XR News round, documents the major news headlines in the XR Industry within the Week. From the Metaverse to the entire AR, VR and MR, stay tuned
With so much going on around the tech scene in the last couple of months, the XR industry has continued to peak traction, and once Again Meta is continue with its push to being a major stakeholder in the Industry, With the Launch of Quest 3 only weeks away, recent leaked unboxing has provided hints of significant improvement to the hardware.
Meanwhile, Destination Based VR gaming startup SandBox VR is smiling to the banks after raking in Millions of Dollars in profit, while reports have also surfaced of a 2nd Gen Ray Ban stories glass due for launch between Fall and Spring
Eye relief adjustment Comes to Meta Quest 3
Over the week a leaked unboxing video of Meta Quest 3 Headset emerged online, revealing some key improvements to the forthcoming headset against its predecessor the Meta Quest 2.
A Major improvement is purportedly in the aspect Eye relief adjustment, the new headset is said to be fitted with buttons to adjust lens depth, improve comfort and make room for the use of regular glasses.
Eye relief adjustment has several benefits. By adjusting the lens distance, you can control factors such as visual comfort and field of view. Additionally, a larger distance allows you to fit regular glasses between your eyes and the lenses. However, with Meta Quest 2, you have to insert a glasses spacer under the facial interface, which is less convenient.
The cardboard includes a pictogram of the improved head strap, which narrows into two straps at the back to provide a better fit than the Quest 2’s standard head strap. The improved head strap was already shown in the Quest 3 video teaser from June. If the improved head strap is not comfortable enough for you, Meta will likely sell an Elite strap accessory for Quest.
Meta Quest 3 is expected to be officially unveiled on September 27 at Meta Connect event 2023.
The Top Location-based VR Experience by Sandbox VR Earned $23M in Annual Revenue
Sandbox VR has generated $23 million in annual revenue from its most popular location-based VR experience, the Deadwood Valley game. This revenue has been generated from ticket sales in just 30 locations, and Sandbox VR has 43 locations and expects the revenue to increase.
The company announced this news on August 22, 2023. The Deadwood Valley game is a VR experience that has generated this revenue. Sandbox VR is expanding, and it is expected that the company will sell an Elite strap accessory for Quest 3.
2nd Gen Ray Ban Stories to launch Soon
Rumors have emerged of plans by Meta and its Partner EssilorLuxottica to launch the second generation of its Ray Ban stories glass. The first version of the Ray Ban stories was launched in 2021.
While reports of the second generation were earlier hinted at sometime in March by The Verge, who speculated the launch of the Device to be for sometime in the fall of 2023, however, according to a new report by the Wall Street journal, the New Device could launch anytime between this Fall and Spring.
The Ray Ban Stories, enables users to make calls, take photos and videos, listen to music and podcasts, and dictate messages or have them read to you. However, its major downside is the absence of a display. The second generation of the Headset is expected to support Livestreaming going by Reports from journalist Janko Roettgers claims to have seen internal Meta documents about the upcoming Ray-Ban Stories.
Going by his report, the forthcoming device selling point, seems to be its support for direct live streaming to Facebook and Instagram. “Live streamers will be able to directly communicate with their audience, with the glasses relaying comments via audio over the built-in headphones”.
Meta is also working on adaptive volume. “With this feature, the glasses will automatically monitor the ambient noise level, and increase playback volume in noisy surroundings.”
While the new Glasses are expected to be adorned with new features, including an improved battery life, it is reportedly still going to be without display until sometime in 2025, the report read.