There's always talk of playing Nintendo Switch in virtual reality - a new Switch VR patent was discovered very recently, and Nintendo Labo VR already exists, of course - but you don't tend to hear about the possibilities of augmented reality. This upcoming product from Dreamworld might be about to change all that, though.
Called DreamGlass Air, these new lightweight goggles can be used with any modern gaming console, smartphone, or your computer, projecting the display from those devices in front of your very eyes. The product boasts 2.5K resolution and a 90° field of view, and allows you to view your chosen content while in any posture; with the goggles on, you'd be able to play Switch while lying down, without the need to hold anything in front of your face.
Despite the trailer's need to show screens being magically projected into the air, your screen is actually completely private. The product's developers use the phrase "immersive, but not isolated" to describe the experience, as you should still have awareness of your surroundings - the goggles don't fully obscure your view and create a new world like VR, but rather add the imagery you want to see on top of your real-world view.
The DreamGlass Air has already smashed its current Kickstarter goal, with over $730,000 pledged at the time of recording. The product isn't what we'd call cheap, and we're not sure just how much use you'd get out of it if you only wanted to use it with your Switch, but it does cost significantly less than other, similar devices. You can learn all about it, see it working with Switch, and pick up your own here.
What do you think? An interesting way to play, or too pricey for the amount of use you'd get? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
Comments 53
Ryan... Have the rest of the day off. Come back tomorrow with actual Nintendo news.
One of those things that sounds cool in theory, but is almost always a complete and utter disappointment in reality. Of course without hearing what people think about it from firsthand experience, you aren't gonna convince anyone without using CG visuals in your advert.
I'll uh...just play in actual reality much cheaper thanks.
EDIT: Lmao almost $300??? So basically like buying a whole other switch. Yeeeeeahhh no....just no.
Yeah, not trusting that all.
@RazumikhinPG I get the feeling you're going to love the next article coming up!
(And on a serious note... Just because you aren't interested in the potential capabilities this product brings or don't want to discuss it, doesn't mean that others feel the same way. Of course this news relates to Nintendo, because it's a product being marketed with Switch owners in mind whether we think it's a good idea or not). 🙂
@RazumikhinPG
It can be used with the Switch, making it Nintendo related news.
Boooooo Kickstarter
Nah... the isolation of vr is what makes it completely different from playing on a tv. This is basically putting a stupid looking Doc Brown rig on your head to play on a tv, without playing on a tv. Yeah, no. Pass.
Vengaboys did the VR too long time ago. 😚
You can already play the Switch through an Oculus Quest (granted, it's VR not AR):
So I can wear it while I drive. Cool.
I got some beans to sell those backers.
@yuwarite You can also play it through a PSVR
Not sure why they showing a PS4. You can do Private Theater play with PSVR and does actual VR also.
All for Cheaper and with 2 games in the box 🙄
@Agramonte Because it’s an AR device showing off AR and not a VR device like PSVR
@Anri02 You can do it with any VR headset, but Oculus Quest is wireless and pretty much the best headset for virtual theater.
Isn't 2.5k just 1080p?
@ryancraddock That's a poor argument, there's a ton of products in the market than can be used with the Switch, and probably a ton more on Kickstarter. This, a news doesn't make. Also, no glimpse of a Switch in the poorly edited video.
Btw I'm not sure I can trust a product who's promotional videos look worse than QVC stuff rofl.
You can talk about this instead: https://mynintendonews.com/2019/09/10/nintendo-ny-holding-special-launch-event-for-links-awaking-switch-lite-and-amiibo-20th-september/
Magic Leap, is that you?
https://www.cnet.com/news/magic-leap-is-either-brilliant-or-bs-its-ready-to-prove-its-ar-gear-is-real/
I do think this is the future. A world when everyone, under 30, is a walking around with Google Glasses on their face. Which works out well for the need for driverless cars. My son is a senior in high school looking to go into this or a similar field so we discuss stuff like this a lot at home.
@RazumikhinPG I’m glad they reported on this, it’s an interesting product that I’ll keep my eye on.
@Anri02 Literally!
Reminds me of the Tiger Electronics R-Zone from the 90s. Anyone remember that? Seemed like the coolest thing ever when I was a kid.
This is awesome technology. Did they have to make it so goofy looking?
@Savino Well unless your playing with a Xbox kinect your going to be holding some sort of controller
I was thinking of the possibilities of AR just last night actually, whilst watching the SAO movie on Netflix. That movie has a lot of silly parts and unrealistic ideas, but I think it won't be much longer before this tech is common place. As for a company using Kickstarter when it's still new in the standards of the biggest companies, well I'm not sure on how good it will be at all.
So what is the point of this exactly? It looks like that techie gadget stuff that nobody besides some techies would ever want.
Is this even legal?
@nintendolie Well he's in the back of the car, so I don't see how it would be illegal.
@Anri02 Isn't it illegal to drive from the backseat?
@PBandSmelly Cheers! 👊❤
"Forget VR, it's all about AR"
Yeah, it's really not.
@nintendolie Very illegal
@Savino Need that Brazzers AR.
whatever happened to that software that was supposed to let you stream games to switch?
Pretty unnecessary
@manu0 You mean like Resident Evil 7 Cloud, Phantasy Star Online 2 Cloud, and Assasins Creed Odyssey Cloud? Those released in Japan. You can stream those game, but only in Japan.
@Realness Well that is basically all this is, I could see it working for some specific kind of people living in a specific kind of situation, but that's about it. They need to make this more simple if they expect people to use it as a replacement for TV, it looks uncomfortable and straining.
So... it's headphones and a screen strapped to your face.
And people are excited for this why?
@rjejr Did you ever see Hyper-Reality video from a few years back?... I always loved the supermarket scene when it all goes back to "normal" 😅
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJg02ivYzSs
So the idea is cool in concept. One thing that a lot of people are overlooking with these glasses is that they perform at effectively 720p. 2.5K resolution is not the same as 2k resolution, actual measurements are 2560x800.
I've been a day one backer only because it seems cool, but with the Switch Lite coming out this month I'm leaning toward canceling to get the Lite instead.
@Agramonte Pretty awesome vid, should have won an award at Sundance or something for "animated short".
But yeah, I see that as the future, 5 year olds today will be living that life in 20 years.
And they'll still be referring to it as "Minority Report".
@Ooyah my table works with switch (in tabletop mode). Should nintendolife start reporting on the the latest from Ikea?
@Moistnado
If it adds extra stability, sure. 😉
@rjejr Lol, what's funny is you can literally do what he's doing in that gif right now with the Oculus Rift on PC (and with other VR/AR headsets), where you can pin multiple virtual windows in mid air. I use that feature a lot when playing a VR game and pinning a YouTube video off to the side.
They call it Air, as that’s all the Kickstarter backers are likely to get...
Also, how did they manage to make it look so ugly?
@yuwarite I like VR, though it scares me. Parents who are worried about vaping never watched Caprica, that's the inevitable horrible future that awaits.
http://www.criticalcommons.org/Members/ccManager/clips/capricaexplainvrclub.mp4/view
But while that may all be just sci-fi for now AR is really the more interesting path going forward. AR can be used all day, all the time. Probably one of the first steps towards Borg Life. (Yeah, I watch too much sci-fi)
My 1 glimmer of hope towards the future is that AR gets an app for lie detection. Would help a lot during the 2 year long election cycles every time a politician opens their mouth. And it could cut down on crime. Who needs Big Brother when everyone has a video camera strapped to their face? Gov't will make sure backdoors are in all of those glasses.
Future is coming, for better and for worse. AR and VR are both part of it. Who knows, in the future people may put on VR headsets of serene sunsets just to let their brain decompress from all of that AR overload. VR may be the last safe place.
@duffmmann no i mean that vaporware streaming software
@rjejr "for now AR is really the more interesting path going forward."
Based on what we've seen of Magic Leap, Hololens and other forms of AR vs what's going on with VR, I disagree.
And I don't think the general consensus thinks AR seems all that interesting, either. If anything, AR seems like more of a dystopian nightmare to the average person than VR (which is getting more public acceptance via VRcades, Netflix VR, Oculus Quest, Ready Player One, Anime, etc).
Whereas, a few years ago, there was a fear of privacy over Google Glass AR glasses, where the device was banned from being used in certain public places. There's also the fear that marketers will abuse AR for adverts directing you to the nearest Starbucks, or whatever.
@yuwarite It is dystopian, but all the biggest corporations are good at getting one over on the consumer, and if there is a buck to be made, they'll make it.
Tech isn't there yet, not by a longshot. And it's too expensive. But who foresaw $1,000 smartphones 10 or 20 years ago? And all the privacy concerns with Facebook. Sure, FB keeps getting fined, but they keep going. Google already knows everything about all of us. And the Patriot Act basically stripped us of all of our rights whether we know it or not.
You ever see all of the crazy cop camera footage? Police knowing they are wearing cameras planting evidence, beating on people. They don't care. Soon people will all eb walking around w/ cameras, nobody will care. Heck w/ so many people having smartphones now there's hardly any privacy left. Ever see all those "Walmart shopper" pics? And stories about cameras in B&Bs.
Nobody is going to tell a hipster in 20 years that he can't wear his Google Glass b/c of privacy concerns. Not in a courtroom or the woman's shower at the gym, but on the street, no one will stop you.
VR may be where the fun is, but "the quest for knowledge" or whatever will have everyone wearing Google Glasses in the future. It's inevitable. Gotta have those stock quotes and sports scores NOW. People will be watching the bombs drop on themselves during WW3 through their glasses on their glasses.
@rjejr I think where we're headed is a convergence of VR and AR, all confined in to a small sunglasses sized device. We aren't there yet, but that's where we're headed in the next 10 years.
The Oculus Quest is, imo, the first real attempt at it, albeit it's not really an AR device for use outdoors, it's primarily an indoors VR device. But it is completely wireless, and contrary to what you said about price, the Oculus Quest is only $399, and is all inclusive, meaning you don't need an extra console or computer, or extra sensors.
@yuwarite @Agramonte "AR seems like more of a dystopian nightmare"
I know this was a 3 week old conversation but now on CNBC.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/29/why-facebook-and-amazon-are-making-computer-glasses.html
Who better to bring us a dystopian nightmare future than Facebook?
Oh, and I stand by my AR > VR future and this sentence in the article jumped out at me.
“Suddenly, it went 0 to 60,” said Mike Boland, an analyst focusing on the AR market at ARtillery. “There were no glasses, or the overall glasses space was in a rut, and now all of a sudden, there are all of these glasses to choose from.”
I think VR will be bigger in games - a real Switch VR, PSVR 2 with PS5 w/ a nicer screen and better games, but peeps need their Instagram likes in real time on their glasses yo.
OK so AMazon isn't doing VR, just Alexa mic-adn speaker son yrou ears and getting real time info on your glasses isn't what we typically think of when we think of AR - we think of giant whales and spaceships - but glasses with stock quotes and the weather and text messages is as sure as certain, and I think people will call that AR.
@rjejr Yeah, I think AR is being extended to just relevant info to normal line of sight. Not sure I ever considered little HUD you could stick on the car dashboard in the early 2000s that gave Speed and weather as AR
That said - For Automotive, Construction, Medical industries I can see AR being a game changer.
Last thing I need are even more distracted tourist walking down NYC streets 😅
@rjejr I also agree that AR will become more part of our lives, just not so much for gaming. There's a couple of great applications for AR and gaming: card and table top games are a perfect example. But beyond that, it starts to veer in to gimmick territory.
As for Facebook, I'm not too sure what they're doing with AR, but they don't really push their FB services on to Oculus users as people assume. And unlike Nintendo and Sony, they're actually a lot more open-source friendly. They natively allow users to sideload applications outside of the Oculus store on Quest headsets. And now the Quest can even be used as a regular PC VR headset, to play SteamVR games and other PCVR games outside of Oculus. It has essentially become a "Switch VR", allowing users to either play it portable or "dock" it to their PC for a supercharged experience..
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