Google launches Android XR, new operating system for VR, AR and AI glasses
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O Google and Samsung invited journalists to a private session where they talked about the platform Android XR — operating system that will be present on the Galaxy XR, the first VR/AR headset in this category, scheduled to be released in 2025. Companies want to take advantage of the intelligence of Google Gemini to change the use of augmented and virtual reality glasses in everyday life. See the first details.
A new multi-reality operating system
According to the Google, we can expect that the new operating system, the Android XR, be in a similar glasses to Ray-Ban Meta. The idea is to allow users to see information on the screen, such as directions to places and even data about historical facilities. All with the support of Google Gemini. The goal is to take a further step in the use of virtual and augmented reality, with devices interacting with the real world.
A Samsung was confirmed as a hardware and expertise partner of Android. It must be the first giant to put a device with Android XR on the market, with the initial idea of launching a device that competes with the Meta quest and that works both in the virtual environment and also providing support in the real world.
Already Qualcomm will be the partner that will provide processors for these devices to operate. It is likely that the processor Snapdragon XR2 Plus Gen 2, announced a few months ago and aimed only at XR/VR glasses, is the big choice.
Starting today (12), developers can now use the developer kit to create applications for this platform. Experts emphasize that this is the time to invest in products like this, as Google Gemini, which continues to be improved, can also be used in VR/XR glasses.
To facilitate the creation and adaptation of existing applications, common tools such as Android Jetpack XR, Unity, OpenXR or WebXR can be used to create new features for the Android XR. O Google also released a online form for those interested in receiving courses and tips about your new platform. Registration is free.
Gemini Presence
O Google Gemini will be the big choice to support users on devices running the Android XR: one of the examples will be the generation of subtitles in real time, as if the Google translator become his interpreter at all times of the year.
The company also wants the Gemini Be a true assistant in your day-to-day life and, among the examples mentioned, thanks to having access to everything you are seeing, it can suggest decorations for your home after quickly analyzing the space, showing practical examples to help you decide. It will also be possible to have access to photographic memory, which will help you remember where the objects are.
Still on the subject of performing quick tasks, the user can request summaries of message groups so that they can catch up after spending some time offline or not wanting to pick up their cell phone on the street. After receiving this, you can ask the Google Gemini that sends a message (including photos/videos), all hands-free.
O Google Maps, which already has AR features, will also be used in this new operating system. Right after asking for directions to a place, each step to get there will be indicated on the screen in this way (see the example below), and, therefore, the user will not have to use the smartphone at any time.
Virtual multi-screen experience
With an eye on what Apple Vision e o Meta quest already do, it will also be possible to open several applications in the virtual environment through the Android XR. For example: you can work with a tab of the Google Chrome while catching up on news in another tab, all without having to take off your mixed reality glasses.
The idea here is that you multitask using multiple screens. apple vision pro, for example, allows you to see what is in your Mac, iPhone and iPad, in addition to having standalone applications running on your operating system. Bringing this universe to the field Android, imagine being able to see what's on your smartphone screen Galaxy while checking other demands.
Immersive Apps
This also makes the use more immersive: instead of applications being opened on a small screen, the idea is that they fill the entire virtual space. Apple closed a partnership with Disney so that films and series can be adapted and thus viewed in a 360º proportion. The same goes for use on airplanes.
We can expect that in this case, AAA games will look completely different when running on devices with Android XR. FPS and adventure titles should be the ones to benefit the most from this change, but let's wait and see what the future holds.
Convert photos to 3D videos
Wrapping things up, the platform may have the ability to transform static photos into immersive videos. Imagine that a photo of a beach could be transformed, via AI, into a virtual environment so that you can return to that special moment, even if only for a few hours. Watch the video above to understand this functionality.
This is also one of the features of Vision OS that attracted the most attention and, if it works out in Android XR, will be one of the great features of devices that run the operating system. Currently, smartphones with Android can already take great photos thanks to their sensors, so imagine what it would be like if everything could be seen in a large immersive virtual environment?
Galaxy XR (Project Moohan): the first glasses with Android XR
with the codename of Project Moohan (infinity, in translation from Korean), the first device with Android XR is scheduled to hit the market in 2025.
The idea would be to launch a product weighing around 50 grams. Some rumors from leaks indicate that it will have the processor Snapdragon XR2 Plus Gen 2, micro screens OLED ou OLEDOS with high refresh rates and that uses a lens Sony IMX681 12 MP to track hand movements.
It is also known that the Samsung may not call it Galaxy XR, but from Samsung XR, as the brand has plans to remove “Galaxy” from its premium products.
The information that most confirms the development of a device like this by the Korean company is the slide from a meeting for investors, where the Samsung reports that he wants to “enhance connectivity between products, including future XR devices, to further elevate the user experience across the Galaxy ecosystem."
Google's AR/AI glasses with display
During the Google I/O 2024, held in May this year, a prototype of AR/AI glasses almost went unnoticed by some people.
The company didn't say much about the subject and also refrained from talking about plans to launch a device like this, but they do exist and were even confirmed by the company itself in the description of the video below. In it, it mentions that "a prototype of a glasses device" was shown in the second part of the video. Watch:
Going deeper, the company's idea is to use the Project Astra as a computer vision feature. Active for the entire time it is being used, the possible glasses would have photographic memory and screens that would display information to its users, such as data about a location, in addition to even helping to find objects in the space we are in. Take a closer look at it:
Going back in time a little, more specifically in 2022, the Google showed the Project Iris, which basically translated several languages in real time and would also allow internet browsing, in addition to running Android natively. But, the 2024 video does not show the 2022 glasses, because, as you can see in the photo below, it has more curved tips:
The initial idea was to launch the Project Iris in 2024, but in 2023 in June 2023, the A canceled development by cutting 12.000 employees. The company chose to focus its efforts on software development rather than hardware.
Will we ever see a product like this again? Time will tell.
Availability
Many people expected the presentation and start of sales of the Galaxy XR happen now in January 2025, with the launch of the line Galaxy S25. But the mixed reactions towards the apple vision pro, which served as inspiration for the Samsung e Google create the Galaxy XR, delayed development and it was necessary to take a step back.
Internal information states that the Samsung should hold a quick display of 3D prototypes of the device in the next Galaxy Unpacked, scheduled to take place in January. Sales would only take place in the third quarter of 2025.
It is also said that, for this first stage, only 500 thousand units will be produced so that the Samsung can conduct market testing. Which also means that only selected countries would receive the device: something similar to what happened with the apple vision pro, which, by the way, was never officially released in Brazil.
So, did you like the news? What do you expect from the platform? Android XR? tell us Comment! Also, check out our video with a complete summary of the subject:
See also other features
With information: The Verge (1, and 2)l Google (1, 2 e 3)l Android Authority
reviewed by Jaime Ninece in 13 / 12 / 2024
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