This week, reports emerged claiming that Chinese news publication Gyro Technology leaked the design specifications of Samsung’s upcoming MR headset.
According to the now-deleted article from Gyro Technology, the upcoming headset will leverage four tracking cameras, a pancake lens, two RGB outward-facing cameras, a depth sensor, eye-tracking, hand-tracking, OLED microdisplays, and Samsung’s Exynos 2200 chipset.
The details reveal that the upcoming headset will support MR applications with its integrated outward-facing cameras, tracking, and sensor devices.
According to the leaks, Samsung’s MR device will cost roughly between $1000-$2000.
More on Samsung’s XR Roadmap
In its most recent earnings call, Samsung revealed plans to drive forward with an XR product for its Galaxy ecosystem. Moreover, the call highlighted how the firm wishes to become a leading microdisplay components provider by the end of the year.
The roadmap came while the firm reported revenue drops during the same earnings call.
Samsung’s Q2 net profits fell by 84.5 percent from last year to $1.4 billion, and its total revenue fell by 22 percent to $47 billion.
Samsung’s operating income also dropped to $527 million, a decrease of 95 percent. Samsung noted that some of its decreased profits are partly due to a decline in the number of smartphones the firm is shipping.
However, the firm is banking on becoming a leading XR hardware provider to regain profit.
Daniel Araujo, VP of Mobile eXperience at Samsung, noted:
We see the XR market as a large new growth opportunity, and we’re working systematically to the groundwork for an ecosystem that includes core hardware software technology R&D and content.
Araujo also said that the firm will set up a dedicated organization for immersive product planning and R&D while collaborating “closely” with affiliate companies and partners – including “a mid-to-long-term collaboration with leading partners like Google and Qualcomm.”
Samsung’s XR Galaxy-based offerings will “provide a new and differentiated form factor experience where consumers can spend more time communicating, working or enjoying their leisure time,” the VP remarked.
Microdisplay Ambitions
Moreover, with its microdisplay ambitions, Samsung aims to support what Ben Suh, the firm’s SVP of IR, calls the “key components” in an XR device.
Following its 290 billion Won acquisition of Imagine – a microdisplay innovator – last year, Samsung is currently undergoing a follow-up process which sees the firm waiting for merger approvals from various country authorities, and the firm should start to see a capital return in October this year.
A “key purpose” of Samsung’s acquisition of Imagine is to enhance “technology preparedness” for the firm’s entry into the XR marketplace.
Shuh also added:
We organized the development team since last year to look into the development of various microdisplay technology, such as OLEDOS or LEDOS. – We think that the Imagine acquisition will help enhance our XR business competitiveness and provide microdisplay solutions, innovative solutions to a wider range of customers.
Samsung is continuing its research and outreach to find various technologies necessary to “secure our leadership in future [XR] technology,” said Shuh – who also added:
The XR device ecosystem has picked up activity, especially most recently. Some are saying that once the XR devices become widely penetrated, it would bring fundamental change to the way people live beyond what had happened by the smartphone.
Samsung’s XR Journey
In 2015, Samsung released the Gear VR headset, which allowed users to play Oculus games on their Gear smartphone, providing the stepping stones in allowing Samsung to engage with immersive technology and develop leading products.
After discontinuing the Gear VR headset, Samsung worked on the Odyssey headset for PC users, receiving positive reviews for its crisp visuals and comfortable design. However, despite a warm critical reception, the device was not a commercial success.
In 2018, Samsung stepped back from the XR market and continued behind-the-scenes research into XR technology. For example, in 2022, the firm shared an experimental AR-Haptic artificial muscle actuator and a range of digital twin technology solutions.
In 2023, Samsung partnered with Google and Qualcomm to develop new XR products. Moreover, Samsung is one of Apple’s assembly partners, providing the upcoming Vision Pro device with some of its microdisplay technology.
At the Google I/O conference, the firm reminded attendees that it is working on new chipsets and operating systems to support an impending Samsung XR product.
Moreover, according to a Korean publication, Samsung may have pushed back the official release date – initially in early 2024 – by up to 6 months.
