Although Microsoft has released a VR headset, its ultimate ambition is mixed reality

Although Surface Studio was the protagonist of Microsoft's press conference, Microsoft's latest VR helmet also attracted a lot of attention.

Microsoft VR headsets start at $299 (about 2,000 yuan) and will be manufactured by HP , Dell , Lenovo, Asus and Acer. They will run on a new VR platform in Windows 10 Creators Update, without the need to buy additional accessories and the setup process is not complicated. You can just plug the headset into your laptop .

At least that's what Microsoft says. Microsoft provided a very simple demo (which needs to be used with Hololens): in a VR space, you can watch TV and use applications such as Skype and Paint.

The VR platform is also compatible with more Windows applications. In the HoloTour application, Microsoft employees demonstrated how to walk around Rome in VR, and the effect looked cool. The resolution of the new software and helmet is still unclear. It is also unknown how the effect of playing video games is - some games play well on Oculus or HTC Vive helmets, but ordinary laptops do not have that kind of graphics processing power, so you can imagine how the effect is.

The low price of this VR headset is in stark contrast to Microsoft's mixed reality headset Hololens. The cheapest new Hololens VR headset costs about $3,000, which is 10 times more. Except for companies and wealthy people, it is basically unaffordable for others. So, at least now we can also experience the effect of Microsoft's VR.

Mixed reality is what Microsoft is doing

This traditional software giant missed the opportunity under the wave of mobile Internet, and now Microsoft has almost no presence in the mobile market. However, at the press conference that day, Microsoft let the outside world see its efforts to lead a new future.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella believes that technology is ultimately a "tool" in people's hands, and the greatest characteristic of human beings is "creativity", and Microsoft needs to provide tools and services for this "creativity".

At the press conference that day, we saw that whether it was the more 3D features in the new version of Windows 10 update accessories or the more functions given to users by the new hardware products in the Surface series, Microsoft hopes that users will make greater use of the software and hardware tools it provides to "create" digital products.

In terms of specific functions, at the press conference Microsoft emphasized the production of three-dimensional images and enhanced sharing functions, including the integration of tools such as Outlook and Skype, highlighting that the most important contacts can receive shared information more quickly.

The ultimate significance of generating and sharing three-dimensional images is to integrate reality and virtuality, which is what Microsoft calls "mixed reality."

Currently, Microsoft's mixed reality demonstrations are mostly focused on the daily use of HoloLens. At the launch event, Microsoft executive Sanders introduced how to use HoloLens with Microsoft Paint to create 3D images and how it can help you shop online.

In the demonstration, Microsoft employees used HoloLens to project holograms to see what the furniture in the online store would look like in their own homes.

"With Windows 10, you can move content from the real world into the digital world seamlessly," Sanders said while demonstrating the HoloLens.

Nadella said that the "ultimate computer" of the future is a computer that can provide a mixed reality experience, and its field of view will become a borderless display.

Nadella predicted the future of human life to the Wall Street Journal the day before Microsoft's press conference: "You can see virtual objects and holographic images in the world in front of you."

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.