I’ve always said that great technology doesn’t cater only to the needs of the dominant 95%, it also factors in the needs of the often neglected 5%. To that end, AR technology is great, but it hasn’t been applied in a way that benefits the 5th percentile – and Cellico wants to change that. The medical-tech company unveiled the Eyecane AR glasses at MWC, the world’s first augmented reality device designed to correct age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Designed to look and feel like your standard sunglasses, the Eyecane AR helps people with retinal disease see clearly. A 4K camera at the center of the glasses records the world, feeding media into a tiny projected display within the Eyecane AR’s lenses. AMD causes blind spots within people’s vision, but the Eyecane AR’s cameras help fill in those blind spots with digitally captured imagery in real time, helping people see fully and clearly again.
A disease that affects as many as 1 in 200 people by the time they reach 60, going up as high as 1 in 5 people by the time they hit their 90s. The affliction, caused by the degeneration of the macula (the central part of the retina) results in blurry or sometimes even no vision in the center of your eye. Think of a large black dot in otherwise relatively clear vision. Given that a lot of the important things we see find themselves in this central zone, people with AMD can have a tough time looking at objects, identifying people, and navigating scenarios. Cellico’s solution is incredibly simple – have a camera capture whatever is in that gap, and display it in the corner of your eye, where you can still see things relatively clearly. Creating somewhat of a picture-in-picture effect, Eyecane AR allows people with AMD to regain vision in their macular region simply by having a camera capture it and display it in another part of their field of view.
A snap-on sunshade helps people see clearly in bright settings too
By harnessing the power of a compact 4K 20MP camera seamlessly integrated into smart glasses and complemented by an intuitive mobile app, Eyecane AR captures and processes real-time images with precision, even applying optical image stabilization. These images are then projected onto an augmented reality display in Full-HD, effectively shifting central vision to the peripheral field of view. This groundbreaking approach not only restores clarity but also rekindles independence for those navigating the challenges of AMD.
simulates how people with AMD perceive the world, and how the Eyecane AR can help fill in the gap with a PIP on the left side.
Moving the PIP to the center of the screen shows what images would look like for people with regular vision.
The beauty of the Eyecane AR lies in the fact that it can be used right out of the box without a hospital visit. The Eyecane app has a built-in scotometry program that analyzes your vision for you, pinpointing the blind spot or the problematic area in your vision. The app then helps the AR glasses’ camera calibrate and focus on that region, capturing the image and displaying it in a corner of your peripheral vision. The entire process takes mere minutes, and helps quickly restore macular vision simply by relying on the inherent properties of augmented reality displays!
Key Features of Eyecane AR:
4K camera with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) embedded in AR glasses
Mobile app featuring a customized image-processing engine
Full HD Reflective Freeform crystal Lens offering a Field of View (FoV) of 40°
Voice control functionality for seamless user interaction
Electric Auto Sunshade coated with an LC film, ensuring optimal visual comfort in diverse lighting conditions
Lightweight construction, crafted from Titanium and Ultem materials, prioritizing comfort and wearability
Showcasing their tech at the Mobile World Congress, Everysight is riding the new AR (or should we call it Spatial) wave with the Maverick, their small, sleek, and stylish glasses that challenge the bulky mixed reality glasses and headsets we see today with something so close to regular glasses, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. Designed with a projected display that lets you see data and metric overlaid on the existing world, the Maverick uses an entire slew of sensors to track position, orientation, and head-tilt to ensure that digital elements remain in your line of sight (LOS) and correctly oriented. In fact, the Maverick even bagged multiple awards last year, including the iF Design Award and the Red Dot Award.
Unlike most AR headsets that can make you look a little dystopian when walking down the streets or sitting in a subway (we’re looking at you, Vision Pro wearers), the Maverick stands at the intersection of great tech and fashion. Weighing in at under 47 grams, these glasses boast a sporty, ergonomic frame that promises comfort for all-day wear, a crucial consideration for devices intended to be part of our daily lives. This comfort does not come at the expense of durability or style, making them a versatile accessory suitable for any occasion.
AR glasses are only as good as their displays (something that most Vision Pro users will swiftly point out – which is why the Maverick impresses with its crisp, high-contrast visuals despite its tiny package. Utilizing a Sony Color microOLED display, it delivers stunning visuals characterized by vibrant colors and sharp details. The high-brightness display guarantees an optimal viewing experience in both indoor and outdoor settings, a testament to the glasses’ adaptability and user-centric design.
Ease of use is at the forefront of the Maverick design, with an intuitive interface that allows users to navigate and control features through simple gestures. This user-friendly approach is further enhanced by advanced sensors like a 3D accelerometer, gyro, and magnetometer, which provide accurate line-of-sight tracking for an immersive augmented reality experience.
Battery life is a perennial concern for wearable technologies, and here, Maverick impresses with over 8 hours of continuous operation. This endurance is complemented by efficient power management, ensuring that the glasses support a day’s worth of activities without needing a recharge. Such longevity is essential for users who demand reliability from their smart devices.
User interface and interaction are streamlined for ease of use. Maverick features an intuitive interface that allows for effortless navigation and control through simple gestures. This ease of use is further enhanced by the inclusion of a 3D accelerometer, gyro, and magnetometer, providing accurate line-of-sight tracking that enriches the augmented reality experience by aligning virtual objects with the real world seamlessly. Moreover, the Maverick glasses are designed with inclusivity in mind. They offer an RX solution with personalized lenses tailored to individual prescriptions, ensuring that users with varying visual needs can enjoy the benefits of smart eyewear without compromise.
Connectivity is robust, with Bluetooth 5.2 ensuring seamless pairing with a wide range of devices, including iOS and Android smartphones, as well as Apple Watch and Android Wear. This connectivity underpins the Maverick’s versatility, making it a central hub for notifications and digital interactions on the go.
In the box, users will find everything needed to start their journey with Maverick: tinted removable visors, a charging cable, a carrying case, a pouch, a cleaning cloth, and interchangeable nose pieces. Everysight is selling a developer edition of the Maverick for $399, although it’s unclear when the public rollout will begin, and what the price will be for regular consumers.
Everysight’s Maverick glasses represent a significant advancement in smart eyewear, proving that it’s possible to stay stylish while benefiting from the latest in wearable technology. They set a new benchmark for combining practicality with elegance, ensuring users can stay connected in a visually compelling, productive, and convenient manner. If these glasses could brew coffee, we might never find a reason to take them off.
Thanks to a certain fruity company, AR glasses and headsets are back in the news. We’re still at an exciting exploration stage where we are trying to discover what works and what doesn’t as far as user experiences go, at least based on the limitations of current technology. AR glasses and their headset cousins often come in two basic designs. One packs all the necessary computing hardware to drive AR experiences, which is great for independence but not so much for comfort. On the opposite side of the spectrum lies headsets that need to connect to a desktop or laptop, removing performance limits but tying users down to a heavy or immovable computer. Leveraging the recent trend in gaming PCs, the TECNO Pocket Go is an all-in-one solution that combines the best of worlds by pairing lightweight AR glasses with a powerful gaming computer that you can hold in your hands.
As much as might dream of hi-tech Ray-Bans like Tony Stark’s, we still can’t fit that much hardware inside regular spectacles given our current level of technology. To make augmented or mixed reality glasses lightweight and relatively comfortable to wear for long periods of time, they need to have only the bare minimum to display high-quality images for both eyes. At the same time, however, it will need an external computer that does all the heavy work of processing what needs to be displayed, but it also has to be portable enough not to get in the way of your mobility.
That’s the perfect combination that the TECNO Pocket Go tries to offer, a system that’s made up of the TECNO AR Pocket Vision glasses and the TECNO AR Pocket Windows Handheld computer that comes in the form of a large game controller. The AR Pocket Vision boasts a 0.71-inch Micro-OLED display that can emulate a gigantic 215-inch screen, at least if you want something of that size. It has a 6-axis gyroscope that can accurately detect your head movements and translate that into data that the AR software can use. Despite the name, the AR Pocket Vision also pays close attention to sound, delivering an immersive audio experience thanks to N’BASS nano-structured acoustic materials and TECNO’s own unique vibration enhancement algorithms that turn in-game audio into vibrations.
The AR Pocket Windows Handheld delivers an even more portable experience that is 50% smaller and 30% lighter than your average handheld gaming PC today. Of course, it accomplishes that by taking the screen out of the equation since it will be connected to the AR Pocket Vision glasses anyway. That means the design can focus on performance and cooling while also improving the overall ergonomics of the handheld computer. It even has a replaceable battery so users can enjoy uninterrupted gaming and entertainment on the go.
Having an AR headset and a handheld computer working together is a very potent combination, and having both under a single brand and a single system significantly simplifies the overall user experience. And while the TECNO Pocket Go is primarily aimed at immersive gaming, such a power and portable system can also open the doors to other experiences, provided you’re fine with using a gamepad to control it all. TECNO hasn’t given word on when this pair will launch, but it will definitely spark the interest of gamers who want to take their handheld gaming experience to the next level.
Apple hasn’t launched a single new product category since they unveiled the AirPods back in 2016. Sure, the AirPods Max debuted in 2020, but it wasn’t a bold leap as much as natural progression. The point I’m really trying to make here is that it’s been a while since the company was ‘recklessly innovative’, and it seems like we might just get a taste of that three days from now at WWDC.
Augmented Reality has always been Tim Cook’s favorite buzzword, and he’s consistently pushed for Apple to have a presence in this space. It’s expected that all this will culminate in what analysts and leakers call “Reality”, Apple’s first XR headset. This cutting-edge device, expected to be unveiled at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, aims to pioneer the relatively uncharted realm of mixed-reality technology. With a price tag of approximately $3,000, the ‘Reality’ headset has been seven years in the making, and has been apparently filled with controversy too, with a large chunk of Apple’s own employees expressing doubt and disdain. However, here’s everything we know about the Reality headset (or could it be a pair of glasses?) that’s set to launch this Monday.
The headset’s design journey has oscillated between being thick and obtrusive, like your average VR headset, to being as slim as a pair of spectacles, or realistically, a pair of chunky ski goggles. At its heart, however, lies the innovative xrOS, designed to provide an interface that echoes the familiar iOS experience. The new operating system (which is pretty much confirmed thanks to a trademark filed by Apple in New Zealand) is set to revolutionize how users interact with their devices, presenting a traditional Home Screen in an entirely new dimension filled with apps and customizable widgets.
One of the most exciting features of ‘Reality’ is its ability to merge digital elements with the real world. The xrOS software could potentially project AR app interface elements onto actual objects, creating a seamless mixed-reality overlay effect. This represents a significant leap forward in AR technology, blurring the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds. According to MacRumors, the ‘Reality’ device will achieve this using “dual high-resolution 4K micro OLED displays with up to 3,000 pixels per inch for a rich, realistic, and immersive viewing experience.” To operate the device, the user’s hands and eyes will be monitored by over a dozen optical cameras. The user can select an on-screen item by simply looking at it and activate it by making a hand gesture, such as a pinch.
The core of xrOS will feature re-imagined versions of Apple’s staple apps. From Safari to Messages, Apple TV+ to Apple Music, users will have the flexibility to work with multiple apps simultaneously, ensuring a dynamic and engaging user experience. Apple is also set to transform existing services into immersive viewing experiences. Imagine watching videos in virtual reality as if on a giant screen, or engaging in guided meditations enhanced by immersive visuals, audio, and voiceovers. Services like Apple Fitness+, Apple TV+, and a 3D version of Apple’s collaborative Freeform tool are set to offer these radical experiences in xrOS. In addition to the reimagined versions of existing apps, Apple is likely to introduce new offerings tailored to the unique capabilities of the ‘Reality’ headset. These would include a Books app for immersive reading, a Health app focusing on psychological wellness, and a Camera app that can capture images from the headset’s cameras, promising a whole new level of interaction and engagement.
Apple is reportedly also working with a select number of game developers to help them update their existing content for mixed reality. Furthermore, Apple reportedly has a robust set of tools that will allow non-developers to create their own AR/VR experiences, even without coding skills. These user-created AR apps could be distributed on the App Store alongside developer-created apps.
The Reality headset doesn’t come without its fair share of controversy. It remains one of the most divisive products even within Apple’s own company, with multiple people leaving the project to move to other divisions within Apple, or leaving the company entirely. Multiple engineers have expressed their opinion that Tim Cook should wait before the product is “good enough” for consumers… a feeling that people on Apple’s board have expressed too. Cook gave multiple key executives and personnel a preview of the Reality headset a little over a month ago, one of them being credible Apple reporter Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. However, it seems like Cook’s been adamant about releasing the headset as soon as possible, although as a developer product rather than a consumer-ready gadget. This will probably help set the groundwork needed to make a much more consumer-friendly Reality headset somewhere down the line. Until then, we have our fingers crossed and our calendars set for June 5th, 10 am PST!
For people whose lives and livelihoods depend on computers, having more than one or even two monitors is both a necessity and a luxury. You can only have so many screens on your desk, and you won’t be able to carry them around to bring your preferred workflow anywhere else. That’s why there has been a sudden increase of “multi-monitor laptops” on crowdfunding platforms, most of which are just short-term fixes to a lingering problem. Unfortunately, the ideal solution of having virtual screens floating before our very eyes is still a distant dream, but engineers and designers have been working on stop-gap options in the meantime. A new contender has just loudly announced its arrival, and while it looks a bit less ambitious than other AR solutions we’ve seen so far, it could also become the most usable and approachable of them all.
In a nutshell, Spacetop is a laptop without a screen, whose lone monitor is replaced by AR glasses similar to those marketed by companies such as Nreal. Similar to those AR platforms, it promises a nearly infinite screen space where you can have as many windows open as your eyes can see. A key difference, however, is that you still have the usual keyboard and touchpad that sits on top of the computing guts, exactly like a laptop, making it sound more realistic compared to “air typing” in VR or AR. But while Spacetop sounds like a dream come true, it might also become a disaster for the well-being of already taxed and strained computer users. To see the forest for the trees, here are five ways Spacetop can be a boon to computer users and five ways it can be a bane instead.
5 Reasons Space is Great for Business
Infinite Monitor
Let’s face it, most of us would probably like to have as much screen space as possible if it were only physically possible. Although you will most likely just focus on one to three windows at a time, having easy access to other information without having to click around is still a great time saver. Monitoring the home security camera off to the side, keeping an eye on social media trends, and just having entertaining or inspiring content within your view are a lot better than seeing the clutter on your desk all the time.
Since that’s not possible in the physical realm, Spacetop’s solution resides purely in the virtual one. It’s not exactly the first to make that proposition, but it could turn out to be the most accessible one. AR glasses that don’t weigh your head down, a normal physical keyboard and touchpad, and a potentially more approachable price tag could finally make that infinite screen space dream come true.
Total Privacy
One reason why you wouldn’t want to have too many physical monitors is that you can’t really block off other people from nosing around your business. That’s also why those multi-monitor laptop accessories aren’t ideal in public places because it only increases the risk of people seeing what should be private and secret information. There are laptops and monitors that now implement a sort of privacy screen, but that only works on a single monitor.
Spacetop solves this by removing monitors altogether. In your own virtual bubble, you’re the only one that can see the contents of your screen unless you start sharing it with others virtually. But while this does address the problem of unauthorized eyes peeking at your non-existent monitors, it also means those next to you who need to see them won’t be able to unless you hand over your glasses.
Better Posture
While laptops are great at being portable, they’re terrible at being comfortable. The fact that the screen is permanently attached to the keyboard means you’ll always be craning down your neck, even if you have a gigantic laptop screen. That’s why even laptop owners would attach a desktop monitor at the office or at home to relieve some of the pain coming from that improper posture. Spacetop doesn’t have a screen, of course, so you’re free to raise your head to a more natural and comfortable height. There’s no need for ergonomic monitor stands or arms because there’s no monitor to speak of in the first place.
Laser Focus
Given Spacetop’s design, it supports a very specific use case, one that revolves around productively using computer programs for work and a bit of personal time. It puts everything you need in front of you and around you, effectively blocking out visual distractions coming from the outside world. Whether you let virtual distractions get to you is something you get to decide on your own rather than having other people decide for you.
At the same time, Spacetop is a bit restricted in the applications you’ll be able to use. Its Android-based operating system and mobile hardware dictate what apps you’ll have access to, which won’t include every software under the sun, especially those that require Windows or macOS (unless you have access to a remote desktop of some sort). It also means little to no gaming, which might sound ironic for an AR platform. There will probably be some ways to get past these limitations, but it won’t be as convenient an experience as on a normal computer.
Complete Freedom
With basically just the lower half of a laptop, Spacetop removes almost all physical restrictions of computing. The world effectively becomes your office, and you can set up your workstation anywhere you want or need to. You might not even need a table if you can comfortably balance Spacetop on your lap, just like what a laptop should be able to do.
This practically means you don’t have to worry about not being productive just because you’re away from home or the office or that you won’t be able to respond to emergencies without your trusty desktop monitor. In a nutshell, Spacetop frees you to be able to do your work or hobbies anywhere, but is that really a good thing?
5 Reasons Spacetop is a Bad Idea
Diminished Awareness
Augmented reality technologies have progressed significantly over the past years, but they still retain one significant flaw. Most implementations still cover a large part of your vision, and Spacetop pretty much makes it worse by having dozens of windows blocking the full range of your vision. Yes, you can limit the number of windows to just a handful, but that wouldn’t be getting the best out of its capabilities.
This, in turn, could affect your spatial awareness, effectively making you blind to what’s happening around you. Yes, there will be parts of your vision that won’t be covered by windows or the glasses, but these will just be in your periphery. This will be especially dangerous in public places where you should be more attentive to your surroundings than when you’re at home or in the office.
Social Isolation
Being able to focus on work in the middle of a bustling cafe is a good thing, but doing that among family, friends, and peers might be in poor taste. Sure, we’ll find people who are always glued to their phones, even in a circle of friends, but Spacetop takes that a step further by actually advertising your detachment from present company.
Even if socially acceptable, such isolation can also have practical downsides in a workgroup setting. Spacetop is a very personal and private experience, which also means you can’t quickly show your work to others unless it’s being shown on an external display. Even then, you won’t be able to see their natural reactions to your presentation unless all of them are on a virtual call anyway. Then again, that lack of natural response has been a recurring problem with Zooms and Meets, and those happen even on a normal screen.
Ergonomic Concerns
The lack of a laptop monitor does give our neck a bit of relief, but Spacetop doesn’t exactly solve everything else. You won’t need to lean to look at the monitor, but this virtual space won’t stop you from slouching instead. Neck strain can also come from a different source this time, like when you have to constantly turn sideways to view the nearly infinite amount of screens at your disposal. You’ll also have to wear the AR glasses the whole time, which can become uncomfortable for long periods, even for those used to wearing eyeglasses. Lastly, having displays or lenses so physically close to the eyes might have even worse ramifications compared to regular monitors.
Spacetop makes the dream of an AR laptop a bit more approachable by reusing the familiar keyboard and touchpad combo. Unfortunately, this combo is also one of the big sources of repetitive strain injuries, and this screenless laptop doesn’t exactly address that. In fact, it could make things worse by encouraging a mindset that thinks working anytime, anywhere is actually a good thing.
Limited Utility
The Spacetop’s laser-focus advantage could also be one of its weaknesses. Most of the examples shown off so far revolve around what would be considered “regular” office work, like making presentations, analyzing charts, responding to emails, and the like. This definitely covers a large part of what people use laptops for, but it’s hardly the most important one, especially for those who need unlimited screen space and the freedom to work anywhere inspiration strikes.
Designers and creatives, in particular, would benefit from having a larger canvas to put their digital content and tools on, and Spacetop can definitely help with that. These users, however, also often need specialized peripherals to do their work, like pens, MIDI instruments, and the like. You can probably attach these to the Spacetop as you would with a normal laptop, but it will be difficult to use them because of the visual occlusion. Suffice it to say, Spacetop’s design and focus seem to be biased towards office and knowledge workers that toil for hours on documents and data, which they can now do anywhere with fewer excuses.
Unbalanced Lifestyle
Spacetop is an interesting application of AR technology that makes this dream of an infinite number of monitors more relatable and approachable, not to mention a little bit more affordable. It lets people carry the equivalent of a gigantic screen that no one else can see, enabling them to truly work anywhere. It’s kind of liberating but also a bit worrying because it pretty much empowers a workaholic mentality.
People’s computers are often overloaded with desktop icons, files, and browser tabs, reflecting their own mental overload and often unbalanced lifestyles. Instead of helping them gain control over these and learn how to properly manage these things, this screenless AR laptop pretty much just gives them more room to stack more tabs and windows and do more work. And this time, their bosses can probably expect or even demand work to be done anytime, anywhere since they’d have all the space they need. At the end of the day, healthy well-being is the most important factor in productivity, and that’s not something you can gain just by having more screen space.
Although it does have the word “mobile” in it, MWC has long ceased to just be about smartphones and tablets. These days, anything you can pick up and use on the go is labeled as mobile, sometimes including laptops. When it comes to portability, however, wearables have become quite the fad, and this category isn’t just limited to smartwatches or “hearables” like earbuds and hearing aids. One strong presence at MWC 2023 this year seems to be headsets and eyewear, particularly those designed for augmented and virtual reality applications. Not to be left behind, ZTE’s nubia is showcasing its first-ever AR eyewear, and it seems to be trying to be a bit more fashionable at the expense of a bit of freedom of movement.
As far as mixed reality headgear and eyewear are concerned, the trend seems to be going in the direction of cramming all the necessary hardware inside the device, unlike the first-gen Oculus Quest and HTC Vive headsets that needed to be connected to a powerful PC with a cable. A standalone headset does have tradeoffs, though, especially when you consider the weight of the hardware and the built-in battery. That’s why some devices still try to aim for a completely lightweight and comfortable design, even if it means offloading the brunt of the work to external devices.
The new ZTE nubia NeoVision Glass is one such type of device. It’s incredibly lightweight at 79g, but it’s not lacking when it comes to display quality. It boasts Micro-OLED screens with 3500 PPI and a binocular resolution of 1080p, giving the wearer the equivalent of a 120-inch screen floating before their eyes. It doesn’t skimp on the audio either, with two omnidirectional speakers and a cyclonic sound tank. All in all, it promises a full range of multimedia experiences for both your ears and your eyes.
The nubia NeoVision Glass also advertises high compatibility with a wide range of devices, including phones, computers, and consoles. It’s “plug and play,” which suggests that it doesn’t come with its own computer inside, though ZTE wasn’t exactly clear on that part. It does mean that you can use any device or platform you want, though it also means you’ll be rooted on the spot near that device unless it’s something you can carry around.
ZTE does, however, pay special attention to both the looks of the eyewear as well as its accessibility. Magnetic lenses make it trivial to swap out different sunglasses designs, and it supports zero to 500-degree myopic adjustment for those that need to wear prescription glasses. It’s still relatively bulky compared to typical sunglasses, but few will realize that you’re viewing the world through a different set of lenses, figuratively and literally.
While the AR glasses stopped us dead in our tracks, the company also unveiled a host of other devices from TVs to soundbars, ACs, refrigerators, tablets, phones, TWS earbuds, and a VR headset.
I was today years old when I learned that TCL is USA’s 2nd largest TV seller. The company clearly is doing something right, with its high-quality display units that are also exceptionally affordable. The company revealed this fact at their CES 2023 keynote, before highlighting all the innovations it has planned for the year. It debuted 2 ranges of new TVs, the S series of smart TVs that also double as monitors, should you choose, and the Q series of QLED TVs with more dimming zones and better brightness, and the flagship QM8, a Mini QLED television that can go up to 98 inches in size to provide a whopping 5000 dimming zones. The company also unveiled a set of sub $300 soundbars in S and Q series too.
A pioneer in displays, TCL also debuted two tablets that rival the iPad Pro with their sleek and functional designs. The NXTPAPER 12 Pro comes with a 12.2-inch 2K display that feels just like paper. It has four speakers, stereo microphones, and dual 8MP front-facing cameras to rival Apple’s own tablet, along with the ability to snap onto a wireless keyboard for a laptop-like experience. The NXTPAPER 12 Pro also has support for a stylus and runs Android 13 on an 8000mAh battery that gives it 13 hours of use.
The Book X12 Go was also announced as TCL’s new hybrid laptop with a detachable keyboard for ultimate usage flexibility. It too runs a 12.2-inch 2K screen but runs Windows 11 instead of Android 13. It also has a 30Wh battery that provides 14 hours of productivity with also the ability to reverse-charge.
The company’s displays also now benefit the everyday user thanks to TCL’s 40 series of smartphones that contain 3 different models, all with 90Hz displays and built-in 5G, and a special 2-in-1 ‘hyper-camera’ on the 408 model for photography nerds.
TCL also announced the MOVEAUDIO Air, their pair of TWS earbuds with an AI-enhanced quad-mic system for the clearest call quality. The earbuds also weigh a stunning 4.4 grams and boast of a 32-hour battery life (with the charging case) and IPX4 waterproof rating.
The RayNeo X2 was perhaps the most anticipated new tech in TCL’s lineup. Designed as a successor to the company’s previous NXTWEAR S, the RayNeo X2 are the world’s first binocular full-color microLED optical waveguide AR glasses. That’s just fancy talk for the fact that they have the best displays ever built into a pair of AR glasses as small as this, with 1000 nits of brightness and displays in both eyepieces for the perfect AR experience in indoor and outdoor applications. The glasses sit on your face without really occupying too much real estate, and can provide real-time subtitles just like Google’s demo concept from earlier this year, thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 chipset on the inside. They even have cameras built-in, capable of taking FPV photos and videos like Facebook and Ray-Ban’s Stories glasses.
Finally, TCL also revealed the NXTWEAR V, a flagship-level VR headset with 4K+ displays in both eyes offering 1512 PPI resolution for optimal clarity, along with a 108° FoV and 6 degrees of freedom – a feature that’s come to be expected from all good VR headsets. Two cameras on the front also enable the headset to have a ‘transparent mode’ that lets you basically use the cameras as eyes to see what’s in front of and around you as you move around.
It alternates between being a gaming controller and a remote, thanks to its unique orientation-agnostic design.
Designed to be perhaps the first-ever controller targeted specifically at augmented reality, the Rokid Station fulfills multiple roles, working with multimedia, gaming, as well as productivity tools. The controller plugs right into the Rokid Air AR glasses, offering a tactile way to navigate the virtual interface, while also being a computing device in its own right, with its own AR app store, support for streaming, browsing, and productivity tools, as well as built-in storage for your own data.
The Station works when tethered to the Rokid Air glasses, which aren’t standalone AR goggles like the Hololens or Magic Leap. The slim, lightweight glasses function as the display unit, while the Station is your own handheld computer and controller too. It houses its own 5,000 mAh battery which Rokid says lasts enough to watch 3 full movies (or work/play for 6 hours), and even comes with in-built 32Gb of storage that can be used for movies, files, apps, etc.
The Rokid Station’s design feels a little confusing at first glance because your mind can’t seem to grasp the ‘right way’ to hold the device. The trick, however, is that the controller doesn’t come with any right way of holding it. It can be used in portrait or even landscape mode, and by left and right-handed people alike. In portrait mode, the Station serves as a remote control, while in handheld mode, it transforms into a gaming-style controller that can be gripped and operated with two hands.
The handheld device is quite intuitive to use, with simple controls that mimic the format of a gaming controller combined with a smart-TV remote. The Rokid Station needs to perpetually be plugged into the glasses, which feels like a bit of a hindrance, but its compact form factor definitely makes it more convenient than having to tether a laptop or desktop to your AR glasses.
The jogdial and action buttons help you navigate apps, browse/play/pause movies, and even play games.
Rokid announced the Station this year with built-in Alibaba Cloud’s cloud computing service and support for other 3D office applications as well. The device works both online and offline, letting you stream movies in your personal AR-style IMAX theater as well as access local files and videos. Users can even play games like Genshin Impact or browse social media on the device too. The Rokid Station is currently priced at ¥799 RMB ($114 USD), although you have to buy the Rokid Air AR glasses separately.
“Go small or go home”, the company revealed in a cryptic Twitter post back in October.
HTC’s latest AR/VR headset seems to be shaping up rather well, as per a render revealed to the folks at the Verge. Slated for a 5th January launch, just as CES kicks off for the year, the erstwhile unnamed headset will feature passthrough reality, quite like Meta’s recently announced Quest Pro goggles. However, the new HTC device promises much more than its competitor, namely a lighter design, a depth sensor for better spatial mapping, and a stronger focus on privacy. “We’re in an era when consumer VR headsets have been massively subsidized by companies that are trying to vacuum up and take personal data to provide to advertisers,” said Shen Ye, HTC’s global head of product.
The unnamed goggles concept from the HTC Vive team features a design more similar in aesthetics to the Magic Leap headset than the Quest Pro. It comes with two separate eyepieces unlike the Quest Pro’s skiing goggle-style single-glass design and is capable of both virtual as well as augmented reality. The nose bridge has a front-facing camera, as well as cameras in each of the eyepieces, while the rim of the goggles features cameras facing the side. There’s even a depth sensor on these goggles – something the Quest Pro decided to exclude – giving HTC’s hardware better tracking and spatial gauging. The Verge reports that this headset will get up to 2 hours of battery life while being able to support controllers as well as track hands and movement in 6 degrees of freedom. HTC mentions that the headset can be utilized for a wide range of purposes, including gaming, entertainment, exercise, and even more advanced applications such as productivity and enterprise tools.
Styled less like a piece of hardware and more like functional fashion, the Microsoft Holo Glasses are redemption for exactly how geeky Google’s glasses were in 2013. They scale down Microsoft’s existing Hololens 2 technology into a slim wearable that fits comfortably on your face, and comes with snap-on frames that allow you to swap styles in a hot minute!
The Holo Glasses are a wearable concept that takes Microsoft’s AR chops and makes them consumer-friendly again. Now, I love Microsoft as a company. Satya Nadella’s done wonders by taking it to the trillion dollar club, and Microsoft’s acquisitions of LinkedIn, Github, and Activision Blizzard are a great example of Nadella’s vision for the company… but at the same time, aside from their gaming business, Microsoft’s entirely an enterprise-focused company. They surrendered the smartphone war by bidding adieu to Nokia, and they even took Hololens 2 and turned it into more of a business solution than a consumer gadget. The Holo Glasses, however, make the company cool again!
Designer: Misneok Kim
Schematically, the glasses are pretty much like the Hololens, with cameras and sensors that help with object and spatial tracking, and lenses in front of the eye that help reflect images into the retina. Like the Hololens 2, the Holo Glasses let you see what’s ahead of you too, giving you a mixed reality experience that only a handful of companies have been able to deliver on… although we’re still expecting Apple to launch their AR glasses shortly too!
As is evident in the image below, the Holo Glasses are designed in two parts – the first being the hardware that sits on your face, and the second being a set of magnetic frames that snap onto the glasses, giving them their fashion-forward look. The frames add the aesthetic appeal to the Holo Glasses while the visors on the actual wearable deal with reflecting visuals to your eye. This dual-glass setup can be seen in many other AR headsets, although what this concept does is slim the contraption down to a level where tech and fashion can coexist harmoniously.
These snap-on frames come in a variety of colors and shapes, giving wearers the freedom to choose their ‘look’. You can simply swap out fascias to alter the appearance of your Holo Glasses, and there’s even the option of getting prescription lenses built into the snap-on frames, allowing people with spectacles to wear the Holo Glasses too!
On paper, the Holo Glasses are a pretty nifty concept. They make Microsoft’s existing tech even better and more democratized, so regular users can access game-changing AR technology without breaking the bank. The glasses can be operated by voice or by buttons and touch-sensitive surfaces on the temple stems. Each Holo Glass also comes with bone-conducting audio units built into the ends, delivering audio directly to the wearer without needing to wear earphones. Ultimately, when not worn, the Holo Glasses can be carried around in their spectacle cases, which also double as charging docks for the wearables.
