Meta’s social VR platform Horizon hits 300,000 users

A clubby experience in Horizon Worlds. | Image: Meta Facebook has bet its future on virtual reality and the metaverse, rebranding to Meta and spending billions a year to build hardware and software that extends beyond traditional social media. But the ... more - theverge

Microsoft to remove AltspaceVR social hubs and tighten up safety and moderation

Microsoft acquired AltspaceVR in 2017. | Image: Microsoft Microsoft is removing all social hubs hosted in AltspaceVR and requiring users to log into the virtual reality app using a Microsoft account. The changes are designed to improve safety and moderation ... more - theverge

This 5G neckband from Motorola could make XR glasses less bulky

The neckband looks a lot like a plastic lanyard. | Image: Motorola Motorola has a new wearable 5G neckband that is designed to power lightweight VR and AR headsets (collectively known as XR headsets) such as parent company Lenovo’s ThinkReality A3 smart ... more - theverge

Meta’s Quest 2 Super Bowl ad takes a retired animatronic dog into the metaverse

Image: Facebook Meta has debuted its Quest 2 Super Bowl ad ahead of the big game, and it’s hard to get a grasp on how exactly it’s supposed to promote the metaverse (via Wall Street Journal ). It evokes a strange mix of nostalgia — and the slight fear ... more - theverge

Is “realityOS” Apple’s newest operating system?

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Apple’s long-rumored virtual or augmented reality headset might not launch until 2023, but developers have spotted additional mentions of a new “realityOS” that could power it. First referenced as “rOS” in 2017 ... more - theverge

Microsoft claims HoloLens is ‘doing great’ after reports version 3 was canceled

Microsoft’s Alex Kipman with the HoloLens 2. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Microsoft claims “HoloLens is doing great” after a report earlier this week revealed HoloLens 3 may have been canceled. Business Insider reported on Wednesday that Microsoft ... more - theverge

Les Mills is jumping into the metaverse with VR boxing

The Les Mills BODYCOMBAT VR app. | Image: Les Mills Popular fitness club Les Mills is punching and kicking its way into the metaverse with a new VR game, BODYCOMBAT VR. The $29.99 game is an extension of an existing workout series that combines shadowboxing ... more - theverge

Meta is adding a ‘personal boundary’ to VR avatars to stop harassment

Meta is adding a “personal boundary” system to its Horizon virtual reality experiences, aiming to stop harassment in VR. The new feature is being turned on by default in the Horizon Worlds creation platform and the Horizon Venues live event service. ... more - theverge

Mozilla is retiring its VR version of Firefox

Mozilla Mozilla is retiring its virtual and augmented reality web browser Firefox Reality, passing the baton to an outside team that plans to relaunch it under a new name. Free software consultancy Igalia is developing a browser using the source code ... more - theverge

Meta’s stock price plunges 25 percent overnight

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The price of shares in Meta — the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Meta Quest (fka Oculus) — has dropped more than 25 percent from the previous day’s close, the morning after it revealed its ... more - theverge

Pinterest will let you use AR to preview furniture from Walmart, West Elm, and more

You may be used to trying out furniture in AR. | Image: Pinterest Pinterest is adding a “Try On for Home Decor” feature to its app, letting you see furniture from stores like Crate & Barrel, CB2, Walmart, West Elm, and Wayfair in your house through ... more - theverge

Meta adds 3D avatars to Instagram Stories, with updates for Messenger and Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg’s lifelike 3D avatar | Meta Facebook parent company Meta is introducing 3D avatars to Instagram Stories and direct messages and updating the avatars in Facebook and Messenger, the company announced Monday. People in the US, Canada, and ... more - theverge

Oculus Quest 2 refurbished bundles are $250

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge In case you were looking for a deal on the Oculus Quest 2, Amazon has you covered. Its “Renewed Store,” where refurbished and used products are sold, will begin selling an appealing VR headset bundle on Tuesday, ... more - theverge

Vergecast: Microsoft to acquire Activision, Google building a headset, and the 5G battle with airlines

Image: Blizzard Every Friday, The Verge publishes our flagship podcast, The Vergecast , where we discuss the week in tech news with the reporters and editors covering the biggest stories. The biggest news in tech this week was Microsoft acquiring game ... more - theverge

Google is building an AR headset

Google VP Clay Bavor. | Photo By Liz Hafalia/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images Project Iris could see Google go up against Meta and Apple in the coming headset wars Continue reading… ... more - theverge

New Meta Quest update lets you access some settings with a pinch

Update v37 adds many new features. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Meta is adding a new feature to its Quest virtual reality headsets that lets you pinch your fingers to access the Quick Action menu, according to a blog post published Wednesday. ... more - theverge

Walmart is getting serious about the metaverse

Walmart’s recent trademark applications suggest that it wants to break into the metaverse. | Photo by Yichuan Cao / NurPhoto via Getty Images Walmart appears to be getting ready for a leap into the metaverse. Recent trademark applications indicate the ... more - theverge

The FTC is reportedly investigating Meta’s VR division for antitrust violations

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The US Federal Trade Commission and at least three states are investigating Meta for antitrust violations in its virtual reality division, according to Bloomberg . The report says the FTC and attorneys general ... more - theverge

Apple’s long-in-the-works VR / AR headset may not launch until 2023

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Rumors have swirled for years about Apple releasing some kind of virtual reality / augmented reality headset. While reports had pegged a possible 2022 release for the company’s first mixed reality headset, the ... more - theverge

Second Life joins the metaverse discussion with the return of its founder — and some key patents

A recruiter works on a computer, 19 June 2007 at the cyber cafe “Le Milk” in Paris, during the Neo Job-Meeting (NJM) event, the first virtual job fair on the 3-D “Second Life” on-line game. | Photo credit should read STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN/AFP via Getty ... more - theverge

Neurotech company will use Magic Leap 2 for dizziness

Magic Leap Magic Leap announced Tuesday that it was giving four healthcare partners early access to its next-gen augmented reality headset, including neurotechnology company SyncThink. With the new partnership, the company is interested in targeting ... more - theverge

Magic Leap’s new AR headset is rolling out to healthcare companies

Magic Leap Augmented reality headset maker Magic Leap has announced early partners for its Magic Leap 2 headset — a signal that the once consumer-focused company is still moving ahead with its enterprise-focused business. In a press release today, Magic ... more - theverge

Meta’s real antitrust problems are only beginning

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Just over 13 months ago, the Trump-era Federal Trade Commission sought to break up Facebook. The lawsuit was a long time in coming — it sought to unwind acquisitions that were made in 2012 (Instagram) and 2014 ... more - theverge

Apple’s Smart Keyboard for the latest iPad is a great deal at $105

Photo by James Bareham / The Verge If you own Apple’s ninth Gen iPad, or the previous-gen iPad Air (pre-USB-C days), this Smart Keyboard is compatible — and selling for just about its lowest price yet at Woot. Normally $150 or so at most other retailers, ... more - theverge

HTC is launching a VR wrist tracker for its Vive Focus 3 headset

HTC HTC is announcing a new wrist-based controller for its Vive Focus 3 virtual reality headset. The wireless Vive Wrist Tracker fits like a watch around a user’s arm, tracking the orientation and position from hand to elbow. It’s designed to complement ... more - theverge

Meta reportedly canceled a 300-person VR / AR operating system project

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Meta reportedly pulled the plug on a custom operating system that was supposed to power upcoming virtual and augmented reality headsets, although its full reasoning and future plans still aren’t clear. The Information ... more - theverge

That Walmart VR shopping video is old news — but so is the metaverse

There’s a video doing the rounds on Twitter today that supposedly shows “how Walmart envisions Shopping in the #Metaverse.” In it, a virtual avatar browses shelves of virtual groceries, picking and tossing items into a shopping cart with all the grace ... more - theverge

Sony confirms PlayStation VR2 name and Horizon game

Sony has confirmed the name of its next VR headset: unsurprisingly, it’s going to be called PlayStation VR2. Sony Interactive Entertainment president and CEO Jim Ryan announced the name as part of Sony’s CES 2022 presentation, in a move reminiscent of ... more - theverge

Qualcomm is working with Microsoft on custom chips for next-gen AR glasses

Qualcomm and Microsoft are partnering to develop a new, customized Snapdragon augmented reality chip that’ll power future AR glasses within Microsoft’s ecosystems. The new partnership was announced at Qualcomm’s CES 2022 keynote. “We’re announcing that ... more - theverge

Sony is joining the Mini LED TV bandwagon in 2022

Image: Sony Sony makes arguably the best OLED TVs that you can buy. They outperform LG’s own OLED sets in picture quality despite the fact that both companies use very similar panels from LG Display. That’s because Sony applies its own image processing ... more - theverge