The XR Week Peek (2022.07.25): Google to test AR glasses in the wild, Pico 4 spotted, and more!

vrcoin on July 25, 2022

The heat hasn’t killed me yet, so this week I can still write a new roundup of interesting news about AR and VR. I have to say that notwithstanding the summertime, some things worth reading have happened, so do not miss this episode!  Before starting with the news, let me remind you that until this week the candidatures for the job positions at VRrOOm for game developers and game/UX designers are still open, so if you want to work with me on virtual events and festivals, be sure to enroll! You can find all the job descriptions on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vrroom-world/jobs/?viewAsMember=true. And if you want to discover how to prepare for the job interview with me… well, Joma Tech has made a great video on the topic you can’t miss: https://twitter.com/jomaoppa/status/1550966113458077697 Top news of the week Google starts testing its AR glasses in the wild Google has announced that it is going to start

MeetKai’s Take on the Metaverse

vrcoin on July 20, 2022

We’re seeing a lot of self-proclaimed metaverse platforms launching. Many such platforms are “just” virtual spaces, which many argue isn’t enough to constitute the future of collaborative computing that we call the metaverse. This future, according to most futurists, will also involve things like AI and blockchain, and is built on the real world. MeetKai checks a lot of those boxes. To learn more about the first consumer-facing project from MeetKai, ARPost talked with chairwoman Weili Dai and CEO James Kaplan. Their take on the metaverse was publicly announced earlier this month and is awaiting the beta launch. An Introduction to MeetKai MeetKai has been around since 2018 and actually specializes in business-to-business AI assistant solutions. In this capacity, a number of readers have already used AI services from MeetKai, though behind the label of hardware companies and app developers. “Our core technology has always been in AI and that’s

Nike Partners With RTFKT To Launch AR Hoodies

vrcoin on July 18, 2022

Digital fashion for the real world.Last year, Nike officially acquired RTFKT Studios, a Web3 fashion house specializing in digital apparel. Shortly thereafter the company released RTFKT x Nike Dunks Genesis CryptoKicks, a pair of physical sneakers with their own NFT counterparts.This week Nike expanded its lineup of NFT clothing with the RTFKT x Nike AR Genesis Hoodie, an exclusive digital hoodie for RTFKT’s Clone X NFT avatars. In addition to the virtual item, each owner will also receive a physical hoodie equipped with a near-field communication chip (NFC) that allows for wireless communication between the clothing and its respective NFT.Using a combination of trackers and QR codes, owners can bring their physical hoodies to life in AR with effects such as virtual wings. Moving forward, the company will introduce additional utilities to its catalog of digital clothing, such as tokens to access exclusive in-person events.According to the company, the RTFKT x Nike AR

Regal and Moviebill Deliver AR Collectibles to Moviegoers

vrcoin on July 18, 2022

For some, going to the movie theater is a magical experience. Some might even save their ticket stubs from favorite films viewed on the big screen. And, what makes every collectible better? An AR collectible, of course. A partnership between Regal Cinemas and Moviebill is showing us how it’s done. An Ongoing Partnership Regal is a cinema chain stretching across America. That includes the continental United States, but it also includes Alaska, Hawaii, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. If you don’t already know where to find the Regal Cinema nearest to you, you can find it on this list. The Regal app is home to the Moviebill scanner. Moviebill, an AR studio that launched in 2016, has been working with Regal for a number of years on AR collectibles to bring even more magic to big-budget movies “to keep the theatrical experience going

The XR Week Peek (2022.07.11): Meta removes Facebook login on Quest, Cambria may launch without controllers, and more!

vrcoin on July 11, 2022

I send you all a big hug for the beginning of this new week! I hope this news roundup may give you some interesting info about XR… and also some smiles 🙂 Enjoy your summer! Top news of the week (Image by Meta)Meta to substitute mandatory Facebook account with mandatory Meta account on Quest This week finally Meta has given us a follow-up on its previous promise of removing the mandatory Facebook login on Oculus Quest. And the big news is that next month, this rule will be removed, and finally, the VR headset will be separated from the social media, with much rejoice of many people in the VR community.  Anyway, personal accounts on Quest aren’t going anywhere: every Quest user should create a mandatory Meta account, and also a mandatory Meta Horizon profile, which will be used every time you access the Horizon social VR worlds. It is optional for users to

Lowe’s Opens 3D Product Library to Metaverse Developers

vrcoin on July 6, 2022

In the past 100 years, Lowe’s has transformed from a small-town hardware store to a large-scale retailer of building and home improvement products. Now a giant in the industry, it is at the forefront of home improvement, serving millions of customers across the United States and Canada. It is also delivering trailblazing solutions that help metaverse developers and enhance customer experience within and beyond the home improvement industry. From the Real World Into the Metaverse The company’s growth is propelled by its relentless pursuit to constantly meet the changing demands of its consumers. To adapt to the digital shift, Lowe’s leveraged modern technologies to deliver personalized digital experiences to its customers. Lowe’s Measure Your Space and Holoroom How To use augmented and virtual reality to enhance the home improvement and shopping experience. Now, Lowe’s is extending the same support it has given its customer builders in the real world to

My doubts about the Apple headset and mainstream VR

vrcoin on July 6, 2022

The hype for the Apple visor is very high, and everyone is waiting for it as a kid waits for Christmas. Poised to arrive around January 2023, it is considered by many the savior of XR, the hardware that will show the real possibilities of immersive realities and make finally VR mainstream. I was thinking about this topic this morning, and I want to share with you my stream of thoughts about Apple making VR mainstream, especially highlighting my doubts about it. I agree with you all that Apple will give a big push to XR. Its upcoming hybrid AR/VR visor is expected to have very interesting features, and I have heard myself some intriguing rumors about it. It is rumored to feature a powerful M2 processor, a high-definition screen, and many sensors… so it seems a little technical jewel. And we know how Apple cares about UX, so I

The XR Week Peek (2022.07.04): Big tech companies perform budget cuts, Mojo tests its smart contact lens in-eye, and more!

vrcoin on July 4, 2022

Today is the 4th of July, an important day for all my friends from the US! I wish all my American friends to celebrate well.  I want to dedicate this newsletter article to my friend Mathew Olson, who at The Information kickstarted the “Reality Check”, a newsletter about XR which I received 3–4 times a week in my e-mail, and that was very well done. It has been one of my favorite newsletters about XR and I admit I have “stolen” sometimes some news from there. Mathew is now going on a new professional adventure and will stop curating that newsletter, and I just want to write these few lines to say how I am grateful for the good job he did in informing me and all the XR community. Good luck with your new job, Mathew! Top news of the week (Image by Niantic)The economic situation is forcing major tech companies

The XR Week Peek (2022.06.27): Meta shows its R&D prototypes, Apple shows nothing as usual, and much more!

vrcoin on June 27, 2022

It’s hot and the drought is creating some issues here in northern Italy. But I had a nice weekend, plus I’ve been chosen by Onalytica as one of the top 5G+XR influencers on Linkedin, so I think of this and I stay happy. Top news of the week (Image by Meta)Meta showed prototype headsets from its R&D department With a completely unexpected move, Meta has given us all a glimpse of some prototypes created by its R&D department. Mark Zuckerberg himself has performed this marketing push, in which he claims that the company is working hard to make sure that its headsets will be able to pass the “Visual Turing Test”, that is that the visuals they offer become indistinguishable from reality.  To perform this ambitious goal, Meta is trying to tackle four different problems (thanks to Road To VR for this summary): Varifocal: the ability to focus on arbitrary depths of