Mark Zuckerberg took to his personal Facebook page today to show off a demo of the company’s unreleased “high-end” VR headset.
The physical product, now codenamed Project Cambria, was blurred in the video, but Zuckerberg showed a “mixed reality” experience with the new headset’s color cameras showing passthrough video of the outside world while covering a game-like experience. on top of those images.
The company has already communicated that they hope to use this device for experiences beyond gaming, especially productivity, although this demo, dubbed “The World Beyond”, was definitely more game-like in nature.
The company’s $299 Quest 2 headset already has passthrough cameras, but they only capture grayscale images. Cambria’s built-in sensors will capture full color, making for more immersive experiences. This will also help with a special depth sensor onboard the device, which should help the headset place digital content more accurately in a user’s physical space.
There are many unanswered questions about the device, especially what “high-end” means in terms of price. Meta has largely sold its VR products at a loss, but since it’s doubling the metaverse, it’s unclear if that’s a long-term strategy. The information previously reported that the headset would cost $799, though a Meta spokesperson at the time said the price would be “significantly higher.”
