Though the XR landscape isn’t buzzing with activity right now, this week’s April Fool’s Day injected some excitement into the scene! Plus, there are a few noteworthy updates. I’m covering them all in this roundup, so you won’t miss out on anything happening in the world of XR. 😊
Top News of the Week
Meta’s Smartglasses Set to Cost Up to $1400
A recent Bloomberg report has spiced things up with a peek into Meta’s plans for its upcoming smartglasses, slated for release later this year. Dubbed Hypernova, these glasses strike a surprising figure. Think a bulkier Ray-Ban Meta with a single display feeding visual data to one eye. The visuals sit low in your field of view, designed to draw your attention downward when you want to see them. You can control the device via capacitive temples or a neural wristband that comes along for the ride. Plus, Hypernova promises an upgraded camera that could stand toe-to-toe with the iPhone 13.
Meta intends to step up its game further in 2027, releasing a version with displays for both eyes. That’s the expected bit, right? But here’s where it gets a little confounding. The glasses will bear Meta’s name instead of Ray-Ban’s, breaking away from two key factors that drove the success of the Ray-Ban Meta: the style appeal and Essilor Luxottica’s wide-reaching distribution network.
And brace yourself for this twist: the price tag. The report suggests these will cost between $1000 and $1400. That’s steep for something that’s yet to find a compelling everyday use case beyond phone notifications and media capture. You’d think they have Apple’s logo plastered on them for that kind of money!
So, who might take the plunge on these high-tech specs? Surely, apart from die-hard Meta fans and the tech-enthusiast crowd, it’s us developers who’ll shell out for early experimentation privileges, right? But not so fast. The apps you can run are curated by Meta, similar to the current Ray-Ban Meta. This limits its appeal even to developers. In the end, I hope this report misses the mark because otherwise, it’s puzzling to imagine the audience for such a device. For photos, videos, and notifications, there are already other, much cheaper gadgets out there.
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Other Relevant News
April Fool’s Day Strikes the XR World
This year saw a delightful surge in April Fool’s Day pranks within the XR community. No longer just a playground for the likes of me and a handful of others, several noteworthy personalities and companies got in on the action. To give you a taste: I "unveiled" the Decagear, Sebastian Ang from MRTV pretended to take over as CEO of Pimax, and Ndreams teased Synapse 2, exclusively for Google Cardboard. Voodoo DE didn’t hold back with a showcase of a wildly futuristic device, either.
April Fool’s silliness wasn’t confined to XR. Across the broader tech world, Razer caught my eye with a gem: the Razer Skibidi, a headset claiming to translate and interpret conversations between adults and Gen Z speak—a dream for anyone trying to navigate the whirlwind of Gorilla Tag’s younger user base. Click the links below for the full scoop and enjoy a good laugh!
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- Decagear and Pimax announcement
- Sebastian Ang’s new role
- Tech jokes of 2025, including Razer Skibidi
Impact of New US Tariffs on Headset Prices
I write this amid a tough "Black Monday" for stock exchanges globally, triggered by fresh tariffs from the USA. The situation is still developing, and it’s anybody’s guess whether these tariffs are a power play or here to stay. Should they persist, the effects will hit all electronic gadgets, including XR headsets. American companies reliant on components or manufacturing in Asia will see costs—Bill Of Materials (BOM)—rise, likely hiking consumer prices as a result.
Picture this: the Quest 3S possibly going for $500 post-current stock runs. Bear in mind, these headsets are more leisure item than necessity, sensitive to price hikes. A major draw of Quest 2 and now Quest 3s has been their budget-friendly standing relative to features offered. Despite this, XR hasn’t truly broken into the mainstream. Should headset prices surge, sales are bound to slump, potentially stalling any XR recovery. Fingers crossed this is a short-lived situation.
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News Worth a Mention
(Image by Apple)
Apple Unveils VisionOS 2.4 for Vision Pro
Apple has rolled out Vision Pro’s VisionOS 2.4, introducing eye-catching features:
- Apple Intelligence, offering tools for proofreading, summarizing, and image creation.
- Spatial Gallery, with a curated selection of immersive photos and videos.
- Companion app for Vision Pro, validating some aspects where Meta was on point.
- Enhanced guest experience, letting owners configure guest mode via the companion app and enabling more accessible mirroring.
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Quest’s Mixed Signals
The current state of Quest is intriguing. On one hand, some indicators suggest success: Gorilla Tag and I Am Cat are smashing hits. Animal Company stands out, hitting $100K revenue on the Quest Store, with dreams of eclipsing Gorilla Tag.
Conversely, some developers report falling market share and layoffs lurk in the background. Additionally, there seems to be a tightening of financial flow in the Quest marketplace. While Meta announced over $2B spent on the Horizon Store at GDC, it’s a figure unchanged from last year, hinting at stagnating revenues, perhaps fuelled by a new wave of kids drawn to free-to-play titles.
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Nintendo Labo Not Compatible with Switch 2
A hot topic this week is the Nintendo Switch 2. Unfortunately, we’ve learned that it won’t support the existing Nintendo Labo, as the new display size won’t fit. As of now, Nintendo isn’t signaling plans for a new Labo accessory compatible with Switch 2.
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PSVR 2 Eye-Tracking on PC
A developer named "whatdahopper" has successfully prototyped reading eye-tracking data from PSVR 2 on a PC, with iVRy working on a similar project. If fruitful, PSVR 2 might become the cheapest eye-tracking headset, beneficial for VRChat enthusiasts and research entities keen on eye control and foveated rendering.
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Impressive Quest Camera Access Projects
The Quest development community always catches me off guard! Some folks are using camera access for stunning creations:
- A demo such as voxelizing the area around you.
- Scanning physical objects on Quest, turning them into rough 3D voxel models.
- Tracking a physical ball using Quest.
- A mixed reality drone, employing a webcam for self-photography.
Check out the links below for inspiration!
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Revolutionary Haptic Skin
Recent research introduces a groundbreaking thin synthetic skin that delivers haptic feedback. Designed for fingertips, this skin uses inflatable dots to exert pressure, mimicking various contact points. It’s an exciting development but isn’t market-ready just yet.
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The Ruff Talk VR Gaming Showcase
The YouTube channel Ruff Talk VR successfully launched a VR gaming showcase, spotlighting fascinating indie VR titles. Some of this week’s news snippets originate from this event, but you can enjoy the full presentation through the link below.
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Content Highlights
- Civilization VII VR, set exclusively for Quest 3 and 3S, launches April 10, priced at $60.
- Velociblaster, a multiplayer where you’re an armed velociraptor, is now available for wishlisting.
- Train Sim World provides a realistic train-driving experience on Quest for $32.
- "Township Tale" creators have teased REAVE, a dungeon-crawler extraction game.
- Bearly Escape is launching on May 1 for SteamVR and Quest 3, priced at $14.99.
- Exer Gale, an arcade racer, enters Early Access on Quest in June.
- Rival Stars Horse Racing: VR Edition lands on Steam and Quest on April 17.
- An ambitious Quest 3 recreation of Half-Life: Alyx is underway, revealing the first scene as a downloadable APK.
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Content Reviews
- Pinball FX VR excels in delivering an enjoyable pinball simulacrum with a diverse range of tables. Its mixed reality mode turns your room into an arcade—a nice touch.
- Wanderer: Fragments Of Fate offers solid gameplay with well-crafted puzzles, although aspects like combat and a few bugs require attention for optimal enjoyment.
- Upload VR’s review gives a thumbs up to Hitman World Of Assassination for PSVR 2. Packs a punch!
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Other Tidbits
- ACE and SIG SAUER collaborated to design a Quest controller replicating a real gun’s shape and weight.
- Sandbox VR’s Squid Game VR adventure has already garnered over $30M in ticket sales.
- Don Hopper shared a positive review of the Mocopi Pro tracking set at GDC.
- Virtual Desktop now supports virtual monitors for Mac with impressive clarity.
- New research indicates modern kids experience less motion sickness than adults.
- A look back: HTC celebrated 9 years of Vive.
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Partner Updates
Mixed Reality Tech Testing Service
A new startup named "Mixed Reality Tech" is shaking up the XR space, providing on-demand QA testing services for XR applications across multiple devices.
Need testing services? Learn More Here.
Some XR Fun
- Solving motion sickness with a 96° FOV.
- Pondering if we humans were coded with LLM prompts.
- Visualizing the future for laughs.
- Spotting differences between Terminators and humans.
Support a Good Cause
This week, like the last, instead of highlighting my blog, I’d encourage donating to the Red Cross for ongoing relief efforts in Ukraine. See the link below for details.
A heartfelt thanks to my Patreon backers:
- Alex Gonzalez VR
- DeoVR, GenVR, Eduardo Siman, and all other incredible supporters.
Donate to Red Cross in Ukraine Here
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