T-Mobile & Qualcomm partner up to make AR glasses for your smartphone
Virtual reality, augmented reality, extended reality—these have all become something of buzzwords on the internet lately, especially with Facebook making grandiose plans for XR with its "Meta" re-brand, and Apple's mixed reality headset possibly arriving next year.
U.S. mobile carrier T-Mobile is the latest to make headlines in this realm by announcing its newly forged partnership with Qualcomm, particularly with Qualcomm's Snapdragon Spaces XR Developer Platform.
Snapdragon Spaces was only just launched by Qualcomm for the purpose of making software advancements towards preparing mobile apps to bring a three-dimensional experience to smartphone users. Snapdragon Spaces also includes top-tier software developer kits for some of the best 3D engines (among which is Epic Games' famous Unreal Engine), bringing the best tools available to fuel developers' creativity in the XR realm.
The exclusive Snapdragon-Qualcomm partnership will give T-Mobile a massive headstart in its plans for developing AR glasses that pair with your smartphone, creating a fully immersive experience of augmented reality that doesn't require excessive gear such as consoles or computers.
T-Mobile President of Technology, Neville Ray, stated in a press release this week that “5G is powering more immersive experiences that better connect us to people and things around the world, and glasses will be one of the first disruptive new product categories. AR glasses will make a real impact for both businesses and consumers, but first we need to build the ecosystem of developers that will bring new applications to life, and Snapdragon Spaces is a critical step in making this happen.”
The new partnership will also allow participants in T-Mobile's Accelerator program to interact with and develop new XR 3D products—both hardware and software—within the Snapdragon Spaces hub.
T-Mobile's Accelerator program, for the record, is dedicated to creating a community where innovative ideas are shared, and entrepreneurs and startups can engage in productive collaborations "for driving ideas, innovation and action."
T-Mobile has already committed to begin working alongside "startups and developers using Snapdragon Spaces to build immersive 5G experiences for AR glasses across gaming, entertainment and other industries starting in spring 2022."
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