ZDNET's Sabrina Ortiz demoing the Galaxy XR headset ahead of Unpacked. Kerry Wan/ZDNET
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Samsung's Galaxy XR headset is finally real. After a year of teasing it with appearances at the Google campus, Mobile World Congress, and Google IO, the company's premium, AI-driven device, powered by Google's new Android XR operating system. is shipping for $1,799.
It offers a deeply integrated Gemini layer, impressive real-time spatialization features, and a slick design that's meant to compete with the Apple Vision Pro.
Also: Samsung offers free $100 deal to new Android XR headset users - how to redeem it now
But I walked away from my second demo of the headset thinking this launch isn't as much about a virtual reality headset as it is a bridge to something smaller, lighter, and infinitely more transformative: AI-powered smart glasses.
What's changed since I saw it one year ago
Jason Howell/ZDNET
Samsung flew me out to a highly controlled New York City demo that served as a culmination of an impressive collaboration with Google and Qualcomm.
One year ago, when the headset was still known internally as Project Moohan, I was one of the first journalists invited to Google's campus to test an early prototype. Even back then, the hardware felt notably premium and clearly built to go toe to toe with the Apple Vision Pro's level of finish.
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