XREAL – formerly Nreal – has always been in augmented reality (AR) business. But its previous devices – like the recently released XREAL Air 2 – only offer digital overlays of your phone screen. Now, just ahead of CES 2024, the company has unveiled its XREAL Air 2 Ultra AR glasses. Showcasing a product that could take on the likes of Apple Vision Pro.
Priced at $699 USD, the XREAL Air 2 Ultra packs far more into its diminutive frame than previous models. The glasses have two built-in sensors providing 6DoF environment tracking, hand tracking, semantic scene understanding, and more. This means that rather than merely providing a huge virtual screen to view content, users will be able to move around and enjoy far more immersive applications.
XREAL Air 2 Ultra
The Air 2 Ultra features full HD resolution for each eye, a FOV of 52° and 42 PPD. It boasts a refresh rate of up to 120Hz and a peak brightness of 500 nits. Furthermore, the virtual 2D screen casts at 154 inches from a distance of 13 feet. All inside a device that weighs 80 grams – the Air 2 weighed 72 grams by comparison.
“With XREAL Air 2 Ultra we’re empowering developers around the world by providing an affordable and lightweight solution that allows them to jump into the exciting world of spatial computing and create the next generation of mixed reality experiences,” said Chi Xu, founder and CEO of XREAL in a statement.
“We put 6DoF AR glasses on the map with our Nreal Light model in 2020 and are thrilled to unveil its highly-requested successor. XREAL Air 2 Ultra packs in tons of spatial computing tech in a smaller, more comfortable, and much more stylish form factor than what others are producing today,” Xu continues. “Unlike competing brands in this emerging space, we believe in making advanced wearable 6DoF glasses something you can wear all day long and that are accessible to all players in the XR development ecosystem.”
The XREAL Air 2 Ultra is designed to be plugged into a wide range of devices. These include Mac and Windows Laptops, Samsung Android phones, and iPhone 15. Android, MacOS, and Windows all support XREAL’s Nebula AR environment launcher.
XREAL Air 2 Ultra is available for pre-order now for $699 with shipments expected to begin in March. Initially, the glasses are aimed at developers in the US, the UK, China, Japan, Korea, France, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands. Although normal consumers can still purchase them.
Will you be picking up a pair, or are you awaiting the Vision Pro? Let us know in the comments below.
