This is another newsletter that I’m going to write literally on the fly, because today I’m traveling to the US to attend Meta Connect. So I guess I’ll write part of it in Turin, and part in Paris, where I’ll have my stop before going to San Francisco. Wish me a safe trip!
(Ah and if you have not read it yet, read my review of the Play For Dream MR headset!)
Top news of the week
Amazon is allegedly working on smartglasses
The hype in XR is all about smartglasses now. Many companies, from big corporations to startups, are working on them. And it seems that another tech giant is planning to release its smartglasses soon: Amazon.
To be fair, Amazon was already in the smartglasses market. It launched three editions of its Echo Frames smartglasses some years ago. But the glasses were not super fashionable or super useful: they were only meant as a way to communicate with Amazon services like Alexa and do a few other operations. In fact, there was not much fanfare at launch, and I guess that many people in the XR ecosystem are not even aware that these glasses existed.
According to a report from The Information, Amazon is developing a new generation of glasses that will feature microphones, speakers, a camera, and a monocular, full-color display. The glasses will be so in par with the offering of Meta and the other players in the industry.
According to the report, Amazon is working on two products in this line. The first one, codenamed “Amelia”, is meant for the Amazon delivery drivers. They could be slightly bulky (probably to house a battery that can last for long) and should provide info to the drivers to deliver better the packages on their monochrome display. Amazon is allegedly expected to start building 100,000 of these glasses and ship them around mid 2026.
The second product, codenamed “Jayhawk”, is instead destined for consumers: it should be more lightweight and feature a color display. They are expected to be launched in late 2026 or early 2027.
The details on these devices are scarce and we have no idea on the price range. But I still think that this news is relevant because it shows that another big tech giant is entering the smartglasses field, which is a great news for us all, because smartglasses are the start of the path that leads to lightweight AR glasses that people can wear the whole day.
More info (Amazon smartglasses — Road To VR)
More info (Amazon smartglasses — Upload VR)
Other relevant news
Nintendo announces a Virtual Boy accessory for Nintendo Switch
This week, Nintendo announced an accessory for the Nintendo Switch that lets you revive the magic of the Virtual Boy. And it is not an April Fool’s!
The Virtual Boy is a device that made the history of VR. It is considered a legendary item by our community, even if, objectively, it offered a pretty bad experience (which was not even properly VR by today’s standards), and for this reason, it had pretty bad sales. But still, it was one of the first devices trying to offer a VR-like experience to the average consumer in the distant 1995, and it was offered by Nintendo, so it deserves to be remembered as something special.
We thought that Nintendo wanted to bury the memory of this headset that was discontinued just after one year because of the poor sales. But actually, last week, Nintendo announced a $100 Virtual Boy accessory for Switch and Switch 2, featuring a similar design to the original. The device has no screen or computational unit: it is basically a plastic cardboard where you slot the Switch or Switch 2 to enjoy virtual reality. For people who can not afford this premium model, a $25 version made of cardboard will also be available.
Nintendo is aiming to bring over time a total of 14 games that were available in the original Virtual Boy. Some of the names, which the long-course VR enthusiasts will remember, are Virtual Boy Wario Land, Galactic Pinball, Teleroboxer, and Mario’s Tennis.
The Nintendo Switch Virtual Boy accessories will launch on February 17 and can already be preordered today. The games will be available to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers (which costs $50/year).
More info (Nintendo Virtual Boy accessory — Road To VR)
More info (Nintendo Virtual Boy accessory — Upload VR)
“Silent Speech” offers vocal commands with privacy
Voice commands are considered one of the best ways to interact with electronic devices, and the success of products like Siri or Alexa is a testimony to this. Speech has also been proposed a lot of times as an alternative to typing text, and it could be the solution to the conundrum of text input on XR devices, which is usually pretty cumbersome. Vocal commands have their own share of problems, though, and the biggest of them all is that they are noisy and guarantee no privacy: imagine if you have to send a letter to your girlfriend while you are on the bus, with all the people who can listen to you. Now imagine that 10 people in the same bus are using speech-to-text: you immediately obtain a very noisy place.
A solution to all these drawbacks of speech, while keeping all its advantages, is being proposed by a startup called Alterego. Its technology, which is called “Silent Speech”, lets you basically type stuff while just mimicking the things you want to say, without actually saying them. This means you can just move your lips as if you were speaking, or even just slightly move them. The device is able to capture your intention to speak and translate it into text.
This is not black magic, but it is electromyography, the same technology the upcoming Meta “neural bracelet” is based upon. The device intercepts the electrical messages that your brain wants to send to the muscles of your face, and from them is able to interpret what you want to say. This futuristic technology seems to actually work: already in 2018, the founders of this company wrote a paper where they claimed an accuracy of 92%. 7 years later, for sure, this value is much higher.
In my opinion, this device is a game-changer: it would let us interact with XR, typing all the text that we need, by just basically “thinking about it”. There are a few factors that will determine if it will succeed, though: the accuracy is the first one of them, because unless it is beyond 99% no one would want to use it. Then there is the price, and how it looks on the face of the wearer. In any case, I will follow this technology with much interest.
News worth a mention
Snap sees glasses as strategic for its growth
Evan Spiegel, the CEO of Snap, has written a long letter to his employees. The letter is not much different from what other company managers did in the past (like Boz with Meta employees): it says the company is in a crucial moment, and everyone has to work hard and reach the strategic goals. What is relevant for us is that among these strategic goals, Mr. Spiegel puts the Specs glasses. He thinks that glasses are not just a way to put phone apps in the face, but they are a way to make humans interact with AI in a contextual way. They are a revolution, a completely new paradigm, and Snap wants to be a leader in it.
Specs are going to launch next year: if Snap sees them as strategic, they had better be really good.
Meta to open a flagship store in the UK
It seems that Meta is planning to open a physical store on Oxford Street in London. This would be the second store of this kind it opens, after the only one currently available in California. Meta, which is fully committed to selling glasses and headsets, has the problem that it must make users try its devices to convince them to buy. Its previous strategy of partnering with external stores like Best Buy didn’t play out really well, so now it is trying to open its own stores. I wonder if it will only open a few in some strategic locations, or will try to deploy everywhere like Apple.
Vision Pro can now correct some eye impairments via software
Apple has just launched a revolutionary feature for its Vision Pro headset. Previously, headsets were designed for people with perfectly functioning eyes, and for every eye impairment, the users had to buy physical prescription lenses. Now the company is changing the game with the inclusion of ‘Prism values’ that you can change in the settings of the device. These essentially tweak the image to appear in focus for visually impaired users who would typically require glasses or contact lenses. So people with crossed eyes or double vision can now have better visuals without having to buy any physical prescription lenses. I wonder if, in the future, this kind of feature will be possible for all types of eye impairments…
Vision Pro widgets already give us a taste of the mixed reality future
A video that Justin Ryan shared on X/Twitter showed me a glimpse of the mixed reality future I had envisioned since I entered the field. He showed his room full of mixed-reality Widgets, the small applications that you can attach to your walls inside the Apple Vision Pro. This is a feature we are also expecting from Meta, with the name Augments, but there were delays in releasing it to the public. Well, if you look at his room, which has a perfect merging of real and virtual elements, you realize that in some years we will all live in houses where some elements will be real (e.g. the beds, the kitchen), while others (e.g. the pictures on the wall, the TV, etc…) will all be virtual. This perfect mix of physical and digital is how I see the metaverse. Today we are still distant from that vision, but I think we’re starting to see a bit of it…
Samsung phones are going to be able to record spatial videos
A feature leak uncovered by SamMobile shows that some Samsung smartphones are expected to get the ability to capture 3D images and videos specifically for “Galaxy XR headsets”. According to some early tests, Galaxy S25 Ultra should be able to record 3D video at 4K 30fps, which is better than what iPhones can do for the Vision Pro. This feature is not surprising, considering that both Apple and Vivo are already implementing it for their phones. But it’s still good to see that Samsung is committed to offering features for its mixed reality headset.
More info (Samsung phones recording 3D videos — Road To VR)
More info (Samsung phones recording 3D videos — Upload VR)
Meta is reportedly avoiding research on kids’ safety in VR
According to some new whistleblowers, Meta is restricting research into how its virtual reality offerings could negatively impact kids and teens. It has allegedly “deployed its legal team to screen, edit and sometimes veto internal research about youth safety in VR”. Probably the reason is that, since the company is full of leakers, if some negative result is found by some research, it may make headlines all around the world. But personally, I think that without proper research, it is also hard to fully guarantee the safety of kids, so probably this approach is not the best possible.
Meta rejects these allegations and underlines how, over the years, it has taken many measures to guarantee the safety of kids (e.g. parental control)
More info (Meta avoids research on kids’ safety in VR — Upload VR)
More info (Meta avoids research on kids’ safety in VR — The Verge)
A summary of the available smartglasses
David Heaney has written on Upload VR a very good article summarizing all the most relevant smartglasses that have been announced or launched, may they be displayless, with a display, or with full AR features. Of course, some names are missing (someone made me notice there is no mention of Vuzix), but in a moment where every day there are announcements of new smartglasses, this summary is a good way to get a grasp of what the current offering is.
VR Forever Awards is a new SteamVR festival
VR studio and publishing label Creature and Future Friends Games have teamed up to create a new event related to VR games. The VR Forever Awards will celebrate PC VR with a new awards show, accompanied by the “largest ever” SteamVR festival with over 130 games. The event takes place later this month and includes game announcements and demos, as well as discounts.
On one side, I am happy because I love this kind of initiatives. On the other side, every month now there is a different “VR showcase” or “VR festival” and I think that now is getting confusing to follow them all…
Discover the Venice Immersive selection
Upload VR’s Henry Stockdale has written a comprehensive article detailing every experience he tried at Venice Immersive and describing how he felt about it. In case you were not able to attend the event in Venice, I think this is a good read to keep you informed about what was showcased at that event.
ILM unveils “Star Wars: Beyond Victory”
In the end, ILM has unveiled the Star Wars-themed game that it has been building for Meta. It is called Star Wars: Beyond Victory and features three playing modes. The first one is “Adventure” and lets you live a story in the Star Wars universe in first person. The second one is “Arcade” and lets you do some pod racing in mixed reality on the table in your room. The third one is “Playset” and lets you put Star Wars-related elements and action figures inside your room.
What puzzled me and the other members of the community is the Arcade mode: pod racing is meant to be played in VR… seeing it happening in a diorama tabletop version of the world in mixed reality is quite underwhelming. It looks like Meta explicitly asked for a mixed reality game, so ILM tried to shoehorn MR even when it was not a fit. Mixed Reality instead makes total sense in the Playset mode, because it lets you enhance your room with elements from the Star Wars universe.
The game is going to launch on October 7th on the Horizon Store for Quest 3 and 3S, priced at $19.99.
More info (Gameplay of Star Wars: Beyond Victory)
More info (Hands-on Playset mode)
Some news about content
- Sushi Ben, a slice-of-life narrative adventure about you saving a sushi bar from being shut down by land developers, is available for the most famous headsets for €18 and it launches next week on Steam
- Schell Games announced they’re developing “Project Freefall”, a new free-to-play online party game for Quest and PC VR headsets that’s all about a high-falling game of tag
- VR tennis game Tennis Esports hosted the past week a $100,000 live tournament in Las Vegas
- Mixed reality educational art app Pencil — Learn to Draw received its full release with more lessons, a campaign mode, and more. This is one of the best mixed reality apps available, and I invite you all to check it out: it is available on the Meta Horizon Store for $13
- Smash Eat Grow is a free-to-play multiplayer game set to enter Early Access soon, asking you to explore and destroy an entirely edible version of planet Earth as ravenous alien creatures called Smashers
- Indie game Of Lies And Rain, which proposes action and adventure, has been released for Meta Horizon OS and Steam
More info (Sushi Ben)
More info (Project Freefall)
More info (Tennis Esports)
More info (Pencil — Learn To Draw)
More info (Smash Eat Grow)
More info (Of Lies And Rain)
Some reviews about content
- The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters Up is a free-roaming VR experience that tells a captivating story focused on love and loss mixed with indigenous mythology. It has won the most important award at Venice Immersive, and for a good reason: its reviews about it are all very positive
- Of Lies and Rain is a promising game, with a good visual execution, decent but repetitive combat, and fun flying. It is still in Early Access, though, and this is visible in some bugs of the game, or some tedious moments, like when you hear the breath of the protagonist for almost an hour
- Sky Legends — An Aeropostal Epic has some bugs and sometimes is a bit too easy, but it does a great job in teaching the player the history of aviation and showing him/her a lot of historical planes
More info (The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters Up)
More info (Of Lies And Rain)
More info (Sky Legends — An Aeropostal Epic)
Other news
Project Orbion aims to create a live digital twin of the Earth, thanks to the alliance of multiple companies
Learn more (Rudebaguette)
Learn more (The Verge)
Learn more (Auganix)
The latest beta of SteamVR Link now works on Linux
Mojo Vision and Viture both secured multi-million dollar investments
Learn more (Mojo Vision — Road To VR)
Learn more (Viture — Road To VR)
The Quest browser is getting new ad-blocking and VPN extensions
Renowned artist Björk has just remastered her experience Vulnicura VR, with improved visuals and spatial audio
(Thanks Martyn for the tip)
News from partners (and friends)
Discover Copresence!
Copresence has just launched Version 1.0 of its AI-powered avatar creation platform, marking its exit from beta. The system lets anyone generate a lifelike, production-ready 3D avatar in only 2–3 minutes using a smartphone, with improvements in lighting, facial fidelity, and hair strand reconstruction. Compared to other avatar solutions like Meta’s Codec Avatars, which require full studio setups and advanced hardware, Copresence runs on everyday devices and is ready to scale. The company says the platform can be applied across gaming, XR collaboration, enterprise telepresence, and even remote healthcare, making high-quality digital identity more accessible than ever.”
To experience Copresence’s avatar platform, visit its website by clicking the link below!
Visit the website
Discover FM DUO camera!
Meet the FM DUO, a VR camera that is capable of filming up to 12K @30fps, and 8K @60fps. With built-in RTMP live streaming and 5G connectivity, the FM·DUO will immerse your viewers in real time! The FM·DUO features 2 full-frame CMOS sensors, with 6000 x 6000 pixels each. This allows for high-resolution zooming capabilities. Not only can you narrow in on one subject, but you can also focus on singular details of the subject’s facial expressions, clothing textures, and a multitude of other small details, enabling a much more immersive experience of VR video.
Visit Product Website
Some XR fun
Shame on me… but hey, I can’t resist!
Funny link
Some comments on Reddit
Funny link
Virtual Boy is back on the menu!
Funny link
Virtual Boy is love
Funny link
Donate for good
Like last week, also this week in this final paragraph I won’t ask you to donate to my blog, but to the poor people who are facing the consequences of the war. Please donate to the Red Cross to handle the current humanitarian situation in Ukraine. I will leave you the link to do that below.
Let me take a moment before to thank anyway all my Patreon donors for the support they give to me:
- Alex Gonzalez VR
- DeoVR
- GenVR
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And now here you are the link to donate:
Support The Red Cross in Ukraine
(Header image by Nintendo)
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This article was originally published on skarredghost.com