It has been teased, and now it’s official: Samsung has entered the mixed reality headset space with the $1,799 Galaxy XR. Google’s new XR platform powers the headset and is clearly aiming to stay under the Apple Vision Pro’s $3,499 price. The Galaxy XR comes powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 platform.
The Android XR platform comes with Google Gemini baked in, which Samsung hopes will help drive the Galaxy XR platform forward and help build the Android XR ecosystem.
“Galaxy XR embodies our vision for the future, where the synergy of AI and XR transforms the possibilities of personal computing,” said Alex Katouzian, Group GM of Mobile, Compute & XR at Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “We’re thrilled to be collaborating on this initiative, as Galaxy XR will help to bring new use cases across various industries and pave the way for exciting multi-device experiences, all enabled by our work with Samsung and Google.
The Galaxy XR comes backed with a 90Hz screen and a resolution of 3,552 x 3840 with a 100-degree vertical field of view and a 109-degree horizontal field of view. It includes two high-resolution pass-through cameras, six world-facing tracking cameras, and four iris-supported eye-tracking cameras. The Headset weighs 545g, including six microphones.
It’s important to note that Android AR supports all Android apps currently available, with optimized versions of Google Maps, Google Photos, YouTube, Google TV, Chrome, and Meet. YouTube offers content in both the 180-degree and 360-degree spaces for viewing. You can also pair a keyboard and mouse to the headset if a full desktop productivity experience is what you desire. Android XR can convert 2D content into a 3D space.
You can purchase the headset at Samsung.com or at Samsung Experience locations. The controller and carrying case will cost you an extra $249.99 each. If you grab the headset by the end of the year, you get 12 months of Google AI Pro, YouTube Premium, XR Pack, and Google Play Pass included.
