HoloLens represents all that’s cool about augmented reality (AR) and a wearable AR headset to Microsoft fans. Yet at half the price, sporting the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, ODG’s R8 and R9 AR and virtual reality (VR) smartglasses may have some fans doing a double-take.
Ever since Microsoft demoed HoloLens in 2015 techies have coveted that cool wearable Holographic computer. But at $3000 and an enterprise focus our excitement has been tempered by Microsoft’s business strategy that does not yet include consumers.
Still, even with reports of an actual field a view (FOV) that’s much smaller than the immersive holographic environments Microsoft likes to demo, we still want an AR headset now.
Well, at $1000 Osterhout Design Groups (ODGs) more affordable consumer-focused, Android-based R-8 AR smartglasses, may tempt even the most Windows-focused fans. For those with $1800 to spare and don’t want to wait until 2019 or beyond for a consumer version of the HoloLens, ODG’s “light business” or prosumer R-9 smartglasses represent the best the company has to offer.
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Introduction of consumer-focused R-8 smartglasses.
Major drawbacks to Microsoft’s approach, however, have been the company’s deliberate delay in addressing consumers, the headsets $3000 price tag and a design that’s aesthetically unappealing for public use. ODG addresses these challenges with AR smart glasses that are consumer-focused, look like high-quality (yet bulky) sunglasses and are a third of the price of Microsoft’s HoloLens.
Osterhout Design Group (ODG) is no AR novice
ODG has been around since 1999 and has been quietly contracted to supply non-weapon tech to the US military. ODG is led by CEO Ralph Osterhout who has over 2000 different products and hundreds of different product lines under his belt.
He has developed products for the government, startups and Fortune 500 companies. In 1984 he developed the PVS-7 Night Vision Goggles.
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The tech behind ODG’s smartglasses.
It’s not all fun and games, however. Like Microsoft’s HoloLens and Google’s Glass ODG’s strongest play has been and will likely remain the enterprise for the immediate future.
ODG has also partnered with Citrix to bring a user’s workspace, or desktop and productivity apps to these Android-powered smartglasses.
Greener pastures?
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ODG’s R-8 consumer-focused smartglasses.
Unlike HoloLens which has gaze, voice and gesture controls, ODG’s smartglasses navigation is limited to a small button on the device.
ODG’s smartglasses are based on Reticle OS, a non-Google version of Android. Like Amazon, ODG is using Android Open Source Project (ASOP) to build an ecosystem for its products. The company has released an SDK and made APIs available to developers in an attempt to garner support for apps designed for AR glasses. Just as HoloLens can run any Windows app, ODGs smartglasses can run any Android app but they are not optimized for the smartglasses form factor.
Microsoft’s AR ecosystem is progressing, but with just 150 HoloLens-specific apps in the Windows Store, progress seems slow. Most Microsoft watchers are keenly aware of the poor response developers have had to Microsoft’s Universal Windows Platform (UWP). The UWP is critical to the success of Microsoft’s Windows 10 device vision which includes HoloLens. ODG’s fledgling app store, Reticle App Center, is currently in beta and faces its own challenges.
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Ralph Osterhout.
Could Microsoft pare down HoloLens’ specs, forsaking some of the higher-end features, and bring consumer-focused AR glasses that are comparable to ODG’s in both specs and price to market? I think it can. The question is, “is such a move on Microsoft’s roadmap.” If not, with rising competition from Apple, Google, Facebook, ODG and others perhaps it should be.
Source: Windows Central