In a nutshell: Apple unveiled its Vision Pro mixed reality headset earlier this year following years of rumors and speculation. The device is expected to hit the market in 2024, but it may cede the first-mover advantage to a competing product from Apple's biggest rival in the mobile space - Samsung.
According to a report out of South Korea (via NotebookCheck), Samsung is planning to launch its 'Galaxy Glass' mixed reality headset during the first half of next year to compete with the Vision Pro. While it was originally scheduled to hit the market at the end of 2024, the company is reportedly moving up the launch date to get a head start over the Apple product.
The Galaxy Glass will reportedly be powered by a Qualcomm processor, while the operating system will be created in collaboration with Google. The partnership between Samsung, Qualcomm and Google is raising speculations that the Galaxy Glass could be Android's answer to the Vision Pro. The report further adds that Samsung has secured a trademark for the phrase 'Flex Magic,' but it's not immediately clear how that will be used to market the upcoming device.
If the latest information holds up, it could indicate that the rivalry between Samsung and Apple will only get more intense in the coming months. That said, there's no official statement on this subject from Samsung, and the Korean publication only cites some unnamed industry sources for its info, so take the report with a grain of salt for now.
It is worth noting that Samsung confirmed its mixed reality plans in February 2023 when it announced that it's working on an XR headset in collaboration with Google and Qualcomm. Later in the year, the company filed a new trademark application for 'Samsung Glasses' at the UK's Intellectual Property Office. The trademark description mentions 'Virtual reality headsets' and 'Augmented reality headsets' as two of the categories, suggesting the new device could be a whole new addition to Samsung's portfolio.
While the Galaxy Glass is still in the developmental stage, it will be interesting to see how it will be priced at launch. The Vision Pro will only be a niche device due to its astronomical $3,500 price tag, so Samsung could have an opportunity to corner the lion's share of the market if it can price its device more affordably.