Hey there, welcome to whatever this is—a dive into the week’s tech madness, I suppose? Yeah, okay. So, new stuff’s out there, and honestly, some are interesting. But let’s kick off with something that’s not exactly news but still on everyone’s lips. You heard anything about Project Moohan? Yeah, me neither. Google’s been oddly quiet. Weird move, huh? But I guess if the price is as high as folks are saying, maybe they’re keeping it low-key on purpose. Imagine hyping it up only for it to flop in sales—awkward. Just a bit of guesswork on my part. Anyway, let’s see how it unfolds.
The Buzz of the Week (Yep, XR’s Still a Thing)
Meta’s Reality Labs: A Small, Curious Win
Meta recently dropped their quarterly financials, and most of us barely blinked. Reality Labs saw a revenue hike—5% up from last year. Surprised? Same. But the Quest devices aren’t the heroes here; their sales are actually down. Turns out, it’s all about those Ray-Ban smartglasses selling like, well, hotcakes. More than 600,000 pairs last quarter, totally overshadowing Quest sales. And oh, Meta’s working with EssilorLuxottica to pump out even more by year’s end. Makes you think, right?
Mark Zuckerberg hints that if you’re not using smartglasses powered by AI in the future, you might fall behind. Is it just me, or does he drop the “M-word” (Metaverse, if you hadn’t guessed) as if it’s still got untapped magic? Honestly, it’s all kind of fascinating—these glasses could sneak their way into daily life.
Some Other, Uh, News You Might Want to Peek At
VR Time Crunch: 20 to 40 Minutes, Seriously?
Funny thing, Meta blogged about optimal VR session time this week. They suggest 20-40 minutes is the sweet spot or "Goldilocks Zone" (that fairy tale ref popped out of nowhere for me). Less than 20? Too much of a hassle for too little enjoyment. More than 40? Your head might start protesting. Personally, I clock out if I go over an hour. Crazy, huh?
Some think Meta’s saying make games that short. Nope. They’re just pushing for games with bite-sized chunks of gameplay. Minute missions, clearable levels, or quick quests—gotta keep those sessions sharp and enjoyable. Also, don’t confuse your VR rhythm with mobile gaming. They’re different beasts entirely. Remember that!
New Toys All Around
Halo Glasses from Brilliant Labs
Brilliant Labs just said, "Here ya go," with their Halo smartglasses. They dream of you wearing them all day—14-hour battery life, bone-conduction audio, and they only weigh about 40 grams. And that AI assistant, Noa? It remembers everything. Friendly or freaky? You decide.
Open-source and privacy-focused too. They’re up for grabs at $299 plus VAT. I snagged a pair, mostly because playing with AI in glasses sounds like nerd heaven to me.
Ultra-Slim XR Glasses: Meta and Stanford’s Wild Dream
Meta and Stanford teamed up to show off their ultra-thin mixed reality glasses. Not the chunky AR ones—these are MR, as thin as 3 millimeters. It’s tech from the future sent back to tease us, no joke. But don’t get too excited yet. It’s research, not retail—so cool your jets for a few years.
Avatars, Cameras, and All That Jazz
Meta Avatars Get Hair (Finally!)
Meta’s jazzed about their avatars. Now you can switch hairstyles with real ease. Pretty soon, you’ll Sheldon it with your own digital twin.
DJI’s 360º Camera Gets Competitive
DJI’s tossed its hat into the 360º camera ring. The Osmo 360, trying to best Insta360. At the same price, features like 8K recording might give Insta fans some pause. Let’s see how this plays out.
And That’s a Wrap… Sort Of
Wandered off for a bit there, but it’s a place to end, isn’t it? If you’re into the deeper stuff, there’s plenty more out there—immersive events on Teams, upcoming VR titles, all the festive chaos.
Final Plea
Instead of dropping coins my way, how about helping some folks in Ukraine? The Red Cross is doing their bit, and maybe we can too. Will leave a link below. Thanks for sticking around, you great bunch.
Support The Red Cross in Ukraine
(Header by Meta—because why not?)
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