Microsoft Has Recently Ordered MR Displays from Samsung
According to recent reports from Korean news agencies, Microsoft is buying OLED display panels from Samsung Display, a Samsung subsidiary. These panels are meant for a future mixed reality (MR) gadget that will not yet be on the market.
Samsung plans to debut its own extended reality (XR) headgear later this year. Although Microsoft has not announced the precise quantity of OLED panels it has bought, insiders quoted by the Korean site Elec speculate that the order may have been in the hundreds of thousands.
It is not clear from these sales that Microsoft plans to release an MR headset anytime soon. Elec’s sources indicate that it is unlikely that an OLED-equipped gadget would be released until 2025, at the latest.
This comes after Microsoft recently filed for patents, which may provide an early look at augmented reality (AR) smart glasses. According to the patents “Composite Pose Estimate for Wearable Computing Device” and “Resolution Enhancement in Spatial-Frequency Space,” Microsoft is reportedly developing augmented reality smart glasses that are coupled with its generative artificial intelligence (genAI) technology, Co-Pilot.
It is common knowledge that patent applications do not necessarily result in the creation of new technology or goods. They may, however, provide information about a company’s fascination with certain technology markets. This bears resemblance to the several Apple Vision Pro patent applications that were submitted prior to Apple’s formal product announcement.
According to these Microsoft patents, the business has been developing this potential product since at least 2023. Based on the papers, Microsoft is testing an enhanced version of Windows OS intended for spatial computing, which may be Windows Holographic. This version of the operating system is similar to Apple’s Vision Pro spatial computing foundation in that it can recognise and react to user actions and surroundings.
Furthermore, it seems from the patents that Microsoft is using AI to interpret the geographical data that the device’s cameras record, which may indicate that CoPilot incorporation is being considered for an online virtual assistant that would resemble Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses. The documents imply that Microsoft’s gadget development seeks to be extremely accessible, especially in low light, despite the lack of detailed specifics. Nevertheless, there isn’t much new knowledge on the HoloLens’ chances of success in the files.
Microsoft is still dedicated to developing genAI-powered XR solutions, with an emphasis on increasing the adaptability and accessibility of XR apps. This covers Windows Holographic version 1.1’s launch of the new OpenXR coding tool.
Furthermore, Microsoft keeps making its office products like Office, Dynamics 365, and Mesh available on a wider range of XR devices. In order to maintain its position as a major player in this market, where Apple has also lately made large investments, the business is also putting a lot of emphasis on the creation of XR productivity applications that are not dependent on specific hardware.
