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Naturally, you can work in a mixed reality environment with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse connected, and you can put it in an immersive environment if you want to focus, or leave the view mode on to make sure your co-workers are not. taking pictures and laughing while wearing a ridiculous headset to do things. It wasn’t clear if you could connect the headset to a laptop to bring your work into mixed reality, a feature available on Apple Vision Pro.
Gemini in XR
A tap on the side of the headset brings up an app launcher, and this is where you can activate Gemini if you want it to be persistently “on.” Once activated, there is an icon at the top of the virtual space so you know that everything you say and watch is being recorded by Gemini.
In transparent mode, you can walk up to an object and ask Gemini about it – a Googler showing off the headset (before testing) approached someone else wearing an FC Barcelona shirt and asked Gemini to find the “classification of it”. team.” Gemini quickly entered the team name and pulled up search results with league standings and recent match results.
You can ask Gemini something like this and it will respond with visual results displayed in the headset. I asked it to “take me to Peru”, and it opened a 3D version of Google Maps. I can move and center on Lima, and in cities where Maps already has many 3D models, you can explore the areas in more detail. You can continue to talk to Gemini in these experiences, so I asked questions like when would be the best time to visit and I had a ready answer.
In another example, I looked into a restaurant in New York City to take a virtual tour of the space. Google says it can use AI to stitch together images of the inside of a place and display it in a way that feels like you’re there. He did a very nice job, and I asked Gemini if the place takes reservations, without specifically saying the name, because I was looking at the name of the restaurant. Is it it does take reservations, but Gemini couldn’t really make one for me. (This integration could come later.)
Later, I saw a few videos on YouTube, where the 2D content looks clear and colorful. Stereoscopic content was even better; my senses feel surrounded. I looked at some hikers walking down a trail and asked Gemini where all this was, and he said, “New Zealand.” I haven’t been able to verify this, but it seems like the right answer. I saw a more spatialized playback of 2D videos as the virtual player added depth and layering to make it feel 3D. I jumped into the Google TV app and activated a “Cinema mode” to launch a virtual theater to watch movies and shows, just like in other VR headsets.
Circle to searchthe Google feature debuted earlier this year on Android phonesit is also available on Android XR. Just go to a physical object near you, press the top button on the headset, and then pinch and draw a circle around the thing you want to know more about. You will get a Google search page with results.
Smart Glasses
The Moohan Project feels a lot like Google and Samsung hitting the rest of the VR market, though the Gemini integration gives their efforts a unique layer. However, I will admit that I was much more excited to try the smart glasses, where Gemini feels it could be even more useful. They did not disappoint. I went into another room and there were several pairs of glasses in front of me. Some were sunglasses, others had clear lenses. Like headphones, you can have them charged with your prescription. Google did not provide a name for the prototype glasses.
