is releasing an update that adds the firm’s new M5 chipset. But the device, which Apple calls a Spatial Computer, has not set sales records, partly because it costs £3,199.
Not deterred, Apple’s great rival Samsung is set to challenge the Vision Pro with an announcement later today, Tuesday October 21. The Korean firm will live stream an announcement at 3pm UK time, which you can watch on Samsung’s YouTube channel.
The device is being trailed as ‘Project Moohan’, and Samsung calls it “the groundbreaking first product built for the open and scalable Android XR platform, and it seamlessly blends everyday utility with immersive new experiences.”
XR stands for extended reality, a catch-all acronym for augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR), the different experiences these headsets can offer.
Samsung has already teased the headset as far back as December last year, showing off the headset in the photo at the top of this article. It’s not known if this will be the look of the product announced today, but it seems likely.
“Samsung has always built its devices around what truly matters: pioneering new ways to connect and experience the world,” Samsung said in a press release. “As a leader in mobile AI, Samsung is ushering in a new era by introducing a new category of AI-native devices.
“At the heart of this vision is Android XR, a powerful platform optimized with AI embedded right from the start. Co-developed with Google and Qualcomm, Android XR is designed to scale across form factors, bringing AI to the center of immersive, everyday experiences.”
Samsung said Project Moohan is the first product built for Android XR. It’ll be very interesting to see how much the device will cost, and if it will even be available in the UK when it launches.
I am also intrigued as to whether you need a Samsung phone to set up this Samsung headset, or if it will work with any Android phone, much like Android smartwatches can. Will you even need a phone at all to set it up?
And how will Samsung position the headset? Will it be an entertainment or productivity pitch? Apple tried it right down the middle for the Vision Pro, but the price – and the fact you wear a headset that cuts you off from other people – appear to be holding it back.
Having Samsung enter the fray could help figure if the XR headset category is here to stay.
