Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation
What Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality developers are talking about
Also unveiled in Barcelona: Microsoft’s Hololens 2 and phones with folding screens
The annual mobile technology jamboree in Barcelona has revealed the latest exciting developments that will feature in phones, tablets and watches over the next 12 months. From folding handsets and ultra-sophisticated cameras to brick-like smartphones with a very long battery life – here are eight of the most notable products from Mobile World Congress 2019 this week.
Continue reading...Also unveiled in Barcelona: Microsoft’s Hololens 2 and phones with folding screens
The annual mobile technology jamboree in Barcelona has revealed the latest exciting developments that will feature in phones, tablets and watches over the next 12 months. From folding handsets and ultra-sophisticated cameras to brick-like smartphones with a very long battery life – here are eight of the most notable products from Mobile World Congress 2019 this week.
Samsung’s $2,000 Galaxy Fold changes the smartphone game
Continue reading...
Der chinesische Technik-Gigant Huawei kündigt die Veröffentlichung eigener AR-Brillen an und könnte dadurch zukünftig in Konkurrenz zu Apple und Facebook treten. Die Hardware befindet sich bereits in Entwicklung und soll innerhalb der nächsten ein bis zwei Jahre erscheinen.
In einem Interview mit CNBC kündigte Smartphone-Chef Richard Yu die Entwicklung hauseigener AR-Brillen von Huawei an, welche das AR-Erlebnis auf die nächste Stufe tragen könnten:
“Die AR-Brille wird mit einem Smartphone funktionieren, vielleicht sogar einen größeren Bereich abdecken. Zu Beginn mag dies noch nicht so revolutionär wirken, aber in der Zukunft werden immer mehr Leute den wahren Wert dahinter entdecken. In den kommenden ein bis zwei Jahren wird ein kommerzieller Umschwung in der Brache stattfinden, auch für Huawei. Dafür werden wir ein gutes und benutzerfreundliches Produkt anbieten.”
Image courtesy: David Paul Morris / Bloomberg / Getty Images
Huawei veröffentlichte bereits einige AR-Apps für das Mate 20 Pro. Im Zuge der Entwicklung der eigenen AR-Brille soll der Fokus natürlich auch auf der dazugehörigen Software liegen. Entsprechend sollen zunächst weitere AR-Anwendungen für Smartphones erscheinen, um die Nutzer und Nutzerinnen an die Augmented Reality zu gewöhnen.
Huawei Mate 9 Pro VR-Brille
Im Gegensatz zu den zukünftigen Produkten von Apple und Facebook könnte die Huawei-AR-Brille besonders preislich herausstechen. Schließlich verwendet das chinesische Unternehmen seine eigenen Chips, was die Kosten deutlich senken könnte. Dies bietet auch designtechnische Vorteile, da keine Anpassungen an Fremdprodukte nötig sind.
Und auch die Nachteile der heutigen Generation von AR-Brillen, wie HoloLens und Magic Leap One sind dem Unternehmen bewusst. So soll die zukünftige Brille nicht nur erschwinglich sein, sondern auch ein größeres Sichtfeld bieten und in Gewicht und Größe deutlich abgespeckt werden.
Der Beitrag Huawei: AR-Brillen sollen in den nächsten ein bis zwei Jahren erscheinen zuerst gesehen auf VR∙Nerds. VR·Nerds am Werk!
Chinese tech company Huawei has told CNBC that it plans to commercialize augmented reality (AR) glasses within “the next one to two years”. Huawei is China’s largest consumer electronics company and is often described as “China’s Apple” due to its focus on high end products.
One factor that could give Huawei an edge over competitors like Facebook and help them compete with Apple’s upcoming AR glasses is that they design and manufacture their own SoCs (system on chip) through their HiSilicon subsidiary. Whereas Facebook may have to purchase generic SoCs from Qualcomm (as they do for their VR headsets) Huawei can use their own. Not only would this allow them to lower cost, but it would also allow them to tailor the SoCs around the glasses.
Huawei has already released two VR headsets, so the company has gained some experience with head mounted displays. The company’s first headset, the Huawei VR, was a Google Daydream powered smartphone based system for the Huawei P9 and Mate 10 phones, similar to Samsung’s Gear VR. It released in 2016 in China, and in early 2017 Google announced that it was coming to the West — however this did not happen.
The company’s latest VR offering is the Huawei VR 2, a unique headset which can be powered by either a Huawei flagship smartphone (via the phone’s USB-C port) or a gaming PC via DisplayPort. The headset features dual 90 Hz 1440×1600 LCD panels with IPD adjustment, however the tracking for both the headset and controller is 3DoF only. Because it can connect to a PC, it now shows up in the Steam Hardware Survey.
Current AR headsets from Microsoft (HoloLens) and Magic Leap (Magic Leap One) have high prices, a relatively small field of view, and are too big to be worn in public. Huawei told CNBC that the company will “bring a better user experience product”, but has not provided any specific details on exactly what they will improve on.
With Huawei, Apple, and Facebook all now working on AR glasses, as well as the HoloLens and Magic Leap One both currently in the development kit stage, the early 2020’s is shaping up to be the beginning of the true consumer AR age. We’ll keep you updated on any further news of true consumer AR glasses.
Tagged with: ar, AR glasses, augmented reality, Huawei
The post Huawei Plans To Release AR Glasses Within ‘The Next One To Two Years’ appeared first on UploadVR.
As the world’s largest telecom manufacturer, when Chinese tech giant Huawei makes a market prediction, they have plenty of room to speak. Talking in an interview with CNBC, Huawei CEO Richard Yu says the industry at large will begin commercializing AR headsets within one to two years, Huawei included.
Like Samsung, Huawei offers a staggering variety of smartphones, laptops, tablets, wearables, and smart home accessories; the company surpassed Ericsson in 2012 as the world’s largest telecom equipment manufacturer, and earlier this summer overtook Apple to become the world’s second largest smartphone maker.
Despite this, Huawei has yet to significantly break into Western markets, although its rapid upward trajectory and premium flagship tech would suggest that will change in due time.
The company has been involved in the VR market since its launch of Huawei VR last year, a Daydream platform device. Huawei then announced Huawei VR 2, a smartphone-tethered device that connects via USB-C to Huawei Mate 10 series of phones.
Huawei CEO Richard Yu says though that AR is the company’s next big area of interest, something he says will materialize in the form of AR glasses.
“In the beginning you may feel AR … is nothing. But in the future you will see more and more the value of that,” Yu said.
Yu says the company is focusing on bringing AR to their fleet of smartphones first, which he maintains will let users acclimate to the idea of interacting with augmented reality experiences, games, services, etc.
“The next one to two years I think the industry will commercialize [AR glasses], even for Huawei. We will bring a better user experience product,” Yu tells CNBC.
The company hasn’t been bashful about challenging the dominant players in the industry, namely Apple and Samsung, both of which are likely already in the early stages of preparing consumer AR headsets of their own.
Apple has already brought AR to a large number of its iPhones via ARKit. The company is also reportedly developing its own AR/VR headset with 8K resolution per eye, supposedly slated for release in 2020. Apple recently acquired Akonia Holographics, a startup focused on holographic display and storage technology.
Concurrently, Samsung recently revealed an experimental AR headset at their developer conference last week that has prompted the company to merge the Gear VR SDK and Android ARCore to create a new software development platform, dubbed ‘SXR SDK’.
The post Chinese Tech Giant Huawei Aims to Commercialize AR Headset in 1-2 Years appeared first on Road to VR.
The Huawei Mate 20 X has a 7.2-inch screen, but is surprisingly manageable to hold, yet still a little too big to carry around. Huawei’s pushing the phone’s ability as a mobile gaming handheld, challenging the Nintendo Switch.
The post Huawei Mate 20 X hands-on review appeared first on Digital Trends.
2018 will go down as the year wireless or ‘untethered’ virtual reality (VR) became a very real reality. Thanks to the likes of the Oculus Go, HTC Vive’s Wireless adapter which launched last month, and of course there’s the work being undertaken by TPCAST, creators of the “first commercial wireless virtual reality solution”, as they put it.
TPCAST have been hard at work on a number of wireless solutions for VR, augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) headsets, but today’s announcement sees the company concentrating on trying to move the capabilities of wireless forward to benefit wireless VR and comes as Huawei continue their 5G Ecosystem Conference.
TPCAST signing not a contract, but a memorandum of understanding with a big name in computer technology and smart devices – Huawei. The two from now on will now be working together to enhance the performance of VR over 5G broadband. From its side, Huawei is set to provide its Cloud video and VR platform while TPCAST bring to the mix its will provide some items on the software side. Including VR feedback control protocol and multi-user wireless manager RTCIP and ultra-low latency codec RTCODEC. Pooling these resources together as they look to explore new opportunities in the Middle East.
“Within the 5G platform, the Huawei-TPCAST collaboration will also broaden the opportunities within both VR and AR. Our codec technologies will be a key factor for both accelerating the development and launching these opportunities to the market.” Said Reiner Pes, General Manager – EMEA at TPCAST on the agreement.
“This collaboration with TPCAST will help us to support the introduction of 5G-based cloud VR use case to the market. Huawei, through establishing the Middle East 5G ecosystem program, provides the cloud-based use case development platform, and supports the integration and verification of 5G use cases.” Added Vice President of Marketing for Huawei Middle East, Wang Su. “Huawei’s E2E 5G low latency solution and TPCAST’s codec technology will together offer an enhanced experience of VR services. This partnership will promote organizations in the region to seize these new opportunities for growth.”
VRFocus will bring you more details on the progress both parties are making in VR as we hear more.
Das Unternehmen TPCAST, welches durch das Vive-X-Programm gefördert wurde und mittlerweile einen Adapter anbietet, der die HTC Vive und die Oculus Rift von seinen Kabeln befreit, geht nun eine Partnerschaft mit Huawei ein, um die Möglichkeiten von 5G im Mittleren Osten für die Virtual Reality auszuloten.
Huawei ist den meisten Menschen sicherlich durch Smartphones bekannt, doch das Unternehmen hat noch weitere Eisen im Feuer. Darunter beispielsweise eine eigene Cloud, die besonders in Verbindung mit 5G für VR interessant werden könnte.
Im Rahmen der Zusammenarbeit mit TPCast wird Huawei seine Cloud-basierte Video- und VR-Plattform zur Verfügung stellen. Diese ermöglicht den effizienten Zugriff, die Verwaltung und den Betrieb von Videoinhalten sowie hochspezifischen Set-Top-Boxen (STB). Im Gegenzug stellt TPCAST den extrem latenzarmen Code RTCODEC und RTCIP, ein VR-Feedback-Steuerungsprotokoll sowie eine drahtlose Mehrbenutzer-VR-Zentralverwaltung bereit. Entsprechend sollen der Codec von TPCAST, die Cloud von Huawei und das 5G-Netz im Zusammenspiel zukünftig spannende Möglichkeiten für Virtual Reality und Augmented Reality schaffen.
Herr Wang Su, Vice President of Marketing von Huawei Middle East, sieht großes Potenzial in der künftigen Kooperation:
“Die Zusammenarbeit mit TPCAST wird uns bei der Markteinführung eines 5G-basierten Cloud VR Use Cases helfen. Huawei stellt mit der Etablierung des 5G-Ökosystems für den Nahen Osten die Cloud-basierte Use-Case-Entwicklungsplattform zur Verfügung und unterstützt die Integration und Verifizierung von 5G-Anwendungsfällen. Huawei’s E2E-5G-Low-Latency-Lösung und TPCAST’s Codec-Technologie werden zusammen ein verbessertes VR-Erlebnis ermöglichen. Diese Partnerschaft wird Organisationen in der Region fördern und neue Wachstumschancen gewährleisten.”
Huawei und TPCAST sind nicht die einzigen Unternehmen, welche die Chancen von 5G für VR erkannt haben. Auch HTC ging bereits mit China Mobile eine Partnerschaft ein und gründete gemeinsam die “5G Devices Forerunner Initiative”.
Der Beitrag Huawei und TPCAST wollen 5G gemeinsam für VR nutzen zuerst gesehen auf VR∙Nerds. VR·Nerds am Werk!
Huawei positioned its Mate 20 X, a gaming-centric smartphone, as a Nintendo Switch killer, calling it "the best portable gaming machine." The Mate 20 X has better design specs than the Switch, but it also comes with a steep price.
The post Huawei thinks its Mate 20 X is better than the Nintendo Switch appeared first on Digital Trends.
What might well be the first operator cloud virtual reality (VR) service has recently been launch by China Mobile Fujian, as part of a collaboration with Huawei and other partners. The new Service has been named AND Cloud VR, and accompanies an upgrade of optical broadband from 100 Mbit/s to 1000 Mbit/s.
The new Cloud VR service offers live VR broadcasts, VR video on-demand, VR IMAX, VR videogames and VR educational applications. This range of options covers concerts, sporting events, blockbuster movies and education.
The president of China Fujian Mobile said that the premium 100Mbps and 1000Mbps networks were built in partnership with Huawei in order to ensure customers could enjoy the best experience. According to the company, AND Cloud VR uses the computing power offered by cloud GP rendering along with cloud-based server architecture to ensure stable transmission along with high image quality.
The advantages of Cloud VR also mean that users are less reliant on needing a high-powered PC rig to run a VR experience, as with Cloud VR taking much of the load, VR hardware costs can be reduced by 70% or even 80%.
Huawei will be working with operators to build end-to-end networks that can provide an optimal experience for these video and Cloud VR services, which will be offered as part of basic services packages.
Zeng Xingyun, President of Huawei Network Product Line said that the company considers VR and video as part of the core strategy for Huawei. To support these technologies, Huawei has been working with operators to overcome technical challenges at the system architecture level.
Huawei and China Mobile Fuijian both believe that the launch of AND Cloud VR marks a milestone in VR services and the provision of optical broadband. Huawei confirms it intends to continue to work with its partners to continue development n the VR industry.
For further coverage of new VR products and services, keep checking back with VRFocus.