Sony is the previously undisclosed fifth company building a headset using Qualcomm's new Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset.
XR2+ Gen 2 is a higher-end variant of the base XR2 Gen 2 used in Meta Quest 3, with the GPU clocked 15% higher and the CPU clocked 20% higher.
The new chipset also supports higher resolution display output than the base XR2 Gen 2, and Sony is leveraging this capability to deliver "4K" per eye resolution via dual OLED microdisplays.
David Heaney
There's no mention of gaming, PlayStation 5, or the PlayStation VR brand in connection with the upcoming device, which is slated to release in 2024. Instead, it is developed around a "spatial content creation" platform for enterprise, not consumers, and is made in partnership with Siemens.
Sony "and its partners" will announce more detailed specifications and "software compatibility" details later.
Unlike Apple Vision Pro, this upcoming Sony headset prominently features controllers – one for pointing and another worn as a ring – intended to allow "users to intuitively manipulate objects in virtual space."
"By holding the pointing controller in the dominant hand and attaching the ring controller to the fingers of the other hand, creators can model 3D objects using both controllers and a keyboard, while wearing the head-mounted display", Sony writes.
The headset itself features a flip-up design, so you don't have to take it off to see your physical environment in full quality, eat, or drink.
Sony says it plans to "collaborate with developers of a variety of 3D production software, including in the entertainment and industrial design fields" and will include support for PC-based rendering for users to work with larger 3D models.
The company also aims to produce "a new solution for immersive design and collaborative product engineering using software from the Siemens Xcelerator open digital business platform."
