SamFw
At its Galaxy Unpacked event yesterday, Samsung unveiled three new premium Galaxy phones and teased a few upcoming products, including a foldable phone, an XR device, and AR glasses.
The company’s first XR device was showcased at the event. Ahead of its public release, HTC VIVE is improving the operating system.
Google acquires part of HTC VIVE to improve Android XR ahead of Samsung’s XR device launch
Google has announced that it has signed a deal to acquire part of HTC VIVE’s engineering team. The company said in a press release that HTC VIVE is “extremely skilled in engineering and has a track record in the virtual reality (VR) space.”
Google said it looks forward to working with HTC VIVE engineers to accelerate the development of Android XR, a version of Android designed for augmented reality (AR), extended reality (XR), and virtual reality (VR) devices.
Samsung’s upcoming XR device – currently known as Project Moohan – will be the first to run Android XR. Samsung is expected to launch its XR device later this year.
Google is therefore likely to be accelerating the development of Android XR so that the operating system is ready before it’s released to the public. Since the HTC VIVE is one of the most popular VR headsets in the world, the engineers behind it could be a big help with the VR aspects of Android XR.
Several Google apps – including Chrome and YouTube – will be available on Android XR. Gemini will also be present, allowing you to do most of the things you want to do.
What to expect from Samsung’s first XR device?
Samsung’s first XR device could be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2. The processor has six CPU cores, an Adreno GPU, and an ISP that can handle input from up to 12 cameras at once, and supports Bluetooth 5.4 and Wi-Fi 7. Rumors suggest it will feature two OLEDoS or Micro OLED displays with a 4.3K resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate.
Samsung’s first XR device will compete directly with Apple’s Vision Pro. Apple is said to be working on a cheaper XR device (but still priced around $2000) that could be released alongside Samsung’s XR device.
So we could see an interesting battle between Apple, Meta, and Samsung in the XR market in the near future.
