Sony Unveils Apple Vision Pro Competitor at CES 2024, Geared Towards 3D Content Creators
At the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show, Sony has unveiled a new mixed-reality headset for creating 3D content. This announcement comes just as Apple has finally announced the release date of its own mixed reality system, the Apple Vision Pro.
The headset, developed in collaboration with Siemens, is equipped with an XR head-mounted display with 4K OLED micro-displays. It also supports transparent functions and includes a couple of controls that are useful for interacting with 3D objects.
It is important to note that Sony already has a VR gaming system, the PlayStation VR2 for the PS5 console. However, the new mixed reality equivalent is aimed exclusively at developers working on 3D production software, and in doing so, it may appeal to Apple’s target customers in its own way.
Features of the Sony Mixed-Reality headset
Sony notes that this system features Sony’s proprietary rendering technology that “enables real-time, high-definition and realistic rendering of 3D object textures and human character expressions.” The headset also has a video transparency function and spatial detection with six cameras and sensors.
To control it, the system has a ring controller that can interact with objects in the virtual space and another pointer controller that allows precise pointing.
From the specs, the headphones are powered by the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 SoC, which is also the same chipset that could be used to power the rumored Samsung headphones.
Sony Mixed-Reality headset price and availability
Sony says the headset system will be available “later in 2024,” with more details on specs, release date, release regions, pricing, and software compatibility to be revealed at a later date as well.
Despite this, a number of companies are jumping on the mixed reality bandwagon, which was originally started by Meta – with its range of Quest headsets. Other manufacturers such as Samsung are also expected to release their own headsets to compete in this rapidly growing space with Apple and Meta.
