Samsung, Google Team Up For Android XR, Take On Apple Vision Pro And Meta Quest 3

The Extended Reality (XR) headset market has lately seen some activity ever since Apple dropped the Vision Pro. Meta made significant announcements in this regard and a couple of other Chinese brands have been putting all efforts into making augmented reality headsets accessible. Google and Samsung, however, have been absent from the scene and we all wondered whether they have any interest in the field. 

That doubt has been answered. Before the Sun sets in the 2024 calendar year, Google and Samsung came together to announce their XR project. Samsung has made a new XR headset that is largely a lookalike of the Vision Pro. 

As for Google, it did not make any hardware announcements. Instead, Google did what it does best – a create a new platform for smart XR devices. Called Android XR, this will be an open-source XR OS that will enable a smartphone-like ecosystem in this category. Manufacturers can focus on perfecting the hardware while Google will take care of the software department. 

Although a glimpse of Android XR has been shared with the world, Google wants to hold on to it until the next I/O developer conference in 2025. The same goes for Samsung’s XR headset, which is said to come out next year and will kickstart a new category of XR devices. 

Android XR, not visionOS, could kill smartphones

While visionOS established an XR-dedicated platform for headsets, Apple’s limited ecosystem and its restriction to an ultra-expensive XR device made it out of reach for the masses. Android XR aims to fix that, as its sibling platform did to smartphones in 2010. 

Android XR will be a Google-supported platform that bakes compatibility with several popular smartphone apps and services. At launch, Google will ship the OS with popular Google apps like YouTube, Maps, Chrome, Photos and Play Store. Of course, third-party developers will be encouraged to create apps for Android XR and make use of the freedom of an unlimited canvas. 

In a demo video, Google showcased how apps appear to float in your spatial world – something that Apple has shown with its visionOS. The platform supports hand gestures for input along with voice and sight. 

Don’t mistake Android XR for being a visionOS clone though. Other than the basic XR bits, Google has integrated its pièce de résistance at the centre of Android XR…

The Gemini assistant

Gemini is supposed to be the differentiator between Apple and Google’s XR platform. Gemini will be present to help with everything you see and offer quick access to certain features as well as apps. Be it live translation of menus written in foreign languages or capturing video, Gemini will be much more than just an annoying grammar Nazi.

Samsung’s Moohan will take charge

To make the most out of this Gemini-fied OS, Samsung is working on its first generation XR headset. No official name has been assigned yet, although we don’t expect anything else than the Galaxy branding to adorn this headset. Internally, the device is known as Moohan and is expected to be released as early as next year. 

Details on the ‘Moohan’ headset are scarce at the moment, with Samsung only revealing the obvious ones – state-of-the-art displays, a lightweight body with an ergonomic design, passthrough capabilities and multimodal input. Hand gesture controls will be available on the headset. A teaser image showcases a comfortable headband and a sunglass-like front fascia. 

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