Hands-on video of Samsung and Google's XR headset reveals Apple Vision Pro competition strategy

More apps, right off the bat

The interesting news we get now is on the software side. The Samsung-Google XR headset runs Android XR, and appears to feature a complete Google Play store, with support for pretty much all the millions of apps available on it.

That alone is a huge step up from the Vision Pro, which, although running Vision OS (based on iPadOS) – has a limited app store with an underwhelmingly low amount of apps, and no killer apps, still.

Meanwhile all the mobile games and professional apps you can get on your Android phone are already available on this XR headset – that's hard to beat!

Interface, hand and eye tracking

The Samsung-Google headset features hand tracking, looking quite similar to how it works on the Meta Quest 3 (and other Meta headsets), where the user's hands serve as pointers, and pinching their fingers serves as a click.

There's also eye tracking available, although it doesn't seem to be used as a main navigation feature here, unlike the Vision Pro.

As for the user interface – the home screen is shown to consist of two rows of apps per page, arranged horizontally (and not in a honeycomb arrangement, like Apple did it). Settings and notifications can be accessed via buttons above the app icons.



Apps open in floating windows, and can be repositioned via handles below them, and resized by pinching their corners. This is exactly how app window management works on both the Meta Quest and Apple Vision Pro, so AR, VR and XR enthusiasts will be right at home.

Certain apps, a main showcase being YouTube, are further optimized for this XR platform to use a unique interface. YouTube is shown to include various virtual environments, plus extra windows popping up when needed (e.g. a suggested videos window showing next to the main video screen). We can imagine a lot of apps will find fun ways to offer a multi-window experience like that on the Android XR platform.

AI features – Google Gemini has full control

As seen in the hand-on video, Google's Gemini AI is deeply integrated into Android XR. Marques notes that this is one of the main killer features that stood out to him, especially considering how the Apple Vision Pro not only released without AI integration, but Apple Intelligence remains excluded from it to this very day.

Gemini AI, on the other hand, has impressive control over the Samsung-Google XR headset. From the basics – being able to have a back-and-forth conversation with the user, to navigating through the user interface and through apps for the user, on command.

From changing settings, to navigating through Google Maps, it has the potential to save a lot of time for the user, thanks to it having control over the Android XR platform, and understanding how apps and their menus work.

In addition, certain Google AI features we've seen on Android phones are already being showcased on this XR headset too – such as circle to search. Gemini can use the headset's cameras to essentially see what the user is seeing, so the latter can draw a virtual outline around something in real life (e.g. a car or a pair of shoes) and ask Gemini to Google it, say more about it, find it on sale, and so on. Same for looking at a sign and asking Gemini to translate it, for example.

In conclusion, while looking like an Apple Vision Pro to an almost shameless degree, this Samsung-Google mixed reality headset is very, very promising. Android XR appears to have taken the best out of both the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest, the current AR/VR market leader.

And this being an open platform for other manufacturers to use, just like Android is, we can expect a lot of headsets, from budget to premium, to start popping up with it. Stay tuned for updates!