Not Yet Ready
Samsung Electronics has confirmed that it has temporarily postponed the development of an extended reality (XR) product. Industry analysts say that it was an internal decision made in light of the Vision Pro headset unveiled by Apple in June.
Samsung Electronics said in a recent notice to its panel partners, “We will completely review the new XR product project and postpone its volume production and release schedule.” XR is a concept that describes and encompasses virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) technologies.
The company had planned to begin its sample development at the end of 2023 and mass-produce it early next year. But the timeline has been delayed by one to two quarters (three to six months), industry sources say.
“The internal decision was made to make an XR headset that can match the specifications of competitor Apple’s mixed reality and MR headset Vision Pro,” an industry insider said. “Samsung has decided to review all internal specifications and performances, including the current design and panels.”
The Vision Pro MR headset of Apple is said to have an input system that enables its user to control the device with gestures, gaze, and voice and an ultra-high-resolution display.
In 2014, Samsung Electronics collaborated with VR company Oculus, a subsidiary of Meta, to launch a headset called “the Gear VR.” The device was followed by the Odyssey Plus in 2018. However, both products were criticized for their performance. The fact that the XR market was not properly formed at the time contributed to their failure. Consumers also complained about the inconvenience of docking their smartphones with the devices to use them.
While most of the details of Samsung’s XR device are not yet disclosed, its panel is expected to be made by Samsung Display and China’s BOE. The XR device will be powered by a Qualcomm chipset and Google’s operating system, experts forecast.