Microsoft Has Started Focusing on Augmented Reality Too

Fig. Microsoft’s headset design for 3D virtual-reality devices

When it comes to innovations and gaming; Sony Xbox always come up with some interesting ideas and designs. Off late, Sony yet again revealed their yet another interesting project on PlayStation 4. There is an amazing news for all the Play Station fans – this time they are coming up with a thought of virtual reality in the video games which they are planning to release in 2015 or so. The idea itself is so interesting that it would definitely take the gaming into completely new dimension.

Today when Facebook and Oculus are making most of the news in the Virtual Reality space i.e. news like, what they are coming up with? And how it’s going to be implemented over Facebook? Therefore, without any further delay, Microsoft has also decided to move towards this section and as a report from TechCrunch, Microsoft has paid as much as $150 million to buy IP assets related to augmented reality and head-mounted computing technology. In this, Microsoft also reportedly purchased the assets from the Osterhout Design Group (ODG), an under-the-radar tech company that creates products for the consumer, industrial, and military markets.

On the other hand, Sony’s much awaited dream project called – Project Morpheus; Sony unveiled a prototype for a virtual reality headset peripheral for the PlayStation 4; they also showed off a prototype virtual reality headset as well as a software development kit (SDK) that will allow game makers to create immersive VR video games.

Fig. Sony’s prototype for a virtual reality headset peripheral for the PlayStation 4

Likewise, Microsoft is also working to bring Virtual Reality gaming experience but they are still keeping it in mum. “Microsoft has also developed 3D virtual-reality devices, people familiar with the project say, and it has filed at least one patent for it so far,” The Journal’s Ian Sherr wrote. Where in July 2012, an alleged Microsoft roadmap document for the Xbox One showed that the company plans software company has been developing the technology concurrently with a project known as ‘Fortaleza,’ or ‘fortress’ in Portuguese. Though, Microsoft has still not commented over this report.

But if Microsoft did acquire these assets, then there are number of possibilities that they are apparently going in the gaming direction for sure, since Virtual Reality is quite a step towards the future gaming style and it really got a great future that would be readily accepted by the users; so companies going toward this direction is no wonder. Apart from gaming, Microsoft got other plans too! And since Microsoft already is playing in the wearable devices, news is there that they are also coming up with something related to headset-smartwatch combo too!

Fig. Microsoft’s Headset-Smartwatch Combo

Where Microsoft is showcasing there future plans and ideas in VR market, Mark Zukerberg (who recently joined hands with Oculus) seems uninterested by the Microsoft’s effort; he said – “Microsoft hasn’t even gotten to the point where they have anything to demo yet.”

Nevertheless, where companies are making so much of efforts to get into the future gaming style and coming up with ideas to create Virtual Reality in video games, we as a consumers have to be ready to spend big bucks over this future technology if it gets implemented in the near future. So towards the end, just a general question – What is your take over this report? What do you think over it?

Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services to global business. Omnie Solutions has implemented augmented reality based digital Solution, 3D Digital Sand Model, for planning mission critical activities and monitoring the country borders on a 3 Dimensional Digital platform. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, and Twitter.