Introducing Mixed Reality
If you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering, what exactly, is mixed reality? The answer, at least according to Microsoft, is a new mix of augmented and virtual reality that will be included in the upcoming Windows Creators update, scheduled for release on October 17th.
Having combined forces with HP, Dell, Acer and Lenovo, mixed reality uses VR-style headsets but they come with front facing cameras, allowing for the user to see a virtual objects in a real world, or the opposite, real objects in a virtual world.
While with most new forays into virtual reality, the mind jumps immediately to its potential applications in gaming, but once you start considering its possibilities, you can see a host of likely avenues for its implementation, ranging from business to entertainment, education and more.
Analysts expect the market for AR/VR to grow exponentially in the near future, over 100% in each of the next four years, but Microsoft, seeing a way to gain a foothold in this area, seems to have chosen mixed reality in part due to its cost. At a price of $399 US, the headsets are less costly than pure VR headsets like the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, both of which further require a high end processing power, which, with is unlike this new combo, which can be used with a mid range computer as long as it is running the new Windows update.
Microsoft certainly hopes that this lower price paired with the ubiquity of its operating system can be a game changer in an industry still searching for an alternative to a consumer that isn’t a big time gamer or computer developer.
As we’ve discussed before, many of the groundbreaking ways that a virtual reality experience can shape a young mind or alter a business are unfortunately priced out of range of many of those who could most benefit from it. With this play, Microsoft seems to be betting on a lower range option that still has a footprint in a real world.
Of course, having not yet been released, it’s too early to judge whether this gamble will work. But it’s clear that there are plenty of uses for various realities outside of the virtual reality arcade. And with headsets that don’t need external sensors and can operate without the big time computer power of its competitors, it’s hard not to think that the future of virtual reality, to forgive a pun, may be mixed.