Apple won the CES headset game without showing up

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Apple isn’t at CES, but it had a huge presence anyway. On Monday, just before a string of CES keynotes were set to kick off, the company announced that its Vision Pro headset would be launching on February 2nd. Apple ... more - theverge

Google is losing its Fitbit leaders and laying off hundreds of AR employees

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Google’s hardware division just took a body blow. The company has confirmed it’s laying off hundreds of hardware workers, especially in its augmented reality division — and 9to5Google is reporting that Fitbit ... more - theverge

L’Oréal’s futuristic hairdryer uses infrared light for smoother, more hydrated hair

The idea is to reduce heat damage and energy consumption. | Image: L’Oreal L’Oréal has been a staple of CES for years, showing up with surprising twists on beauty products like a wearable UV sensor, a lipstick printer, and an AR-powered brow applicator. ... more - theverge

Netflix’s new 3 Body Problem trailer is all about the mystery

Image: Netflix We’re inching ever closer to 3 Body Problem ’s premiere on Netflix, and today, that means another glimpse at the sci-fi adaptation. Whereas the previous trailer focused on the incredibly immersive virtual reality game at the core of the ... more - theverge

Asus targets Apple’s Vision Pro (with M2) with the AirVision M1

Pipe in content over DisplayPort and watch it appear in front of your eyes. | Image: Asus Asus has screens aplenty at this year’s CES, including one for your face. The AirVision M1 is a pair of glasses housing a wearable display, which shows content ... more - theverge

Sony teased a ‘spatial’ VR headset with a smart control ring

Screenshot by Emma Roth / The Verge Sony is previewing a new “spatial content creation” system designed to let users edit and shape 3D models while wearing a virtual reality headset. The company showed off the headset along with a unique pair of controllers ... more - theverge

BMW turns inward for CES, announcing new gaming, streaming, AR, and AI features

After back-to-back years of bringing unique, compelling concepts to the floor of the Consumer Electronics Show, BMW is turning inward in 2024 and focusing on the interior of the vehicle — namely, the types of technology and media content the automaker ... more - theverge

Mophie’s Juice Pack is back for iPhones

Image: Mophie Mophie is reviving the Juice Pack battery case for iPhones. As part of its announcements for CES, the company (which is owned by Zagg) announced that it will be releasing a new version of the Juice Pack for the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro, ... more - theverge

Wi-Fi’s next big upgrade is officially here

The TP-Link Archer BE800 is a not-yet-certified Wi-Fi 7 router. | Image: TP-Link The Wi-Fi Alliance is now officially certifying devices that support Wi-Fi 7, the next generation of wireless home internet. With certification, Wi-Fi 7 devices are guaranteed ... more - theverge

The Apple Vision Pro will launch in February

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge It’s finally time: Apple has announced it will start shipping its Vision Pro headset on February 2nd in the United States. Pre-orders begin January 19th at 8AM ET. In addition to announcing the availability of its $3,499 ... more - theverge

Apple Vision Pro prescription lenses will cost $149 extra

Apple’s Vision Pro headset. | Image: Apple When the Apple Vision Pro headset goes on sale on February 2nd, anyone who needs some vision-correcting lenses will need to account for an extra charge to add optical inserts from Zeiss. Apple says that readers ... more - theverge

Xreal’s new AR glasses are aimed at the Apple Vision Pro

The Air 2 Ultra bring back full-fledged tracking capabilities. | Image: Xreal Augmented reality company Xreal has revealed a new entry in its Air glasses lineup: the $699 Air 2 Ultra. The Air 2 Ultra glasses, which developers can preorder today for shipment ... more - theverge

Qualcomm’s new XR chipset aims to compete with the Vision Pro

Qualcomm’s CEO, Cristiano Amon, presented his vision for a new era of computing late last year at Snapdragon Summit. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge A year after Qualcomm, Samsung, and Google announced, uh, something VR-related, one potential ... more - theverge

Microsoft is discontinuing Windows Mixed Reality

Photo by Tom Warren / The Verge It’s over for Windows Mixed Reality. In an update to a list of deprecated Windows features, Microsoft added Windows Mixed Reality, along with the accompanying Mixed Reality Portal app and Windows Mixed Reality for Steam ... more - theverge

Quest owners can use Word, Excel, and PowerPoint in VR, but do you really want to?

Image: Microsoft Microsoft’s Word, Excel, and PowerPoint are now available to download for free on Meta’s Quest VR headsets, as reported by Android Central . They appear to be the web versions of the apps, so while there’s a lot that’s very familiar ... more - theverge

Neko Atsume on Quest is cute, cuddly, and a great use of mixed reality

A screenshot of Neko Atsume Purrfect. Sure, Meta’s Quest VR headsets have games like Beat Saber, a VR Assassin’s Creed game, and access to the entire Xbox Cloud Gaming library, but starting today, you can play Neko Atsume Purrfect Kitty Collector , a ... more - theverge

Xbox Cloud Gaming is now available on Meta’s Quest VR headsets

Image: Meta Xbox Cloud Gaming is arriving on Meta’s range of VR headsets today. A beta version of the cloud gaming app is now available for the Meta Quest 2, 3, or Pro headsets, allowing you to stream hundreds of Xbox games with an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate ... more - theverge

How to use an external storage device with your iPhone

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge While many of us rely on cloud storage these days for backing up photos, videos, and other files, every iPhone that can run iOS 17 also supports external storage devices: that’s every iPhone back to 2018, so it ... more - theverge

Meta is removing the ability to see phone notifications on your Quest

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Meta is discontinuing a feature that lets you see notifications from your smartphone while you’re using a Quest VR headset, according to the patch notes for the Quest’s v60 update. The company introduced the ... more - theverge

Resident Evil 4 remake will add VR mode in December

Image: Capcom The Resident Evil 4 remake will soon get a change in perspective. On December 8th, the PS5 version of RE4 will get a free update adding VR mode to the game. “ Resident Evil 4 VR Mode supports the full main story campaign and delivers an ... more - theverge

Steam Link can now wirelessly stream VR games to your Meta Quest headset

Photo: David Pierce / The Verge Valve’s Steam Link app, which lets you stream games from your Steam library to another device, is out now for the Meta Quest 2, 3, and Pro headsets, according to a news post from Valve. Having Steam Link available on Quest ... more - theverge

HTC’s Vive Ultimate Trackers are a sleeker way to keep tabs on your VR limbs and other objects

HTC’s Vive Ultimate Tracker is a new VR peripheral that’s designed to track body parts like your feet or any other object you want to strap it to, the company has announced. First teased at GDC earlier this year, the Vive Ultimate Tracker is now available ... more - theverge

Amazon’s new Echo Frames are lighter, louder, and start shipping next week

Image: Amazon Amazon’s Echo Frames strategy is to skip the visual augmented reality features of other “smart glasses” and deliver regular-looking glasses with the Alexa voice assistant built in. If this sounds like a valuable addition to your life, you’re ... more - theverge

Worlds 2023 had K-pop stars, an AR boy band, and one big screen

NewJeans performs at the 2023 League of Legends World Championship in Seoul. | Image: Christina Oh / Riot Games The opening ceremony for the annual League of Legends championship was another impressive blend of music and tech. Continue reading… ... more - theverge

TikTok’s latest feature lets users make AR filters

Image: TikTok TikTok users will now be able to create video effects right in TikTok without downloading another app. The company announced the new mobile editing feature, available now globally, in a blog post today. AR effects are a big part of TikTok ... more - theverge

Niantic is using AI to make Peridot’s fake pets feel more real

Image: Niantic Peridot , Niantic’s original augmented reality pet game, will start using generative AI designed to make the game’s cute technicolor aliens behave more like your cat. Here’s how it works. Starting with today’s update, Niantic’s algorithm ... more - theverge

Microsoft Teams is about to go 3D with VR meetings

Image: Microsoft When I first used Microsoft Mesh, the company’s mixed reality platform, I said it felt “like the virtual future of Microsoft Teams meetings.” Now, nearly three years later, Microsoft is making immersive 3D Teams meetings a reality. In ... more - theverge

Microsoft Teams’ latest AI trick cleans and decorates your messy webcam background

Image: Microsoft Microsoft is adding two new AI-powered features to Teams soon that will improve your voice and webcam. A new “decorate your background” feature is coming to Microsoft Teams Premium in early 2024 and uses generative AI effects to clean ... more - theverge

Snapchat and NYX launch new beauty filter that’s also a stealth shopping tool

Snapchat and NYX Professional Makeup launched a new AR filter and shopping tool called Beauty Bestie. | Image: Snapchat Snapchat just launched a new AR makeup filter that links to products that users can buy to recreate their looks in the real world. ... more - theverge

ChatGPT is powering a new kind of Snapchat lens

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Snapchat will soon have AR lenses that use ChatGPT. The company announced the update today at Lens Fest, its annual developer event. The new beta of Lens Studio for developers includes the ability to create filters ... more - theverge