Google has a chance to take on the Vision Pro in a big way

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has a chance to take on the Vision Pro in a big way

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Alan Truly / Digital Trends

Over the years,

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has made many attempts at pushing VR and AR ahead, whether it was

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Cardboard,

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Glass, or

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Daydream. All were ******* projects, ultimately.

But with the introduction of the Vision Pro and Meta’s recent announcements, there’s never been so much interest in extended reality (XR) headsets and AR glasses. And with the

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I/O developer conference coming this week, there are rumors that

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may make another venture into this technology.

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’s in the game

Apple’s launch of the Vision Pro doesn’t necessarily demand a response from

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. It’s a relatively niche device given its high price. But we know

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is in the game based on some recent hints.

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account on X (formerly

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) recently posted that the company would share augmented reality news at

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I/O 2024. Several sessions mention ARCore, the augmented reality software built into many Android devices. Third-party developers can create AR apps with ARCore, and we’re expecting some developments on this front.

Mark your calendars.

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on May 14th to learn about the latest developer products and

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announcements! Register today:

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—

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AR & VR (@GoogleARVR)

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Two years ago at

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I/O 2022, the company showed a video of prototype smart glasses that translate and transcribe languages. It’s possible that we could see some more ambitious demos like this, or an update on one of the existing projects.

There was also talk of an XR headset, but a

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report suggests

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canceled that project. But is it actually *****? Let’s consider what we know so far.

Will

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make an XR headset?

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Samsung’s TM Roh shares XR plans at the 2023 Galaxy Unpacked event. Samsung

It’s possible that

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will make an XR headset in the future, but the next device powered by

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’s AR and VR technology is more likely to come from Samsung.

Last year at Galaxy Unpacked 2023,

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and Qualcomm executives joined Samsung’s TM Roh onstage to announce plans to build an XR headset. Samsung didn’t reveal any details beyond the collaboration. Still, it was an intriguing teaser timed to arrive before the announcement of the Vision Pro at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference.

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and Samsung each have backgrounds in developing AR and VR products. While the 2015

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Glass and 2016 Daydream View weren’t popular among consumers,

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took an early lead in the XR space and redirected its efforts toward enterprise customers in 2017. And Samsung partnered with Oculus (now Meta) in 2015 to launch the somewhat successful GearVR headset that used a phone for a screen, tracking. and processing.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm is a leading XR hardware developer that is actively pushing this technology forward. XR encompasses both AR and VR technologies, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 and AR chips power the most popular VR headsets and smart glasses, like Meta’s Quest 3 and Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses.

A ****** development from Samsung,

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, and Qualcomm has the potential to disrupt the industry. Qualcomm can supply XR processors and reference designs to accelerate the process, Samsung could manufacture and distribute the device, and

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could provide software. Whether or not it will come together at I/O is still in the air, but that doesn’t mean we won’t catch a glimpse of it next week.

Android XR

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develops Android for phones and tablets, along with Wear OS for watches, but neither of those will suffice for an XR headset. To compete with Apple’s Vision Pro,

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needs a new spatial operating system to provide a virtual user interface that hovers in front of the wearer’s eyes and responds to their hand gestures or controller input.

We know Android XR is a real product since that designation appears in the code of

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’s Play Store, alongside similar references to a phone, foldable, tablet, TV, and more. A blog named

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uncovered these details in September of last year.

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Play Store code reveals a reference to Android XR. TheSPAndroid

Android XR might also include features optimized for AR glasses based on the research that preceded

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Glass. With over a decade of developing AR apps and prototypes, it certainly seems possible that

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has the resources needed to launch a thoughtful spatial user interface.

Meanwhile, Meta announced plans to open-source Horizon OS, the core software of the popular Quest 3 VR headset. Lenovo, Asus, and

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are already working with Meta to create new headsets that can run games and apps from the Quest library.

The lines have been drawn for a diverse marketplace featuring concepts from most major tech companies. Apple has visionOS and Meta is expanding the range of Horizon OS, while

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and Samsung prepare to launch a solution championing Android XR. It’s an exciting time for spatial computing, especially if Android XR makes its debut this year.

Android XR at

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I/O

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Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

The recent ********** of activity suggests now is the right time for

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to expand beyond the ARCore framework. I wouldn’t be surprised if

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announces Android XR — a complete platform for VR, AR, and spatial computing — at

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I/O,.

Developers are already building apps for Apple and Meta headsets.

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needs to take advantage of this momentum to make sure apps and services will support Android XR.

The good news is that Samsung’s XR headset should be able to run several Android apps at launch. Since Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 platform is compatible with Snapdragon mobile processors, porting apps to Android XR could be relatively easy.

This would be comparable to the Apple Vision Pro’s ability to run iPad apps. While 2D windows floating in a 3D space isn’t the best use of an XR headset, it works and feels familiar. An Android XR headset that syncs with your Android phone and tablet, as well as your Wear OS watch and Chromebook, would be a compelling solution.

With a few impressive immersive environments and fun mixed-reality games,

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could secure its place as technology begins to make the intuitive, holographic, AI-enhanced computer interfaces of sci-fi movies a reality.

We’ll have to wait and see if

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actually makes I/O the launch event for its renewed interest in XR and AR.

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