Road to VR

JUNE 22, 2023

At least from the outside, it appears Microsoft isn’t actively competing for a seat at the XR table, which is fairly odd coming from a company that pioneered enterprise AR while simultaneously wrangling some of its top OEM partners to make a fleet of PC VR headsets for consumers in 2017. If Microsoft goes in half-cocked, maybe.

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Strategy Microsoft Magic Leap Apple 296

Road to VR

NOVEMBER 24, 2017

VR headsets have already seen some pretty drastic permanent price reductions in the past few months, including the new $400 Oculus Rift + Touch price, the new $600 HTC Vive price, and the new $450 ‘all-in’ PlayStation VR bundle. Samsung HMD Odyssey $450 $500 (includes headset and controllers). The Best VR Headset Deals.

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Hardware HTC Controllers Samsung 211

Road to VR

MARCH 12, 2024

To boot, myMako is very much the sort of thing that could have launched on any number of XR headsets—Magic Leap (1 or 2), Microsoft HoloLens (1 or 2), or any VR headset for that matter, as it basically presents surgeons with 3D images obtained from computer tomography (CT) based scans. And that’s in spite of its $3,500 price tag.

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Magic Leap Apple Microsoft Augmented Reality 222

VRScout

NOVEMBER 24, 2016

Can you believe its only been a year since the only VR headsets you could buy for the holidays was a Samsung Gear VR, Google Cardboard, or a Mattel View-Master. Now with major high-end VR systems available on the market, we would expect there to be some serious discounts on hardware during the busiest shopping day of the year — Black Friday.

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HTC Oculus Samsung Microsoft 150

The Ghost Howls

MAY 25, 2020

OMG, it’s almost 3 years that I write these roundups… the first week peek was exclusive for my blog subscribers and it featured as best news the release of Google Blocks and in the other news something about Samsung Gear VR… how much time has passed since then! Image by Oculus). The Oculus Quest is now one year old.

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Oculus Apple Hand tracking Magic Leap 243

VRScout

OCTOBER 3, 2017

Samsung, in partnership with Microsoft, today announced the Samsung HMD Odyssey —a Windows VR headset expected to have some impressive specs. According to Samsung, the Odyssey VR headset rocks dual 3.5-inch The Samsung Odyssey is unlike typical headsets, you don’t need to install any extra motions sensors.

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VRScout

DECEMBER 9, 2016

Google, Sony, Oculus, Samsung, Acer and HTC have combined their efforts in order to create a healthy and equal industry for virtual reality hardware and software to develop and expand. The post Google, Sony And Oculus Unite To Establish VR Industry Standards appeared first on VRScout.

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Sony Industry Google Oculus 150

Peter Graham

JULY 18, 2019

Formerly called the Global Virtual Reality Association (GVRA), today the XR Association (XRA) has announced that Microsoft has joined as a member company alongside founding members HTC Vive, Sony, Google, Facebook, and Samsung. We are thrilled to welcome Microsoft to XRA,” said Elizabeth Hyman, CEO of the XR Association.

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Microsoft Samsung Sony HTC 52

Road to VR

JULY 2, 2018

The monthly Steam hardware survey is out again, and while June hasn’t revealed any major upsets in the balances of usership between HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, the survey shows that Windows “Mixed Reality” VR headsets are making slow, but steady headway on the platform. Participation in the survey is optional.

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Survey Samsung Hardware Retail 197

Road to VR

APRIL 23, 2020

“VR Headsets Cost $1,000” Image courtesy Oculus. Arguably the best consumer-focused headset out there, Valve Index , does cost $1,000 for new customers who don’t already have any VR hardware. The most popular headset used on Steam right now is the Oculus Rift S [Amazon] which costs $400 brand new.

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Amazon Hardware Oculus Samsung 281

The Ghost Howls

MARCH 1, 2024

Anyway, with the end of the life of Quest 2, this cycle finished and a new one started with Quest 3, Apple Vision Pro, Google and Samsung announcing their own headset, and other companies chasing them (e.g. with Xiaomi, Oppo, Samsung, etc…) to convince hardware manufacturers to create headsets powered by Android XR.

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Trends Apple Google Unity 416

Road to VR

NOVEMBER 23, 2017

Windows VR headsets have only been out a few months, and come from a variety of manufacturers including Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. All the headsets but one, Samsung’s Odyssey headset, are based on the same reference design provided by Microsoft, so they’re more or less the same outside of the obvious styling differences.

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Microsoft Samsung Controllers Hardware 191

The Ghost Howls

DECEMBER 23, 2019

It is also working on creating its own hardware : a previous report highlighted that it could build its own chips in the future, and this article shows how the company is working also in acquiring hardware parts markers. Oculus releases hands tracking SDK, official Link cable for Quest and more. Other relevant news.

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Oculus Hand tracking AR Unity 207

Peter Graham

SEPTEMBER 11, 2019

Initiatives like OpenVR have allowed platforms like Steam to be hardware agnostic, allowing almost any virtual reality (VR) headset which supports the protocol to be used. Soon Oculus will begin to adopt OpenXR with support reportedly coming in the latest Oculus Public Test Channel release. The current OpenXR 1.0

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Oculus Groups Microsoft HTC 66

VRScout

AUGUST 9, 2018

Microsoft just announced new tools to make it easier for users to build and share their own virtual spaces. The two new world-building kits are based on Altspace’s most popular environments: Campfire and Alien World / Origin but Microsoft says they’re aiming to release more kits soon, as well as allwing for more customization options.

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Microsoft Tools Strategy Samsung 283

TechCrunch VR

FEBRUARY 12, 2020

Despite short-term questions, games software/hardware to top $200 billion by 2023. Yet Facebook , Microsoft and others are arguably more important to where the market is today. VR/AR startup valuations reach $45 billion (on paper). Facebook Messenger , Instagram , TikTok , Snapchat , Line ).

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Augmented Reality Microsoft Apple AR 78

The Ghost Howls

JANUARY 19, 2020

Oculus Go price cut down to $150. Facebook has permanently cut down the price of the Oculus Go to $150 , the same price that made it sell incredibly well on Amazon during the Cyber Monday. More info (Oculus Go price cut) More info (Xiaomi laying off the team dedicated to Go). Microsoft admits display problems on HoloLens 2.

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AR Oculus Magic Leap Microsoft 202

Road to VR

MAY 2, 2018

Microsoft released its April Windows 10 update yesterday, and with it comes the official launch of SteamVR support for Windows “Mixed Reality” VR headsets. Windows VR devices still occupy a pretty minimal spot on Steam, accounting for a total of ~5% of total VR headsets reported in this month’s Steam Hardware Survey.

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Microsoft Survey Haptic Samsung 166

VRScout

NOVEMBER 21, 2017

Microsoft ‘Mixed Reality’ Headset Discounts. Microsoft’s Windows “Mixed Reality” headsets are now on sale for up to $100, bringing the cheapest among them to just $300. Only available in Microsoft retail and online stores in the US and Canada, the sale goes on until 11:59 PM PST on November 27, 2017. Oculus Rift Discount.

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North America Retail Samsung Amazon 236

Road to VR

MARCH 19, 2017

.” 2016 saw the arrival of 3 major consumer virtual reality headsets, the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR. Samsung confirmed at CES in January that its Oculus engineered Samsung Gear VR headset had passed an install base figure of 5 Million and more recently Google affirmed that it had shipped over 10 Million Cardboard viewers.

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AR Virtual Reality Magic Leap Samsung 244

VRScout

JUNE 21, 2017

Mario Kart comes to VR, E3’s VR news, Intel’s new VR eSports league AND wireless VR solution, Samsung buys their way into social, the investment & funding wrapup, and more…. Teaming up with Oculus and ESL, Intel declared the world’s first virtual reality eSports league — with a prize pool of $200K.

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Los Angeles 360 Video Samsung Virtual Reality 188

The Ghost Howls

FEBRUARY 23, 2023

With the trend of Gaming entrepreneurs, for example, Samsung, HTC, Sony, and Oculus transferred from games to virtual reality and we started to keep eye on the VR area. Since Meta made the acquisition and took over Oculus, VRTUOLUO began to write original and in-depth articles on the XR industry.

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China Industry Government AR 308

The Ghost Howls

OCTOBER 26, 2020

And the price of the wireless add-on is even more suspicious: speaking with a hardware manufacturer, they told me that ONLY THE ANTENNAS of a Wi-Gig connection for VR streaming (like the one of the Vive Pro) costs around $100… so how can the whole wireless streaming device cost just $50?? Other relevant news.

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HTC Oculus Conference China 392

VRScout

AUGUST 15, 2016

You can enjoy the full audio recording below: Mindshow, updated Samsung Gear VR, Samsung 360 camera release date, GoPro, HTC, mobile tracking innovation from Chinese developer Deepoon, Microsoft Hololens, investment wrapup, and more! THE SAMSUNG GEAR VR GETS A FACELIFT AND GOPRO DOUBLES DOWN ON 360. on August 19th.

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Samsung Los Angeles Microsoft HTC 150

The Ghost Howls

JUNE 13, 2022

Some weeks ago, I teased you that Meta was going to change its plans about hardware, because the recent drop in revenues forced it to be a bit more cautious with its spending for “the metaverse”. More info (Report on new directions for hardware at Meta) More info (Meta smartwatch canceled) More info (Portal will be aimed at B2B).

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AR Apple Microsoft Ukraine 304

The Ghost Howls

MAY 7, 2022

In the case of VR, we all remember the competition between HTC and Oculus in 2016, with HTC clearly winning the market until Oculus used Facebook’s money to slash the price of the Rift around 2017. This led to a growing importance of Oculus, until with the Quest it started dominating the market in a way no one was able to face.

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Apple Sony China HTC 526

Road to VR

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

In the US, stores like Microsoft, Gamestop, and Micro Center host Vive setups offering public demos, while you can find the system in Europe in locations like Currys PC World, GAME, and Scan Computers. Oculus Rift, Touch, and Gear VR. Find an Oculus Rift and Touch Demo Location. PlayStation VR (PSVR).

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Czech Republic Europe Germany Virtual Reality 219

Road to VR

OCTOBER 25, 2017

Pimax, the company building ‘8K’ and ‘5K’ VR headsets offering a similarly wide FOV, recently passed the $2 million crowdfunding mark on their ongoing Kickstarter campaign—nearly as much as the original Oculus Kickstarter—signaling the public’s clear interest in high FOV headsets. “VR

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Controllers Software Samsung Microsoft 206

UploadVR Between Realities podcast

JUNE 3, 2017

A year ago, the safe money was on Microsoft’s upgraded Xbox One console, Project Scorpio, supporting the Oculus Rift. Microsoft and Oculus share a close relationship, with the Xbox controller bundled in with every Rift sold and Windows 10 PC owners enjoying game streaming through a virtual theater.

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Microsoft Oculus Samsung Controllers 107

VRWorld

JUNE 3, 2016

Microsoft decided to take a calculated risk and leave the Virtual Reality market to Facebook (through Oculus and Samsung) and HTC with their dedicated headsets Gear VR, Rift and Vive. All future users of HoloLens should need is a collaborative suite (perhaps Microsoft’s own HoloOffice?).

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Microsoft Video Augmented Reality Latency 40

Road to VR

OCTOBER 19, 2017

Microsoft’s ‘Windows Mixed Reality’ platform has finally landed and the first batch of supported VR headsets are hitting the streets. From that foundation, Microsoft’s partners, including Acer, have built the external look and feel of the headsets. Acer Windows VR Headset Review Summary. Photo by Road to VR.

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Microsoft Immersion Controllers Augmented Reality 226

Tech Trends VR

AUGUST 20, 2018

Recently unveiled updates to Microsoft’s social VR platform will allow anyone to build customizable VR spaces. The two new world-building kits are based on Altspace’s most popular environments: Campfire and Alien World / Origin but Microsoft says they’re aiming to release more kits soon, as well as allowing for more customization options.

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Virtual Reality Trends Strategy Microsoft 168

VRScout

AUGUST 24, 2016

More than half of the revenue will come from VR/AR hardware sales. But in order to reach mainstream adoption of stand-alone headsets, it will be up to developers and hardware manufacturers to continue building more engaging ecosystems of content that will entice non-early adopters into the mix.

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Augmented Reality United States Asia Hardware 150

Road to VR

JANUARY 16, 2020

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd. Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC. A number of the company’s hardware and software-related job listings last year made a prescient mention of Facebook-built AR headset. Here’s a quick look at the top ten in comparison to Facebook, courtesy of Fairview Research: Organization. 2019 Grants.

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Head Mounted Display Strategy AR Machine Learning 154

Upload VR

DECEMBER 21, 2023

Microsoft is killing its Windows Mixed Reality PC VR platform. Despite the name, all Windows MR headsets were actually VR-only, and are compatible with most SteamVR content via Microsoft's SteamVR driver. On the Steam Hardware Survey Windows MR peaked at around 10% of SteamVR usage share, and now sits around 5%.

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Microsoft Samsung Survey Controllers 144

The Ghost Howls

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

HP has fixed many of the visual problems of the headse t, and Microsoft has just released a patch on Windows 10 that aims at solving many visual issues of all WMR headsets (like Chromatic aberration). But honestly, I expected a bit more … it’s a bit weird that Microsoft hasn’t solved its biggest pain point yet. Other relevant news.

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UploadVR Between Realities podcast

FEBRUARY 24, 2017

The Oculus Rift and Touch, HTC Vive, PlayStation VR (PSVR), Google Daydream, Samsung Gear VR, and so many other headsets are all available for purchase. What to Expect from Oculus. Oculus always has a big showing at GDC and they will again this year, especially since they were mostly quiet at CES.

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Conference San Francisco Unreal Sony 163