Happy Lunar New Year to everyone! Here’s hoping the Year of the Snake brings you endless happiness, prosperity, love, and perhaps a few new XR headsets as well. For those celebrating, I wish you memorable moments with loved ones and plenty of delicious food. 😊 With so much on my plate these days, this newsletter is a bit delayed and shorter than usual, but it still packs all the essential updates you need about the latest in the XR world.
Top News of the Week
Google Acquires HTC Vive Engineers for $250M
In a surprising move, Google has purchased a team of XR engineers from HTC Vive for $250 million, along with a non-exclusive license for some HTC intellectual property. Although details are scarce, Google announced their intention to use these engineers to accelerate the Android XR platform development for headsets and glasses ecosystems. The real impact of this acquisition remains a bit unclear. It might help Google advance Android XR, or perhaps lead to the development of a new Google headset. Interestingly, this isn’t Google’s first venture with HTC—back in 2017, they also acquired HTC’s design team for roughly $1.1 billion. This partnership seems to highlight Google’s serious intentions in the XR space. That being said, one has to remain cautious, as big corporations often change direction based on profitability. While Google seems committed today, conditions can always evolve. This development raises questions about HTC’s next steps. Are they pivoting towards building for other brands, or perhaps are they scaling back on their headset releases? We’ll have to wait and see.
For more details, you can find additional info on Road To VR, Upload VR, and about Google’s intentions regarding XR here.
Other Relevant News
Meta’s Next Smartglasses Venture
Spurred on by the success of their Ray-Ban smart glasses, Meta is venturing deeper into this space. According to Mark Gurman, Meta is collaborating with EssilorLuxottica to launch new smartglasses under the Oakley brand aimed at cyclists and athletes. These will include a central camera and speakers, but no display. Additionally, a more premium model featuring a small display for notifications is allegedly also in development, with potential input controls on touch-sensitive frames or a wrist strap. These advanced models, pegged at around $1,000, target a niche prosumer audience rather than the mass market. Meanwhile, Meta plans to release clever Superbowl campaigns for their Ray-Ban glasses, ensuring they remain top-of-mind. The advanced Orion glasses should hit developers by 2026, with a more affordable Artemis version, albeit with fewer features, expected in 2027. It’s great to see Meta branching out across various XR types, from VR/MR to smartglasses and AR.
For more information, visit Road To VR, Upload VR, and see coverage on Bloomerg here.
Meta’s continued focus with Quest Pro’s heir
Mark Gurman reports that Meta is working on Quest 4 VR goggles and a potential successor to the Quest Pro. Dubbed “Puffin,” this new model could feature lightweight mixed reality glasses connected to an external battery. Though the original Quest Pro didn’t perform as expected, Meta’s work on a premium line makes sense—it keeps them competitive in the high-end market alongside products like Vision Pro and Project Moohan. The Quest Pro’s failure stemmed not just from its high price but from it being a rushed product. A polished Quest Pro 2 could carve out a space in enterprise sectors.
Samsung and Google Unveil Moohan Developments
People anticipated major XR announcements from Samsung’s Unpacked event, but big news was sparse. However, there were some notable takeaways. Google and Samsung emphasized better integration of Gemini AI within Samsung phones, hinting this tech could extend to all Samsung devices, not just headsets like the Moohan. Additionally, Samsung had the Moohan headset on display, and attendees, including YouTuber Marques Brownlee, got a closer look. Although specifics remain under wraps, similar design inspiration between Moohan and devices like the Vision Pro suggests an exciting direction.
For more about these developments: Samsung’s Unpacked, MKBHD’s experience with Moohan, and Samsung’s AI integration news here.
News Worth a Mention
The Mystery Behind Bricked Quest Headsets
Meta’s Vice President of VR/MR, Mark Rabkin, clarified why several headsets malfunctioned over the holidays. It turns out that a rare “race condition” bug in the Android Open Source Project’s filesystem, coupled with a security patch, caused these issues. Meta has since fixed it and reported the bug to Google for broader AOSP resolution.
Into The Radius 2 Sparks Financial Success for CM Games
CM Games has pulled impressive numbers with its game Into The Radius—800,000 units sold across systems and $3 million in revenue from the sequel on Steam’s Early Access. This success stems from tight collaboration with the Steam community, allowing ongoing refinements and future success, particularly in the Quest market.
The Future of Lightfield Technology
CREAL continues to impress by miniaturizing its lightfield engine, pushing closer to making realistic AR lightfields available in everyday wearables. This is a massive leap forward from the bulky models of just a few years ago, opening new possibilities for AR displays.
Potential Quest 3 Enhancements
Rumor has it Meta is working on eliminating some mixed reality friction points, particularly with room scanning. Currently, users need to pre-scan spaces for MR experiences, but Meta aims to develop a system for real-time, automatic scanning, removing a prominent usability hurdle.
Exploring AI’s Role in Our Augmented Future
Keiichi Matsuda, alongside Niantic, has developed a short, inspiring video that delves into a future world saturated with AI and AR agents. It’s worth watching for anyone interested in how these technologies might seamlessly blend into our lives.
Exciting Content Announcements
- Fitness Fables, blending VR fitness and fantasy action, launches on January 30th for $12.
- FlatVR Studios promises its new FlatOut VR will blend elements from the series’ best.
- Path of Fury – Episode I: Tetsuo’s Tower brings Kung-Fu VR fighting to Quest on March 12.
- Elsewhere Electric, a co-op puzzle game, combines mobile and VR play, arriving this spring/summer.
- The Smurfs – Flower Defense, a VR tower defense game, debuts on Quest 3 in May.
- Crysis in VR is now possible thanks to a new mod, finally putting to rest the question, "Can it run Crysis?"
For more on these launches, see updates on Fitness Fables, FlatOut VR, Path of Fury, Elsewhere Electric, The Smurfs – Flower Defense, and Crysis in VR.
Other News
- A GDC survey reveals that 35% of game developers are engaging with XR to some degree.
- Snap Spectacles are now half-price for students and teachers.
- Vrgamerdude goes hands-on with the neural bracelet Mudra Link.
- Miami’s new Apple store includes a special area for trying Vision Pro.
- Gabriele Romagnoli provides an insightful analysis of MR apps in the Horizon Store.
- CaddieVision AR glasses offer AI-driven assistance for golf players.
News From Partners and Friends
SkyClimb is now offering its multiplayer mode for free. Created by indie studio VRMonkey, SkyClimb offers a platform adventure with arm-based movement, much like Gorilla Tag. With glowing reviews on Quest, it’s definitely worth a try.
Some XR Fun
- Parenting a VR enthusiast can be quite the challenge.
- Ever thought you could play DOOM inside a PDF? You can now!
- The best VR upgrades might not be tech-related.
- Explore the potential pitfalls of virtual reality relationships.
- Keep your VR space organized!
Donate for Good
Instead of contributions for this blog, please consider supporting those affected by the conflict in Ukraine by donating to the Red Cross. The link is available below. Also, a heartfelt thank you to all the Patreon supporters for their continued backing:
List of generous Patreon donors
Remember, you can support the Red Cross efforts in Ukraine here.
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