Samsung, in partnership with Qualcomm and Google, has introduced plans to develop a brand new prolonged actuality product. XR is a time period that encompasses digital actuality, augmented actuality, and combined actuality applied sciences.

I actually switched from Apple to Samsung in 2015 particularly for Samsung’s Gear VR headset. However when Samsung cancelled the challenge, I switched to the Google Pixel to remain near Google’s VR platform. And now, each Gear VR and Google’s platform are gone.

I’m contemplating switching again to Samsung in the event that they launch a brand new XR headset. I’m additionally contemplating ready for Google’s model. But when Apple beats them to it, I’ll change again to Apple. It’ll be robust after greater than seven years on Android, however I need to be on the platform that helps the metaverse greatest.

What we all know concerning the Samsung XR headset up to now

Whereas the specifics of Samsung’s XR product haven’t been revealed, the corporate’s president and head of cell experiences, TM Roh, confirmed in an interview with The Washington Put up that Qualcomm will deal with the chipset, Samsung will manufacture the {hardware}, and Google will present the software program.

“For the chipset, it’ll be a strategic collaboration with Qualcomm. The {hardware} can be us,” he mentioned. “For the ecosystem, we have been making an attempt to find out which platform to work with, and ultimately, we determined that it was going to be Google.”

Google and Qualcomm individually confirmed the partnership on XR. A Google spokeswoman, Kaori Miyake, mentioned, “We’re excited to work with our companions to construct a brand new technology of immersive computing experiences that may additional elevate what customers can do with Google.” Qualcomm CEO, Cristiano Amon, added, “With the shared experience from our companions, we’ve the inspiration to make these alternatives a actuality and drive the way forward for the spatial web.”

Roh additionally talked about that Samsung’s XR enterprise will contain service partnerships with Meta and Microsoft, however declined to offer particular particulars.

Samsung’s XR announcement comes at an important time for the corporate, as world smartphone shipments declined by 12% in 2022, and the corporate noticed its lowest quarterly revenue in years. Roh acknowledged that market demand for smartphones might stay weak for the primary half of 2023, however believes that buyers will proceed to put money into premium merchandise for the added advantages they supply.

The XR market is predicted to be crowded, with Apple extensively rumored to disclose its first XR gadget within the close to future, and a number of other firms, together with Meta and Microsoft, already providing combined actuality headsets.

These different headsets haven’t been doing effectively, although. Microsoft just lately mentioned it’s going to lay off 10,000 workers. In line with media experiences, the layoffs embody its whole Combined Actuality Toolkit group and the AltspaceVR group, successfully killing Microsoft’s personal Hololens challenge.

And Fb has been dropping cash hand-over-fist on its digital actuality initiatives.

In the meantime, Samsung has a wealthy historical past within the area of XR. It was one of many first firms to develop VR {hardware}, beginning with the Samsung Gear VR platform in 2014, which was paired with the Galaxy Observe 4 cellphone. Samsung Gear VR was the primary high-quality 3DOF cell VR expertise supplied to shoppers. The corporate later launched the Odyssey PC VR headset in 2017 and a revised mannequin the next 12 months. Nonetheless, Samsung has not launched a VR product because the launch of the Odyssey+.

Google has additionally had its share of VR ventures, together with the standalone Daydream platform, which it discontinued in 2019.

The subsequent huge occasion for Samsung, Qualcomm, and Google, the place extra data on the XR {hardware} partnership could also be shared, is Cellular World Congress 2023, which kicks off in Barcelona, Spain on February 27.