Samsung’s inaugural standalone virtual reality (VR) headset is poised to debut in 2025, running on Google’s innovative Android Extended Reality (XR) platform and fuelled by Qualcomm’s advanced Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 processor.
Dubbed the “Moohan Undertaking”, this cutting-edge headset is designed to deliver state-of-the-art visual experiences, featuring advanced eye-tracking, hand-monitoring capabilities, and a rechargeable external battery for seamless performance. Samsung doesn’t simply share specs past this point.
I experimented with an early prototype of a headset development kit, which gave me hands-on experience with both Google’s software and Samsung’s hardware, including an external battery pack that I kept in my pocket. You’ll be able to pinpoint a location in Maps, zooming in and out of locales with precision, akin to the original Google Earth VR experience introduced in 2016 for PC users with Steam and Vive controllers.
Starting in 2025, Google Maps seamlessly integrates with Samsung’s standalone headset, offering users an immersive navigation experience featuring hand-tracking capabilities. Venture into the scene and initiate an exploration, then shift perspective to either the road view or ascend to a bird’s-eye vantage point to survey the town from on high. Finally, zoom in to Earth-scale dimensions for a comprehensive overview.
What is Gemini? It’s Google’s visual reconnaissance tool that mirrors your online and offline experiences across the digital landscape. I’m familiar with my current surroundings and can provide information about my location. I wore my Meta Ray-Bans on a desk, tracing their outline with my finger, when Gemini surprisingly identified them as “practical eyewear.” Although the AI correctly categorized my glasses, it failed to estimate the number of people present in the room as I took a glance around.
Google’s 2025 update to Daydream leverages OpenXR technology, combining capabilities from Pictures, TV, and Chrome platforms. Alongside those companies, Google also ensures automated Play Store support for numerous applications.
Android XR’s intuitive design seamlessly integrates familiar interface concepts, allowing users to resize windows and reposition them effortlessly without requiring eye calibration.
While Android XR doesn’t necessitate eye-monitoring, Samsung’s integration is notable. META’s Horizon OS operates seamlessly without the necessity of eye-tracking technology, differing from both the Quest 3 and 3S models, which do not integrate eye or facial recognition sensors. While utilizing Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional, eye monitoring plays a central role within its intuitive pinch-to-zoom interface.
The Samsung headset’s lens separation adjusted mechanically to accommodate my interpupillary distance after just a couple of seconds, even when I didn’t move my head. The low-latency passthrough was impressive, providing an open periphery with minimal distortion and a small magnetic light shield that effectively sealed off the scene. The collaboration between innovative companies like Sunshine Defense, Onerous Strap, Imaginative and Prescient Professional, and Quest 3S allows for seamless integration of their products to ensure effective usage on mattresses?
The perceived discipline of vision varied substantially depending on the specific placement of the rigid strap at the back of the frame, which adjusted the distance between the lenses and my eyes based on its tightness. Samsung and Google remained tight-lipped regarding specifications for their joint venture’s disciplinary measures, which may be attributed to the absence of any public information from the partnership since its inception. They wished my suggestions.
I’ve experienced the pleasure of being relieved from cumbersome VR headset straps that distribute weight evenly across my shoulders, alleviating pressure on my neck and scalp, thanks to cleverly designed headbands with adjustable padding that securely hold worn-out battery packs and equipment in place. A battery pack integrated with my headset should seamlessly connect to power and data from virtually any linked USB hub. To seamlessly reboot my PC-based VR setup, I require a comprehensive bundle that includes reliable power supply, robust connectivity options – such as captured HDMI input – and efficient cabling infrastructure, all consolidated within a single, user-friendly package. I expect my VR headsets to seamlessly integrate precision head and hand tracking capabilities even in complete darkness.
This portable VR setup would travel conveniently in a shoulder bag, making it ideal for the bag to feature dedicated compartments with zippered pockets for storing controllers, batteries, and cables.
Upon donning my VR headset from my bag, I require more than a mere screen mirroring experience; instead, seamless connectivity is essential, permitting effortless use of my iPhone’s digital touchscreen – whether the headset is in use or safely stowed away in my bag. Google and Samsung should implement this consistent usage habit for Android phones. While this technology may not currently be feasible on visionOS and iOS, there is a pressing need for its development, and Meta is actively collaborating with partners in HorizonOS to achieve similar capabilities.
Google Companies For Glasses & Headsets
Google’s diverse range of clear and shaded glass demos span from subtly nuanced to remarkably vivid, featuring a standout binocular waveguide that overlays approximately two vibrant text lines in the center of my visual field.
A separate demonstration showcased a responsive mini-map situated at the center of my visual field, which rotated seamlessly as I shifted my gaze, mimicking the functionality of an in-game mini-map. I longed to put on my glasses and venture forth into Manhattan to gather more information about this intriguing topic. Google confirmed that I abhorred a monocular glasses display.
Google’s aspirations extend far beyond just virtual reality headsets, as evidenced by the translation and navigation innovations demonstrated through its diverse range of glass products.
Android Equipment
According to a Google consultant, contact typing on any floor is expected to be a resolved issue within the next one to two years. At Meta, Mark Zuckerberg envisions wristband interfaces eclipsing traditional keyboards within just a few short years.
At AWE in 2024, we had the opportunity to test drive the innovative AirMouse, which seamlessly integrated a pure interface with wearable eyewear. While learning to master one-handed use of the Tap XR band, I find myself drawn to the intuitive gestures offered by my Apple Watch and AirPods for effortlessly handling phone calls. Meta showcased seamless interactions with its proprietary wristband and Orion smart glasses combination.
When combined as a single unit, a haptic band and watch can form a powerful synergy with eye-tracking capabilities. Samsung claims to have designed specific controllers tailored to its power management system in conjunction with its battery performance.
Google pitches Android XR as a seamless extension of the Gemini and PC ecosystem, enabling virtually anything to become an interface for augmented reality experiences. The company aims to leverage Unity’s PolySpatial capabilities to power immersive, multitasking volumetric applications. Microsoft Flight Simulator’s digital representation of the globe has few equals, with the possible exception of Google Maps – I recall being mesmerized when the 3D buildings on my own street in New York City materialized before my eyes. The service consistently excels at every location, redefining the notion of familiarity, whether one is there before, during, or after a visit.
I didn’t witness photorealistic avatars or video games from Google, which creates vast opportunities for distinct Android-based VR headsets that could potentially be surpassed by a theoretical Quest Professional 2. While porting is often a straightforward process from HorizonOS to Android XR, some developers may also need to consider potential complexities like Google Daydream and Stadia before committing to a project on the Google Play store, which could require several years of ongoing support.
According to Digital Desktop’s developer, Man Godin, delivering apps and video games to Android XR is a relatively straightforward process. It supports the vast majority of OpenXR extensions that Quest and Pico currently support today. Transferring my native OpenXR application to this new platform required mere hours of effort, with the underlying principles seamlessly integrating into place. It’s invigorating to engage with a platform that prioritizes collaboration with builders over competition, avoiding attempts to stifle innovation by duplicating our work. We’re anticipating an abundance of new options for consumers in the near future and are thrilled to bring a superior PC streaming solution to Android XR.
Avatars & The Lengthy View
Google’s companies have far-reaching benefits beyond just VR headsets, yet the lack of photorealistic avatars in my demo may imply that the Samsung and Google partnership falls short on this front, whereas Meta prepares to debut its Codec Avatar technology in a hypothetical Quest Pro 2, as Apple continues to refine its Persona technology.
As Meta poised to seamlessly integrate its virtual identity across various platforms, a user’s gaze could fluidly transition from a Ray-Ban-lensed WhatsApp chat to a hyper-realistic avatar in a HorizonOS headset. Although Google might successfully port 90% of Meta’s VR storefront to Android XR, the tech giant may still trail behind Meta and Apple in a fundamental aspect during a pivotal year in the evolution of personal computing.
Not having super-realistic avatars can indeed prove beneficial for certain forms of online interaction. Quest Professional demonstrates that exceptional face and eye monitoring can be truly valuable, rendering traditional notions of its usefulness obsolete. The next Meta-backed headset, featuring advanced facial or eye tracking hardware, is poised to shift from research to productization, completing a crucial component of Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse strategy.
While I’d have opted for controller and video game exploration instead of the practical monocle, opportunities abound for Samsung, Google, and other Android XR partners to address these concerns.
The navigation capabilities on Android XR’s Google Maps are indeed refined. I envision walking alongside an Android XR headset with a soft, adjustable strap as I explore Avenue View in real-time, changing the years on the road outside a self-driving Waymo vehicle to relive memorable moments. If Google can successfully optimize Gemini’s features and functionality, there is real potential for growth and success within this platform.
