Over the weekend, Microsoft launched the HoloLens 2 device, for a price tag of US $3500. Microsoft called it “mixed reality,” that overlays computer images on the real world.
But what is HoloLens 2 exactly? Here’s a lowdown:
Hololens 2 is a 3D headset built by Microsoft that generates life-emulating holograms in physical space. By doing that, it creates a virtual digital experience in any given environment. Microsoft is marketing HoloLens to business, rather than the general public, since the price tag alone is prohibitive. The new device is lighter than its predecessor & has a wider field range view.
Augmented reality or “mixed reality” is the ‘catchphrase’ terms that Microsoft uses to label the device’s tech-use-area – holograms that form part of a real-world experience & can be moved, interacted with & shared (even with remote parties), have all the futuristic capabilities imagined in science fiction novels :
- Doctors could use them to work on, say, a patient’s blood vessel system as if they were the shrunken submarine from the 1966 movie ‘The Fantastic Voyage’, but with HoloLens no submarine is required, just the ‘glasses’.
- The technology is also great for architects & designers who could layout floor plans, or for salesmen wanting to demonstrate the features of a new product to potential buyers, especially if the product is a large machine requiring complicated user instructions; the consumer could experience the machine & the salesman’s demo in their living room.
- Applications in the field of education are limitless, imagine a lesson on dinosaurs, where the prehistoric creature is brought into the room as a hologram.
- Entertainment – let your imagination run wild, no more TV screens or smartdevice screens, but videos thrown-up in the bedroom or living room with characters in 3D.
Microsoft has also launched an exploratory app for Android which introduces consumers to the benefits of 3D AR; the app allows users to experience a remote user’s view, while using the ‘glasses’ & ‘see’ what they are ‘seeing’. A similar app is planned for IoS later this year.
Other players competing in the 3D headset arena, are Facebook’s Oculus Quest a VR headset that uses touch controllers, aimed at Gamers, & Magic Leap which is a set of VR glasses aimed at everyday computing. Both products are cheaper than HoloLens, with Facebook’s contribution costing a tenth of the price. Apple & Huawei are reportedly preparing their own products aimed at the AR market, so one can expect a multitude of computing offerings in the near future, which could, possibly, bring the purchase price down & put the concept squarely in the ambit of a mainstream device.
Currently, Microsoft is actively seeking developers, whom they believe will design & build practical real-world applications for HoloLens. Additionally, they have an in-house team working on applications, demonstrating how much weight the company is giving to their device & the hologram concept, in general.
What’s more, Microsoft ‘s newly-announced HoloLens 2 headset will get an alternative browser, courtesy of Mozilla.
Image Credit: Microsoft
