Samsung has confirmed it still has plans to release an XR device that will be available sometime next year.
The company shared tidbits of information about the XR eXtended reality project in its third-quarter 2024 earnings report, updating guidance that previously suggested the brand would release such a product in 2024. Samsung now indicates that its goal for 2025 is to “improve connectivity among products, including upcoming XR devices.”
While the brand didn’t mention specific details about its XR devices in its earnings report, there is already considerable news surrounding the prospective products. Samsung’s collaboration with Qualcomm and Google on a mixed-reality product that can execute AR, VR, and XR functions dates back to 2023.
Again, without much detail about the collaboration, it’s pretty easy to assume how it would unfold. Samsung would bring the branding, design, and user experience, Qualcomm would provide the chipset, and Google would provide the software. Qualcomm’s last XR chip, the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2, has been available since January 2024. The companies came together during Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event in July to reiterate its plans for a launch.
Much of the confusion about Samsung’s XR device is likely due to the lack of feature details available about the product. However, a recent Android Authority report details that the Google Play Store was updated to include support for XR headset app installation right before Samsung shared its third-quarter 2024 guidance. No other Android brands are known to be working on XR devices at this time, so the correlation is that Google is preparing per its collaboration with Samsung.
Samsung has now confirmed a 2025 timeline. In fact, Business Insider claimed as early as July that the Samsung XR project would not launch in 2024, but potentially sometime in March 2025 for consumers.
Though there haven’t been any updates until now, industry leaders noted the device could be a competitor to the Apple Vision Pro, which was released in February at $3,500. Prior rumors suggested the Android-based XR platform could sell for between $1,000 and $1,500.
Samsung and Apple are far from the only company working on future XR headsets. Sony has been showing off its own upcoming XR headset since July, and in addition to recently launching the Quest 3S, Meta is partnering with companies like Lenovo and Asus for upcoming future headsets in its own Horizon OS ecosystem.
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