Samsung Electronics speeds up development of new XR device in face of Apple

Competition is heating up in the global extended reality (XR) market, which involves various ultra-realistic technologies and services such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR).

The world’s attention is focused on the XR ecosystem that will be created by Samsung Electronics Co., the South Korean rival of global tech giant Apple Inc., in partnership with Google Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. after Apple kicked off a new wave of the XR market with its mixed reality (MR) headset Vision Pro.

According to the information and communication technology industry on Friday, Samsung Electronics is accelerating its efforts to develop a new XR device to be released as early as this year.

Key specifications of the new XR device remain confidential, except that it will be equipped with a Qualcomm chipset and Google’s operating system (OS) to implement powerful, new concept features.

In February, Samsung Electronics signed partnership agreements with Google and Qualcomm for building an XR ecosystem at the “Galaxy Unpacked 2023” held in San Francisco, U.S.

“Creating a new ecosystem cannot be achieved by one company alone,” said Roh Tae-moon, then head of the mobile experience (MX) division at Samsung Electronics.

“Qualcomm, which is strong in chipsets and platforms, Samsung, with a strength in displays including sensor views and products, and Google, a strong player of OS and services, will join forces to create a proper ecosystem.”

Sameer Samat, vice president of product management at Google, also reaffirmed Google’s collaboration with Samsung Electronics at the company’s annual developer meeting I/O last month and said that the company will be able to “share more information at the end of the year.”

Although not much is known about the product, predictions are being made as patent and trademark details filed by Samsung Electronics with the Korean Intellectual Property Office and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) were disclosed between February and May this year.

Apple Inc.’s Vision Pro [Photo provided by Apple]

According to the information, Samsung Electronics is known to be focusing on AR glasses rather than VR headsets. It enhances connectivity with Galaxy devices such as smartphones, watches, and buds, and even possibly with its smart home platform SmartThings.

The most likely candidates for the product name are “Galaxy Glasses” and “Galaxy Space.”

Industry insiders see that a new era of the XR ecosystem will open in the first half of next year when Samsung Electronics and Apple set foot in the market.

Experts say that participation of major players will spark competition for innovation although the products are somewhat highly priced and are still uncomfortable to wear.

A few days prior to Apple’s new product announcement, Meta Platforms Inc. unveiled its new VR headset “Quest 3” that is slated for release in the second half of the year.

The XR market, in the meantime, is believed to have entered a phase of stagnation.

Taiwanese market research firm TrendForce Corp. predicted that this year’s shipments of AR and VR headsets will fall 18.2 percent from a year ago to 7.45 million units and their growth will partly face limits by 2025.

Shipments of Apple’s Vision Pro are also estimated at between 200,000 and 300,000 units, which falls far short of those of iPhones that see tens of millions of units in sales each quarter.

There are also pessimistic views that it will end up just like the 3-dimensional television, which drew attention but failed in terms of standardization.

“Consumers’ purchase desire drops if the product is even slightly flimsy,” said an unnamed official from the industry. “It remains to be seen whether the market will fully open eventually.”