Samsung is the primary companion to formally announce a brand new MR headset based mostly on the newly introduced Android XR. The system, codenamed “Venture Moohan,” is deliberate for shopper launch in 2025. We went fingers on with an early model.
Observe: Samsung and Google aren’t but sharing any key particulars for this headset like decision, weight, field-of-view, or value. Throughout my demo I additionally wasn’t allowed to seize photographs or movies, so we solely have an official picture in the intervening time.
If I informed you that Venture Moohan felt like a mashup between Quest and Imaginative and prescient Professional, you’d most likely get the concept it has lots of overlapping capabilities. However I’m not simply making a tough analogy. Simply wanting on the headset, it’s clear that it has taken vital design cues from Imaginative and prescient Professional. All the things from colours to button placement to calibration steps, make it unmistakably conscious of different merchandise available on the market.
After which on the software program facet, if I had informed you “please make an OS that mashes collectively Horizon OS and VisionOS,” and also you got here again to me with Android XR, I’d say you nailed the project.
It’s truly uncanny simply how a lot Venture Moohan and Android XR really feel like a riff on the 2 different greatest headset platforms.
However this isn’t a publish to say somebody stole one thing from another person. Tech firms are at all times borrowing good concepts and good designs from one another—generally bettering them alongside the way in which. So so long as Android XR and Venture Moohan acquired the good elements of others, and averted the dangerous elements, that’s a win for builders and customers.
And lots of the good elements do certainly seem like there.
Palms-on With Samsung Venture Moohan Android XR Headset
Ranging from the Venture Moohan {hardware}—it’s a handsome system, little doubt. It undoubtedly has the ‘goggles’-style look of Imaginative and prescient Professional, in addition to a tethered battery pack (not pictured above).
However the place Imaginative and prescient Professional has a comfortable strap (that I discover relatively uncomfortable with out a third-party improve), Samsung’s headset has a inflexible strap with tightening dial, and an general ergonomic design that’s fairly near Quest Professional. Which means an open-peripheral design which is nice for utilizing the headset for AR. Additionally like Quest Professional, the headset has some magnetic snap-on blinders for those who desire a blocked-out peripheral for absolutely immersive experiences.
And although the goggles-look and even lots of the button placements (and shapes) are strikingly much like Imaginative and prescient Professional, Venture Moohan doesn’t have an exterior show to indicate the consumer’s eyes. Imaginative and prescient Professional’s exterior ‘EyeSight’ show has been criticized by many, however I preserve it’s a fascinating function, and one which I want Venture Moohan had. Coming from Imaginative and prescient Professional, it’s simply form of awkward to not be capable to ‘see’ the particular person sporting the headset, despite the fact that they’ll see you.
Samsung has been tight-lipped in regards to the headset’s tech particulars, insisting that it’s nonetheless a prototype. Nonetheless, we’ve got realized the headset is working a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 processor, a extra highly effective model of the chip in Quest 3 and Quest 3S.
In my hands-on I used to be in a position to glean a number of particulars. For one, the headset is utilizing pancake lenses with automated IPD adjustment (due to built-in eye-tracking). The sector-of-view feels smaller than Quest 3 or Imaginative and prescient Professional, however earlier than I say that definitively, I first must attempt completely different brow pad choices (confirmed to be included) which could possibly transfer my eyes nearer to the lenses for a wider field-of-view.
From what I acquired to attempt nevertheless, the field-of-view did really feel smaller—albeit, sufficient to nonetheless really feel immersive—and so did the candy spot attributable to brightness fall-off towards the outer edges of the show. Once more, that is one thing that will enhance if the lenses had been nearer to my eyes, however the vibe I acquired for now’s that, from a lens standpoint, Meta’s Quest 3 remains to be main, adopted by Imaginative and prescient Professional, with Venture Moohan a bit behind.
Though Samsung has confirmed that Venture Moohan can have its personal controllers, I didn’t get to see or attempt them but. I used to be informed they haven’t determined if the controllers will ship with the headset by default or be offered individually.
So it was all hand-tracking and eye-tracking enter in my time with the headset. Once more, this was a surprisingly related mashup of each Horizon OS and VisionOS. You should use raycast cursors like Horizon OS or you should use eye+pinch inputs like VisionOS. The Samsung headset additionally contains downward-facing cameras so pinches will be detected when your fingers are comfortably in your lap.
Once I truly acquired to place the headset on, the very first thing I observed was how sharp my fingers gave the impression to be. From reminiscence, the headset’s passthrough cameras seem to have a sharper picture than Quest 3 and fewer movement blur than Imaginative and prescient Professional (however I solely acquired to check in wonderful lighting circumstances). Contemplating although how my fingers appeared sharp however issues additional away appeared much less so, it nearly felt just like the passthrough cameras might need been targeted at roughly arms-length distance.
Proceed on Web page 2: Inside Android XR »
Inside Android XR
Anyway, onto Android XR. As mentioned, it’s instantly similar to a mashup of Horizon OS and VisionOS. You’ll see the identical form of ‘house display’ as Imaginative and prescient Professional, with app icons on a clear background. Look and pinch to pick one and also you get a floating panel (or a number of) containing the app. It’s even the identical gesture to open the house display (take a look at your palm and pinch).
The system home windows themselves look nearer to these of Horizon OS than VisionOS, with largely opaque backgrounds and the power to maneuver the window anyplace by reaching for an invisible body that wraps across the complete panel.
Along with flat apps, Android XR can do absolutely immersive stuff too. I acquired to see a VR model of Google Maps which felt similar to Google Earth VR, permitting me to select anyplace on the globe to go to, together with the power to see places like main cities modeled in 3D, Avenue View imagery, and, newly, volumetric captures of inside areas.
Whereas Avenue View is monoscopic 360 imagery, the volumetric captures are rendered in real-time and absolutely explorable. Google mentioned this was a gaussian splat answer, although I’m not clear on whether or not it was generated from current inside images that’s already out there on commonplace Google Maps, or if it required a model new scan. It wasn’t almost as sharp as you’d count on from a photogrammetry scan, however not dangerous both. Google mentioned the seize was working on-device and never streamed, and that sharpness is anticipated to enhance over time.
Google Pictures has additionally been up to date for Android XR, together with the power to robotically convert any current 2D photograph or video out of your library into 3D. Within the transient time I had with it, the conversions regarded actually spectacular; related in high quality to the identical function on Imaginative and prescient Professional.
YouTube is one other app Google has up to date to take full benefit of Android XR. Along with watching common flatscreen content material on a big, curved show, you can even watch the platform’s current library of 180, 360, and 3D content material. Not all of it’s tremendous top quality, nevertheless it’s good that it’s not being forgotten—and can absolutely be added to as extra headsets are in a position to view this type of media.
Google additionally confirmed me a YouTube video that was initially shot in 2D however robotically transformed to 3D to be seen on the headset. It regarded fairly good, seemingly related in high quality to the Google Pictures 3D conversion tech. It wasn’t made clear whether or not that is one thing that YouTube creators would want to opt-in to have generated, or one thing YouTube would simply do robotically. I’m positive there’s extra particulars to come back.
The Stand-out Benefit (for now)
Android XR and Venture Moohan, each from a {hardware} and software program standpoint, really feel very very similar to a Google-fied model of what’s already available on the market. However what it clearly does higher than another headset proper now’s conversational AI.
Google’s AI agent, Gemini (particularly the ‘Venture Astra‘ variant) will be triggered proper from the house display. Not solely can it hear you, however it could actually see what you see in each the actual world and the digital world—constantly. Its ongoing notion of what you’re saying and what you’re seeing makes it really feel smarter, higher built-in, and extra conversational than the AI brokers on up to date headsets.
Sure, Imaginative and prescient Professional has Siri, however Siri can solely hear you and is usually targeted on single-tasks relatively than an ongoing dialog.
And Quest has an experimental Meta AI agent that may hear you and see what you’re seeing—however solely the actual world. It has no sense of what digital content material is in entrance of you, which creates a bizarre disconnect. Meta says this may change ultimately, however for now that’s the way it works. And with a purpose to ‘see’ issues, it’s a must to ask it a query about your atmosphere after which stand nonetheless whereas it makes a ‘shutter’ sound, then begins fascinated by that picture.
Gemini, then again, will get one thing nearer to a low framerate video feed of what you’re seeing in each the actual and digital worlds; which suggests no awkward pauses to be sure you’re wanting straight on the factor you requested about as a single image is taken.
Gemini on Android XR additionally has a reminiscence about it, which supplies it a lift relating to contextual understanding. Google says it has a rolling 10-minute reminiscence and retains “key particulars of previous conversations,” which suggests you may refer not solely to belongings you talked about not too long ago, but additionally belongings you noticed.
I used to be proven what’s by now turning into a typical AI demo: you’re in a room full of stuff and you’ll ask questions on it. I attempted to journey the system up with a number of sly questions, and was impressed at its means to keep away from the diversions.
I used Gemini on Android XR to ask it to translate signal written in Spanish into English. It shortly gave me a fast translation. Then I requested it to translate one other close by signal into French—realizing full properly that this signal was already in French. Gemini had no drawback with this, and accurately famous, “this signal is already in French, it says [xyz],” and it even mentioned the French phrases in a French accent.
I moved on to asking about another objects within the room, and after it had been a couple of minutes since asking in regards to the indicators, I requested it “what did that signal say earlier?” It knew what I used to be speaking about and browse the French signal aloud. Then I mentioned “what in regards to the one earlier than that?”….
A number of years in the past this query—”what in regards to the one earlier than that?”—would have been a wildly difficult query for any AI system (and it nonetheless is for a lot of). Answering it accurately requires a number of ranges of context from our dialog as much as that time, and an understanding of how the factor I had simply requested about pertains to one other factor we had talked about beforehand.
But it surely knew precisely what I meant, and shortly learn the Spanish signal again to me. Spectacular.
Gemini on Android XR may also do extra than simply reply common questions. It stays to be seen how deep this shall be at launch, however Google confirmed me a number of ways in which Gemini can truly management the headset.
For one, asking it to “take me to the Eiffel tower,” pulls up an immersive Google Maps view so I can see it in 3D. And since it could actually see digital content material in addition to actual, I can proceed having a reasonably pure dialog, with questions like “how tall is it?” or “when was it constructed?”
Gemini may also fetch particular YouTube movies that it thinks are the precise reply to your question. So saying one thing like “present a video of the view from the bottom,” whereas wanting on the digital Eiffel tower, will pop up a YouTube video to indicate what you requested for.
Ostensibly Gemini on Android XR also needs to be capable to do the standard assistant stuff that almost all telephone AI can do (ie: ship textual content messages, compose an electronic mail, set reminders), however it is going to be fascinating to see how deep it would go together with XR-specific capabilities.
Gemini on Android XR looks like the very best model of an AI agent on a headset but (together with what Meta has proper now on their Ray-Ban smartglasses) however Apple and Meta are undoubtedly working towards related capabilities. How lengthy Google can preserve the lead right here stays to be seen.
Gemini on Venture Moohan looks like a pleasant value-add when utilizing the headset for spatial productiveness functions, however its true future most likely lies on smaller, on a regular basis wearable smartglasses, which I additionally acquired to attempt… however extra on that in one other article.
