Google is finally killing Google Hangouts, forcing users across to Google Chat as the tech giant continues to cull its vast collection of apps.
Google has a long and inglorious history of launching apps and services with great fanfare, only to quietly shelve them after several years or roll them into other Google offerings. Google Hangouts is the latest to end up on the chopping block, as Google once again clears the decks.
Hangouts users will soon start seeing in-app notifications instructing them to move to Google Chat, either in Gmail or the standalone Google Chat app. Those using the Hangouts Chrome extension will see notifications instructing them to switch to Chat on the web or the Chat web app.
As of July, people using Hangouts in Gmail will automatically be updated to Chat. Hangouts on the web will continue to work until November, at which time all Google Hangouts chats will be transferred to Google Chat. Before Hangouts shuts up shop, users also have the option to download their conversations via Google Takeout.
Originally a feature of the ill-fated Google+ social network, Google Hangouts became a standalone service back in 2013. At the time, Hangouts became the home for a range of Google services including Google+ Messenger, Google Talk and Google Voice.
By 2017, Google had already set off in a new direction, developing two enterprise communication products in Google Meet for video and Google Chat for text. The transition away from Google Hangouts began in 2020, when Google made Chat available to all users.
Moving to Google Chat opens up “new and better ways to connect and collaborate,” says Google Chat product manager Ravi Kanneganti. For example, users can edit Docs, Slides or Sheets with side-by-side editing, making it easier to collaborate while continuing the conversation.
Killing Google Hangouts comes as Google also announces the merger of Google Duo and Duo Meet into a new Google Meet app, to be launched later this year.
Mini PCs have come a long way over the years. Once a category largely relegated to low power duties, mini PCs have evolved to suit almost any type of user, whether it be for content creation or gaming.
Performance enthusiasts are exactly who Chinese company Beelink is going after with the GTR5. Firstly, it packs an AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX – a processor that is normally reserved for big and powerful gaming laptops. It comes with ample storage expansion options, RAM that can be configured to up to 64GB and a selection of ports including dual 2.5GbE LAN.
What’s more, Beelink has managed to fit all that performance into a chassis that is both smaller and costs significantly less than a comparable Intel NUC. The question is, does the performance stack up to the promise laid out on paper?
Design
At just 16.5 x 12 x 3.9 cm in size and weighing only 678g, the GTR5 is extremely portable and can easily be thrown in a bag or mounted behind a monitor using the included bracket.
While it won’t win any design awards, the GTR5 is one of the better looking mini PCs available with a slick black chassis made from a sturdy magnesium aluminium alloy. Most of the top and sides of the unit are clad in perforated plastic for better airflow.
The bottom plate of the GTR5 is also made of metal and has some useful text printed on it. This includes how to enter the BIOS and select between different performance modes (more on this later).
The sides confusingly have ‘GR9’ printed on them, which seems like a misprint given that this unit is part of the GTR model line. The AMD branding and bright red Beelink badge aside, the GTR5 sports a fairly restrained aesthetic and should blend in comfortably on a desk or in an entertainment unit.
The GTR5 packs a lot of power for a PC that can fit in the palm of your hand
Price and configuration
The Beelink GTR5 starts at US$779 ($1150) which nets you a 500GB NVMe SSD and 32GB of dual channel DDR4 RAM clocked at 3200MHz. The 64GB model, which also comes with 1TB of storage, is US$999 ($1450).
Regardless of configuration, you get the same Ryzen 9 5900HX 8-core/16 thread mobile processor with a boost clock of 4.6GHz and Radeon Vega 8 integrated graphics clocked at 2.1GHz. The physical design of the GTR5, including the port selection, also remains the same.
It is worth noting that unlike some other mini PCs, Beelink equips quality components from recognisable brands. For example, the RAM is from Crucial and the NVMe SSD is supplied by Kingston.
Beelink include a bracket in the box for mounting the GTR5 mini PC behind a monitor or television
Ports and connectivity
The GTR5 is stacked with a surprising number ports given its diminutive size. On the front, you’ll find the power button, clear CMOS button, a USB 3.0 port, a USB-C port (with support for display out) and the 3.5mm headphone/mic jack. Around back, the GTR5 has two more USB 3.0, two USB 2.0, an HDMI, a DisplayPort and two 2.5Gb Ethernet. There’s also the barrel jack for the 90W power supply.
It’s rare for a mini PC to come with a 2.5GbE LAN port, let alone two of them. This means you can use one for transferring large files to and from a NAS at ridiculously fast speeds (provided the NAS also has a 2.5GbE or faster connection), while reserving the other LAN port for a hard wired internet connection.
Another feature you don’t normally find on a mini PC is a fingerprint reader, which makes logging into Windows a breeze. There’s also dual microphones built into the unit, and while it won’t replace the need for a proper headset, it’s serviceable enough for the odd Zoom call.
One notable omission is the lack of Thunderbolt 3 or USB 4 ports. Thunderbolt is no longer exclusive to Intel chips hence why we’ve started to see the port show up on some AMD motherboards in the desktop PC market – so it’s a shame not to see it here.
The GTR6 is well equipped when it comes to wireless connectivity, with support for the latest WiFi 6E standard and Bluetooth 5.2.
In terms of storage expansion, the internal M.2 NVMe slot can hold up to a 2TB stick. There’s also a slot for another M.2 drive as well as space for a 2.5-inch SSD/HDD.
GTR5 offers a good selection of ports including two 2.5GbE LAN ports and multiple display out ports for connecting up to three displays
Software
Most mini PCs and laptops run on the Home Edition of Windows OS, but the Beelink GTR5 comes with Windows 11 Pro. Home users won’t see a difference but for power users, Windows 11 offers some extra features like remote desktop and Hyper-V client for virtualisation. Another nice touch is that Beelink has included a completely clean version of Windows 11 Pro meaning there’s no pre-installed third party applications or bloatware.
The GTR5 supports various flavours of Linux too including Ubuntu and Manjaro. I tried installing my favourite distribution of Linux – the retro-gaming focused Batocera – and it ran with no issues.
Benchmarks
I’ve been using the GTR5 as my desktop replacement for over a month now and the GTR5 has been keeping up without really breaking a sweat. My day-to-day workflow mainly consists of running multiple browser windows with more than 20 tabs open and the likes of Slack and Spotify running in the background as well as some light photo editing in Adobe Photoshop.
I also tested the performance while having the GTR5 connected to three external monitors simultaneously via the GTR5’s DisplayPort, HDMI and USB-C connections. With the resolution and refresh rate set to 4K at 60Hz, I didn’t notice any dip in performance when connected to all three displays. The best part is that the fans remained super quiet during day-to-day productivity.
Similarly, high bit rate 4K and 8K video played back smoothly, which was a great result considering that a number of video formats still don’t support hardware decoding on AMD CPUs.
Before putting the GTR5 through more demanding tests, I switched the GTR5 into performance mode, which you can do with a couple taps in the BIOS. This increases the maximum power draw of the 5900HX CPU from 35W to 45W, giving the chip a bit more performance headroom.
For comparison, I have my Intel NUC11 Pro, which at $1200 retails for roughly the same price as the GTR5. Keep in mind, the NUC11 Pro comes barebones out of the box so you have to supply your own SSD and RAM.
Moving on to benchmarks, the GTR5 topped the charts in multicore performance, scoring 12,380 in Cinebench’s R23 test. To put this in context, Apple’s M1 Mac Mini benched at 7759 and Intel’s NUC11 Pro hit 6798, making the GTR5 60 percent faster in multicore performance. Meanwhile, single core performance hit similar numbers to the competition.
Similarly, in GeekBench 5 the GTR5 topped the charts in multicore performance scoring 8279 but the gulf in performance was reduced with the M1 Mac Mini hitting 7434 and the Intel NUC11 Pro delivering 5874. This gives the Beelink 11 percent faster multicore performance over the M1 Mac Mini and 40 percent faster multicore performance over the Intel NUC11 Pro.
The GTR5 offers impressive performance for the money
Gaming performance
Moving onto gaming, I was curious to see how well the GTR5 would perform. This is considering it has some decent integrated graphics supported by a beefy CPU, which should help boost frame rates at lower resolutions.
First up was Forza Horizon 5 and I was able to hit a smooth 1080p at 60fps (frames per second) with a mixture of medium to low graphical settings. Alternatively, I was able to crank all the graphical settings to high and cap the framerate to 30fps – and the GTR5 didn’t falter.
GTA V is an older title but still incredibly popular thanks to its endless support of mods released by the community and online multiplayer. I was able to run the game in 1080p at a near constant 60fps with all graphical settings turned to high.
With Mortal Kombat 11, I was able to hit 60fps on medium graphical settings but I had to drop the resolution down to 900p to get there.
More demanding titles such as Halo Infinite, God of War, Control and Doom Eternal struggled to hit 30fps at 1080p on even the lowest graphical settings, forcing me to drop the resolution down to 720p to get smoother performance.
With less demanding titles such as League of Legends, I was able to hit 4K at 60fps on the highest graphical settings.
It’s worth noting that the fans can get quite loud when running the GTR5 at full tilt, with the noise level being comparable to a full sized gaming laptop. Temperatures hit a maximum of 85 degrees and there was no evidence of thermal throttling.
In short, while the graphical performance isn’t going to magically outperform a system with a discrete graphics card, the GTR5 does deliver some respectable gaming performance as far as mini PCs go.
I look forward to seeing what Beelink might be able to achieve in this small form factor with AMD’s 6000 series of processors, which come with significantly more powerful RDNA2 integrated graphics.
GadgetGuy’s take
If there was ever a product that exemplifies how far mini PCs have come, the Beelink GTR5 is it. Of course, Intel has been churning out its own take on the mini PC for years with the NUC line but it often comes at a price premium, and requires the user to source their own RAM and storage.
My main qualm with the GTR5 is the lack of a Thunderbolt port, which rules out the possibility of upgrading the machine’s graphical performance with an external graphics card (GPU).
The GTR5 offers better performance than a comparable Intel NUC and at a much lower price, making it a viable workstation replacement or for anyone looking for a small but powerful PC that can be easily slapped onto the back of a monitor or television. The GTR5 is likely to remain at the top of the mini PC performance charts at least until we start to see AMD’s 6000 series make its way to the small form factor PC market later this year.
Long a popular choice for laptop versatility, the new XPS 13 range from Dell is nearly here, packing more power into a slimmer package.
With the choice between a conventional laptop and a 2-in-1 hybrid device, the latest devices from Dell pack a portable punch.
A razor-thin XPS 13
At just over a kilogram in weight and 14mm thin, the Dell XPS 13 is designed to fit your lifestyle. It ships with Windows 11, the latest 12th Gen Intel Core CPU, and up to 1TB of SSD storage alongside 32GB of RAM. Display-wise you can get the new laptop with a 13.4-inch 3840 x 2400 touch screen if you want to shell out more money, or the base level 1920 x 1200 screen. Regardless of your chosen panel, they all support Dolby Vision HDR.
In order to fit everything within the smaller chassis, Dell engineers shrunk the motherboard so it’s 1.8-times smaller than the one found in the 2021 model – which makes it the smallest board across any Dell PC to date.
The internals of the 2021 XPS 13 (left) compared to the 2022 XPS 13 (right).
Depending on which internals you go for, the latest XPS 13 from Dell starts at $1,499 locally and will be available on 17 June.
A hybrid 5G device
The XPS 13 2-in-1 is a tablet capable of transforming into a laptop using a magnetic folio keyboard case. Straight off the bat, the 2-in-1 hybrid is the first XPS device with 5G support, and you can take advantage of eSIM technology to connect globally using a single SIM card.
While in laptop mode, it offers three different angle configurations: 100, 112.5, and 125 degrees. Additionally, it supports the XPS Stylus for writing and drawing, and the pen conveniently charges on the top of the device magnetically.
Also running Windows 11, the hybrid XPS 13 runs on 12th Gen Intel Core CPUs, up to 16GB of RAM and one TB of internal SSD storage. It also uses the integrated Intel graphics processor, with a 13-inch “3K” 2880 x 1920 Dolby Vision-compatible display. For meetings or taking snaps, the XPS 13 2-in-1 features a 1080p selfie webcam and 4K rear-facing camera.
Available in either a blue sky-coloured Wi-Fi 6E model or slate-coloured 5G version, the XPS 13 2-in-1 starts at $1,999 and will launch on 9 July in Australia and New Zealand.
I’ve used an older Dell XPS 13 laptop for years now and can attest to its quality. The downsized motherboard in the latest model is a particularly impressive feat, so I’m looking forward to finding out if the performance keeps pace.
Microsoft and Samsung now go hand-in-hand, with a partnership announced between the two companies that will see an Xbox app included on many of the latest and greatest TVs.
The announcement comes off the back of recent reports about Microsoft working on an Xbox streaming dongle codenamed “Keystone”, as part of the company’s push towards cloud gaming. Starting at the end of the month, the Xbox app will appear on several 2022 Samsung Smart TVs including the Neo QLED 8K, Neo QLED 4K, and QLEDs. In a nutshell, any 2022 Samsung Smart TV above the BU8000 model will be able to play Xbox games without you needing to buy a physical Xbox. Additionally, the Samsung 2022 Smart Monitor series will also gain access to the app.
More than 100 games, such as Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5, will be available to stream using the Xbox app via an Xbox Game Pass subscription. New games made by Microsoft-owned studios – under the Xbox Game Studios banner – are available for subscribers the day they launch, such as Starfield, an upcoming space RPG made by Bethesda.
For gaming, Samsung’s 2022 Smart TVs include various features suited to getting the most out of the experience. Included as part of the QLED range is the AMD-backed FreeSync Premium Pro technology, which is meant to reduce lag, stuttering, and screen tearing in order to produce a low latency gaming session.
Samsung TVs will be able to connect wirelessly to an Xbox controller, but you’ll need to bring your own. Still, compared to buying an entire Xbox console, this is a cheap way into console-quality gaming.
Xbox Cloud Gaming is also available on many other devices, including consoles, PCs, and mobile, which makes TV support a natural progression. Another cloud gaming service, Nvidia GeForce Now, which lets you stream PC games, is already available across several TV manufacturers, Samsung included.
Tricolore, a slick new electric mountain bike from Italian company Moto Parilla, promises a hybrid between the motorcycle and bikes as it is shown off at the International Motorcycle and Accessories Exhibition (EICMA) in Milan this November.
Moto Parilla unveiled a first look at the electric bike following two years of research and development. Heavily inspired by motorcycles, it features a monocoque frame, a bilateral single-arm swingarm, and an interchangeable seat frame. Important to Moto Parilla is its Italian heritage, so each bike’s components will be made in Italy. This includes the powertrain in the Polini EP3 250 Watt model, capable of reaching a peak of 500 watts and 90 Newton metres of torque. With an 880 watt-hour battery, the Tricolore has a range of over 100km.
One of Tricolore’s major features is modularity. Its interchangeable seat frame allows for different types of use, including off-road and urban riding. Along with the variable suspension, interchangeable drivetrain systems and the option of different powertrains, Moto Parilla claims the bike can exceed more than 750 watts of power in some configurations.
Sustainability is another focal point, with various recyclable materials such as hemp fibre used as part of the bike’s non-structural components. The company says these parts will be completely recyclable at end-of-life due to using natural resins throughout the production process.
With the Tricolore’s announcement, the electric mountain bike adds to Moto Parilla’s existing range consisting of the Carbon, Trilix, and custom-made Ultra bikes. No specific pricing or release date details came with the announcement beyond the EICMA event. For Australians keen to check out an e-bike, Moto Parilla lists Overide Products Fat Wheel E-Bikes – based in Western Australia – as an official dealer of its gear. As an indication, an online listing for the Carbon model comes with an $11,000 price tag.
Anything Moto Parilla is well outside of my price range, but the Tricolore looks a stylish option for anyone in the market for a premium electric mountain bike.
Not-E3, faux-E3, “Keigh-3” – in reference to video game presenter Geoff Keighly – whatever you want to call it, the past few weeks have been stacked with gaming announcements.
This is despite E3, the Electronic Entertainment Exhibition, not taking place in 2022. In its absence, many major gaming companies and publications hosted various showcase events to announce upcoming projects from some of the biggest names in the business.
To help you keep on top of the news, here are the biggest announcements from not-E3 2022.
Prior to the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase, a cloud streaming app for certain 2022 Samsung Smart TVs was announced. While a dedicated streaming dongle is still a while away, the lucky owners of compatible Samsung TVs will soon be able to stream and play next-gen console games without the box. All you need is an Xbox Game Pass subscription and a decent internet connection. Expect to see the Xbox app appearing on Samsung TVs from the end of June onwards.
Final Fantasy VII Remake part two revealed
As part of Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII 25th anniversary presentation during not-E3, the Japanese company made a massive announcement regarding the series. Square Enix revealed that the 2020 Final Fantasy VII Remake was part one of a trilogy, with part two launching during our summer in 2023. Entitled Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the second part also has a brief trailer teasing its direction following the first part’s mind-bending finale.
Also getting the remake treatment is Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, originally a PlayStation Portable game from 2008. Its remake, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion, will launch across all major gaming platforms this summer.
The Last of Us is also getting remade for PS5 and PC
Announced at the Summer Games Fest 2022 presentation, a remade version of the 2013 PlayStation 3 classic The Last of Us is coming to PlayStation 5 and PC. Referred to as The Last of Us Part I, it follows the success of 2020’s The Last of Us Part II on PlayStation 4, which sold more than 10 million copies worldwide.
The Last of Us Part I features reworked graphics, gameplay and controls designed to take advantage of newer hardware. The remake also includes the prequel content Left Behind which explores more of the protagonist, Ellie’s, backstory. The Last of Us Part I launches on 2 September 2022.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II gets a release date and campaign footage
Not to be confused with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 from 2009, Modern Warfare II is a sequel to the 2019 reboot Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Clear as mud? Right, let’s press on.
Summer Games Fest 2022 gave us an extended look at Modern Warfare II‘s campaign gameplay, with all of the military action fans have come to expect. Developed by Infinity Ward, the latest instalment of the franchise launches on 28 October for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC across Steam and Battle.net. Free-to-play battle royale game Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 is also inbound later this year.
Devolver Digital continues its searing satire of the games industry and not-E3
For several years now, independent publisher Devolver Digital has taken aim at various practices normalised by other gaming companies. Microtransactions, loot boxes, NFTs – Devolver swings hard and never misses. This year, the Devolver Direct presentation lampooned the recent spate of large-scale company acquisitions across the industry.
In between sketches, Devolver showcased several promising games on the way soon. Two Australian-developed games were showcased, including Cult of the Lamb, which launches on 11 August 2022, and The Plucky Squire due for a 2023 release. Both games look impressive, and The Plucky Squire features an artist, James Turner, who has previously worked on the Pokemon series.
Bethesda space RPG Starfield gets a big gameplay trailer
The Xbox and Bethesda showcase included way too many big games to adequately include in a roundup article (shoutout to the Adelaide-made Hollow Knight: Silksong). Arguably the one everyone is talking about is Starfield. From the folks at Bethesda known for The Elder Scrolls and recent Fallout games, their latest RPG looks massive.
With over 1,000 planets to freely explore, you can create and customise your own ship, build bases, and embark upon a spacefaring quest. In Starfield‘s first major gameplay trailer, we saw plenty of genre hallmarks including character customisation, crafting, and combat. Although originally slated for launch later this year, Starfield will release on Xbox and PC in 2023.
Netflix gets its killer gaming app with Poinpy
Even Netflix got onto the not-E3 train, announcing multiple games and game-adjacent projects coming to the streaming platform. Published by Devolver Digital, the colourful vertical-climbing game Poinpy from the developer of Downwell is out now on mobile for Netflix subscribers. It’s excellent and will be joined by other Devolver games Reigns: Three Kingdoms and Terra Nil in the future.
Netflix also has many other games and adaptations in the works, including an animated Dragon Age series, and an upcoming narrative RPG based on the popular Shadow and Bone books.
Resident Evil 4 is yet another incoming remake
While technically not within the unofficial not-E3 window, Sony hosted a PlayStation State of Play presentation a few weeks ago, which announced the Resident Evil 4 remake. It’s due for a 24 March 2023 launch on PS5, along with PlayStation VR2 content for the game and Resident Evil Village.
Epson recently received major recognition for four of its products at the latest prestigious iF Design Awards, including awards for the company’s various printing and projector devices.
Epson’s EH-LS12000B can create a 300-inch screen in 4K!
Awarded for meeting a range of criteria – such as usability, sustainability, and aesthetics – a projector, wireless presentation dongle, spectrophotometer, and a printer received recognition. Since 1953, the iF Design Award, originating from Germany, highlights innovative design across industrial products. In 2022 alone, the jury consisted of 132 design experts who examined 11,000 entries from 57 countries and regions around the world.
One of Epson’s award winners was the EH-LS12000B home projector. A 4K projector capable of beaming an image of up to 300 inches, it uses a new laser light source designed to create a home cinema experience even in well-lit rooms.
We love the ELPWP10 which shares up to 4 PC screens on one large display, like a projector
Next up is the ELPWP10, a wireless presentation device designed for easily sharing multiple screens at the same time. By connecting a transmitter to your PC and clicking on an icon, you can share up to four PC displays simultaneously on one large screen, such as a projector or TV. It’s suited for hosting collaborative meetings so you can view each others’ devices with ease.
Another iF Design Award recipient from Epson is the SD-10 spectrophotometer. At its core, a spectrophotometer measures light and quantifies a substance’s light absorbancy. Small in size, the SD-10 digitises colours, which is usually a time-consuming practice in manual printing.
They key to Epson’s SD-10 spectrophotometer is its compact size
Finally, the fourth Epson device recognised was the Monna Lisa ML-64000 digital textile printer. It can print directly on fabrics up to 3.6 metres in width, suitable for printing on clothing. As mentioned on the iF Design Award website, the Monna Lisa will help reduce environmental impacts by shifting the industry from analog to digital printing.
Of the 2022 iF Design Award recipients from Epson, I’m most impressed by the ELPWP10 wireless presentation device. For those back in the office, it’s a clever idea for team meetings and seems like a great way to work on shared projects together.
With an eye on the future of the Metaverse, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has unveiled a slew of Meta VR headset prototypes as the tech giant works towards making virtual reality “as vivid and realistic as the physical world”.
Immersive VR experiences are set to be the cornerstone of the Metaverse – Facebook parent company Meta’s attempt to bring the concept of cyberspace to life as a shared 3D virtual world, home to a virtual community, economy and marketplace.
Meta’s Metaverse is not expected to go mainstream for another five to 10 years, but it is far from a pipe dream. Meta already has 10,000 people working on the Metaverse and will spend $US10 billion on the project this year.
As part of that work, engineers at Meta’s Reality Labs have developed a range of Meta VR headset prototypes. They are working towards the goal of passing the Visual Turing Test, where virtual reality is practically indistinguishable from the real world, Zuckerberg said in Reality Labs’ recent “Inside the Lab” roundtable.
“It’s not going to be that long until we can create scenes in basically perfect fidelity,” Zuckerberg said. “Displays that match the full capacity of human vision are going to unlock some really important things.”
“The first is a realistic sense of presence, and that’s the feeling of being with someone or in some place as if you’re physically there. And given our focus on helping people connect, you can see why this is such a big deal.”
Zuckerberg reiterated plans to ship a high-end VR headset this year, codenamed Project Cambria. It will support both VR and AR, thanks to external cameras passing video to the internal displays. Project Cambria will also ship with eye tracking, a key feature for future Meta headsets.
Visual Turing Test challenges
Looking beyond Project Cambria, building the perfect VR headset requires mastering four key concepts: high resolution, high dynamic range, variable focal depth and the ability to compensate for optical distortions.
Recreating 20/20 vision across the full human field of view would require greater than 8K resolution, but this can be scaled down by allowing for the fact that peripheral vision does not require as high resolution, according to Zuckerberg and Michael Abrash, Chief Scientist of Meta’s Reality Labs
Zuckerberg showed off the “Butterscotch” VR headset prototype which can display near retinal resolution – allowing the wearer to read the bottom line of an eye test in VR. Achieving this feat required halving the field of view of Meta’s current Quest 2 headset.
Meta’s Butterscotch high resolution prototype VR headset.
Meanwhile, improving the high dynamic range of VR headsets will deliver more realistic brightness, shadows, contrast and colour depth.
Meta’s “Starburst” HDR prototype can produce up to 20,000 nits of brightness – a vast leap from the Quest 2’s 100 nits and brighter than high-end televisions – in an effort to underpin HDR. With exposed wires, and cooling fans strapped above each eyepiece, the prototype is too large and unwieldy to wear and must be held like binoculars.
Looking to the future, the use of eye tracking will allow VR headsets to allocate resolution to where the wearing is looking, while variable focal depth will allow wearers to easily focus on nearby and far away objects, as well as fix optical distortions inherent in current lenses.
The “Mirror Lake” prototype is still at the concept stage, but promises to offer mechanical varifocal lenses and eye tracking, with the benefit of holographic lenses. The presentation also included Half Dome 3, the latest in a series of VR headset prototypes which can shift focal planes depending on where the wearer is looking.
Meta’s Mirror Lake prototype VR headset concept drawings.
Once these individual challenges are overcome with Meta VR headset prototypes, the next challenge is combining all these technological breakthroughs into compact, lightweight VR headsets which can run on batteries for extended periods.
Zuckerberg unveiled the fully-functional Holocake 2 prototype, Meta’s thinnest VR headset yet, which must be tethered to a PC. It is the successor to a 2020 design built on holographic optics, a light-bending technique which allows an almost flat panel to replace the traditional thick refractive lens.
The fully-functional Holocake 2 prototype VR headset.
