The Ghost Howls’s VR Week Peek (2019.09.22): Oculus working on AR glasses with Luxottica, Apple glasses FOV discovered and much more!
Another week, another roundup of amazing AR/VR news! This week I have been pretty busy working on our mixed reality fitness game that is very close to launch and in preparing some amazing articles for next week (I will publish a review of the Valve Index and a super-amazing interview to Jeri Ellsworth, the creator of TiltFive augmented reality glasses!), but I have found some time anyway to read all the news I found about AR and VR and create this summary just for you! 😉
Not reading it would be a pity, so go on…
Top news of the week
Facebook may be partnering with Luxottica to create consumer AR glasses
A rumor spread by CNBC talks about Facebook partnering with Luxottica to create the augmented reality glasses of the future. Facebook has deep expertise on AR and VR (I think we all know it), while Luxottica, that is the worldwide leader in glasses manufacturing (it is the brand behind Rayban, for instance), for sure knows how to create glasses that consumers want to wear. The mixes of the two appear so perfect to design technological and trendy glasses that all people would like to wear.
The glasses, codenamed Orion, should be made to replace smartphones and are slated for a release date of 2023–2025, that seems very reasonable, considering that no present tech is able to create truly consumer AR.
All of this seems cool, but also very confused. First of all, the report mixes the term AR glasses and smartglasses too many times. Then, The Information has reported a similar rumor, but talking about other glasses, codenamed Stella, that should be similar to Snap’s Spectacles and be released much sooner than 2023 (it could be the 1st generation of devices created by this partnership). In the end, it is also obscure who will actually create the glasses: who will manufacture the displays? And the chips? Etc… (thanks Nathan Brown for pointing this out).
Most probably the rumor of the partnership is true, but the info contained in it has to be taken with a grain of salt. Considering that Facebook is very smart also in leaking misleading info (as it has happened with the “Monterey” headset), this can also be a move from Menlo Park to create hype for the upcoming Oculus Connect 6 and the AR glasses that will be teased there.
More info (Report by CNBC)
More info (Report by The Information)
Other relevant news
We may know the field of view of Apple AR headset
I’ve already told you last week that iOS 13 already includes supports for AR glasses. This week, a developer (whose nickname is
First of all, he has been actually been able to run an application of his in AR mode on his iPhone. Of course, since he has not an Apple HMD, the only thing he could obtain was the screen splitting in two on his phone, showing that view that we XR developers know very well. This is an enormous confirmation of the XR support embedded on all most modern iPhones.
Then, he has also been able to get the nicknames and the fields of view of the headsets that Apple is currently testing! They are:
- “Franc”: FoV 47°×40°
- “Luck”: 46°×34°
- “Garta” 49°×47°
It is notable to see that all these headsets present different aspect ratios for their visuals.
It is now sure that Apple is going to release an AR headset, the questions are just when and what. In the meanwhile, Apple continues collecting patents on new optical systems.
More info (Apple AR headsets FOV)
More info (Apple patent on retinal projection)
More info (Robert Scoble’s thoughts on Apple’s strategy)
The Oculus Connect 6 is coming!
Next week, on Wednesday and Thursday, Oculus will hold his yearly gathering, where it will showcase all its newest innovations. Most probably there won’t be hardware releases (Oculus has just launched the Rift S and the Quest) but just teases of new devices of the future and a lot of new software releases and showcases (like the one about the game that is being developed by Respawn). Probably Oculus will showcase some AR/MR prototypes to journalists, to show its new trend in not developing only VR headsets, but also AR ones (see the above news about the partnership with Luxottica). Probably we will also hear some news on hands tracking, solutions to create multiplayer LBVR installations with Oculus Quest and accessories for Quest&Rift S. And then there will be Michael Abrash and John Carmack!
But Facebook is not waiting the OC6 to present all its products. In the meantime it has already announced new hardware of its: Portal 2, the second edition of the smart videocall device that Facebook wants every person to have at home to “defy distance”. It has already some AR features since it lets you add AR filters to your video stream.
If you, like me, can’t attend the OC6, you can follow the live stream on Facebook or in VR in Oculus Venues or in BigScreen VR!
Who else is hyped?
More info (My predictions for OC6)
More info (All Michael Abrash’s predictions in the Oculus Connects)
More info (How to watch Oculus Connect 6 in streaming)
More info (Official blog post on how to watch Oculus Connect 6)
More info (Portal 2)
HTC has a new CEO: Yves Maitre
HTC, one of the most important companies in the VR landscape, has now a new boss: Yves Maitre. The previous CEO, Cher Wang, has stepped down from her role, remaining anyway inside the company as chairwoman.
Yves is an expert executive and comes from many years leading the French communication company Orange. It will be important to see what changes this new CEO will take with him. CEOs means a lot for a company: think about how Microsoft has changed going from Ballmer to Nadella. HTC is not performing very well economically, especially because it is not shining in the smartphone sector, and it will be interesting to see how the CEO wants to fix these problems, and how much it will believe in VR and how much instead he will want to bet on smartphones.
For sure, both Ms. Wang and Mr. Maitre underlined that they want to continue developments in XR and 5G and that is a great sign. For the rest, I guess we will discover how the company will evolve in the upcoming months.
Ultrahaptics rebrands as Ultraleap
Ultrahaptics is the English company producing a haptic device that works without being worn by the user: it emits ultrasound waves that colliding with the skin of the fingers of the user provide him a sense of touch. It has bought the hand-tracking company Leap Motion various months ago for $30M since the two hardware
Now Ultrahaptics wants to take this union even further, rebranding as Ultraleap, highlighting how the company wants to focus on everything that regards hands use in VR from tracking to haptics. All new products will use this new brand, while the old ones will keep the original ones.
Apart from the name change, I wonder if they will release soon a product that incorporates both hands tracking and contact-less haptic feedback in only one device. I would really love to have it!
News worth a mention
New AR glasses enter the market
This week I have discovered three new AR glasses/smart glasses that have entered the market. No one of them seems disruptive, but they are worth a mention anyway:
- ThirdEye has announced its augmented reality glasses: 720p per eye, 42° FOV and final price of $1950. The only thing truly worth a mention is the support for 5G connectivity;
- Huawei has actually put on sale in China its smartglasses. Their prices range from 1999 yuan (US$282) to 2499 yuan (US$353). The good of these devices is the wonderful design, that comes from the partnership with Korean brand Gentle Monster. The bad is that they are just audio smartglasses, that only provide audio directly to your ears and nothing more;
- Iristick has started offering its smart glasses that look like Google Glass. Its peculiarity? They work by being connected with iOS phones and tablets. It is the first device of this kind.
(Thanks to David Digital for the tip of the latest two news!)
More info (ThirdEye X2)
More info (Huawei smartglasses)
More info (Iristick.Z1 smartglasses)
Valve’s Kerry Davis has talked about UX in VR
In the event at Digipen, Valve’s developer Kerry Davis has given no details about the upcoming VR flagship game (apart from the fact that there will be doors in it) but has given some interesting considerations about realism and usability in VR experiences.
Talking about doors, he showed how making a perfectly realistic doors in VR, with all the realistic interactions to open and close it (rotate the handle, etc…) isn’t ideal at all, because manipulating objects in VR is not the same as in real life, so that door would result difficult to be used. It is better to make VR objects a bit less realistic but more usable for now.
Facebook is going to launch AR ads
Facebook is officially going to launch three new types of ad units on its platform: polls, playable ads, and AR ads. All these ad types have proved to be very effective in early tests and that’s why Facebook is now betting on them. For instance, “makeup brand WeMakeUp saw a 27.6 point uplift in purchases coinciding with the rollout of its lipstick try-on AR ad” and “Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, which tested AR ads for its new Luxe Matte Lip color, claims website purchases doubled.”. This shows you how AR is and will be amazing for marketing, and for ad companies like Facebook.
Games on Oculus Quest are selling really well
Upload VR is conducting
This is for sure amazing and shows us how the Quest is really a successful platform. On the other side, we have to think that these title launching on Quest usually have already a recognized brand in the VR communities and come in a moment where the VR market is far more mature than when Rift CV1 and Vive were released. A game launch in 2019 is far different than a game launch in 2016.
Qualcomm announces Enterprise XR program
Qualcomm has just launched an Enterprise XR program to help to connect the AR/VR hardware producers, that usually use Qualcomm reference designs, with the XR solution providers, that is software companies offering enterprise AR solutions to companies. Taking part in the program, Qualcomm will help the solution providers in making cross-platform and cross-device applications and also will give them insights and connections.
If you are an XR solution provider, give a look to this interesting program!
Applications for the Vive X close on September, 30th
If you have an AR/VR startup, you had better knowing that the applications for the 5th batch of Vive X startups are closing on September, 30th. Vive X is a very well known incubator that includes companies like bHaptics, LIV and Neurable. Companies inside it usually don’t receive enormous amounts of money, but some financing, good connections and mentoring. If you are interested, apply to the Vive X website.
Some interesting XR content
As every week, some news bits on some interesting XR content:
- Half+Half is a relaxing social VR environment where you can meet other people and have fun with them. All the people there have very cute avatars and can play some minigames together;
- TribeXR arrives on Quest and lets people learn how to DJ. It is also possible to take lessons from real DJs inside the platform;
- The Angry Birds Movie 2 VR is out and features an interesting co-op mode;
- Roboco is an educational VR experience that teaches you the basics on how to build a robot in a funny way;
- High Fidelity develops a smartphone app that is able to create a VR avatar of you by just a single selfie. It works quite well;
- The Other is a very interesting storytelling experience built specifically for the Bose audio augmented reality glasses.
More info (Half+Half) More info (Tribe XR)
More info (The Angry Birds Movie 2 VR)
More info (Roboco)
More info (High Fidelity avatar app)
More info (The Other)
Some XR fun
Lucas Rizzotto is working on a horror VR game with a talking toilet! :O
Beat Saber skills may be useful for you to fight wasps. The same doesn’t hold true for Audica.
This Area 51 VR simulator shows you what the US government is hiding to us!
This happens when you try to jump a fence in VR!
Thanks to all you my supporters!
This week I want to send a special “thank you” to Francesco Strada, super-cozy guy and bright researcher of the Politechnic of Turin, for having become a supporter of mine on Patreon!
The family of my supporters is growing week after week, and now includes all these people:
- DeoVR
- Ilias Kapouranis
- Paolo Leoncini
- Vooiage Technologies
- Jennifer Granger
- Jason Moore
- Matias Nassi
- Francesco Strada
- Caroline
As you can see, they are 9, I am so close to the round number of 10! Could you be so kind to support me on Patreon by clicking the button below, so that we can reach that magic number? 😉 I need your support to continue writing all these roundups!
(Header image composed with images by Oculus and Ray-Ban)
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