Samsung Electronics announced the new AI-native XR device, the Galaxy XR, in South Korea. It was released in the US on October 21st and in South Korea on October 22nd.
The Galaxy XR is designed to deliver an immersive experience in a form factor optimized for multimodal AI. It is the first product built on the new Android XR platform, jointly developed by Samsung, Google, and Qualcomm Technologies. Galaxy XR represents the future of discovery, play, and work, allowing users to enjoy natural, deeply immersive experiences from everyday tasks to bold new frontiers. Samsung says this marks the first step in long-term XR development, and that it intends to continue innovating across the full range of XR form factors, including AI glasses.
Comments from Industry Executives
“With the Galaxy XR, Samsung is introducing an entirely new mobile device ecosystem,” Wonjun Choi, COO of Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Experience (MX) Business Division, commented. “Built on Android XR, the Galaxy XR extends the vision of mobile AI to a new frontier of immersive and meaningful possibilities, moving XR from a concept to an everyday reality for both the industry and consumers.”
“Android XR is the first Android platform built entirely for the Gemini era, and we’re incredibly excited to take a giant leap forward today with the launch of the Galaxy XR,” Samir Samat, president of Android Ecosystem at Google, said. “Through our partnership with Samsung, Android XR unlocks entirely new ways to explore, connect and create, building an open and unified platform for the next evolution of computing.”
“The Galaxy XR embodies our vision for a future where the synergy of AI and XR transforms what’s possible in personal computing,” Alex Katuzian, Group GM of Mobile, Compute & XR at Qualcomm Technologies, also commented. “We’re thrilled to collaborate on this initiative as the Galaxy XR will enable new use cases across industries and help pave the way for exciting multi-device experiences made possible by Samsung’s collaboration with Google,” added Mr. Katozian.
Design that Unleashes the Full Power of Multimodal AI
Galaxy XR unlocks new possibilities with multimodal AI, transforming the way people connect with the world through technology in their daily lives.
To deliver on Samsung, Google and Qualcomm’s vision for AI, the Galaxy XR is the first product built on the new Android XR platform with Gemini built in from the ground up. With system-level Gemini integration, the Galaxy XR feels less like a tool doing the user’s bidding and more like a new kind of AI companion helping them manage tasks, offering natural and intuitive interactions through voice, vision and gestures.
In headset form, the Galaxy XR sees what you see and hears what you hear to understand its surroundings, allowing it to respond in a natural, human-like conversational style, giving users an entirely new way to interact with technology.
Open collaboration leads to a scalable Android XR ecosystem
As part of its long-term vision for XR, Samsung is partnering with Google and Qualcomm to build a new XR ecosystem, opening up new possibilities for the industry.
Developed in collaboration with Google and Qualcomm, Android XR is a powerful platform that puts AI at the center of the experience. It is designed to scale to a variety of form factors, from headsets to AI glasses, and the Galaxy XR benefits from the strengths of its open and scalable ecosystem.
All apps built on the Android platform run out of the box on Galaxy XR, ensuring users can enjoy the familiar mobile experiences they already love, making this device as useful every day as it is groundbreaking. Because the platform is built on the OpenXR standard, developers using OpenXR, WebXR, or Unity can easily bring their experiences to Galaxy XR, providing more ways to scale and more choice for consumers.
Discover, work and play without boundaries
The Galaxy XR was carefully crafted with a human-centric design to provide long-lasting comfort. Through a combination of shape, advanced materials, and structural optimization of each component, the Galaxy XR strikes the optimal balance between lightweight design and durability for everyday use.
The headset’s ergonomically balanced frame distributes pressure across the forehead and back of the head, providing stable support while minimizing facial discomfort. The battery pack is separate from the headset, making the device more compact, lightweight, and comfortable to wear. The Galaxy XR also features a removable light shield that provides comfort when removed and blocks external light when worn for a deeper immersion.
These thoughtful innovations make it easy for Galaxy XR users to become fully immersed in the XR experience.
XR-Optimized Google Apps
Galaxy XR offers a wide range of XR-optimized experiences, including Google Maps, YouTube, Search Around, and Google Photos, opening up an entirely new dimension of discovery.
- Travel and Search on Google Maps: Users can use Gemini as a guide to navigate to any location on Google Maps and get personalized suggestions for nearby places while exploring the world on immersive 3D maps.
- Dig deeper into content with AI: Users can naturally ask Gemini to find the content they want to watch on YouTube and get detailed information about the videos they watch, unlocking a richer learning and entertainment experience.
- Learn more about Video Pass-Through and Search: In pass-through mode, users can see the physical world around them and instantly search for information about what’s in front of them by drawing a circle with their hand.
- Automatically bring videos and photos to life in 3D: Bring your photos and videos to life by transforming 2D images into 3D, transforming your memories into immersive experiences and recreating them in entirely new ways.
Thanks to advanced sensors, cameras, and powerful hardware, Galaxy XR accurately tracks the user’s head, hand, and eye movements, making these experiences truly immersive. The device’s microphones are strategically placed and supported by software to filter out external noise and clearly capture the wearer’s voice. Through Galaxy XR, users can explore both virtual and real worlds in XR-specific apps with natural physical interactions, assisted by Gemini.
Immersive Entertainment
With its powerful hardware and superior performance, the Galaxy XR also opens up new levels of immersion in entertainment, including sports and gaming.
- Immersive Viewing Experience: Users can stream their favorite shows on a 4K micro-OLED screen that feels like a personal theater.
- Sports Experience: Sports fans can watch multiple games simultaneously as if they were at the stadium.
- AI-enhanced gaming experience: While playing XR-focused games, users can chat with Gemini for real-time coaching, tips and an enhanced gameplay experience.
- Create and edit in 3D: Adobe’s Project Pulsar makes cinematic video editing easy, allowing users to add 3D depth and layer captions and icons behind subjects on a larger-than-life canvas.
Powered by the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 processor, the Samsung Galaxy XR delivers next-generation immersive experiences with visual clarity and advanced AI through the Qualcomm Hexagon NPU. Plus, with 2.5 hours of battery life, users can enjoy their favorite content in a completely uninterrupted immersive experience. Combined with immersive sound and an ultra-high-resolution display, the Galaxy XR puts users at the center of an XR-optimized augmented world.
Samsung is also working on a wide range of use cases to address enterprise needs, such as virtual training in heavy industry and construction, including leveraging the Galaxy XR for virtual shipbuilding training for work productivity and safety through a partnership with Samsung Heavy Industries.
Additionally, Samsung partnered with Qualcomm Technologies to leverage Snapdragon Spaces technology to access the enterprise ISV ecosystem, providing developers with the tools to deploy their applications on Galaxy XR, and creating new opportunities for businesses to adopt business solutions optimized for Android XR. These collaborations will deliver enterprise-ready XR capabilities that enable advanced training, co-design of solutions, and secure remote collaboration.
XR Roadmap Developing
As part of its broader XR roadmap, Samsung is developing multiple form factors, including AI glasses. In collaboration with Google, Samsung is collaborating with Warby Parker, a pioneering lifestyle brand known for leveraging technology to create beautifully designed eyewear and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
At the same time, Samsung has partnered with Gentle Monster to offer stylish, high-fashion eyewear that combines cutting-edge AI-native technology with cultural influence and design leadership. Seamlessly connected to the Android XR ecosystem, these devices combine advanced XR capabilities with style, comfort, and practicality to bring boundaryless discovery, work, and play to everyday life.
Samsung Galaxy XR Specification
| memory | 16GB memory 256GB storage |
| display | 3552 x 3840, 27 million pixel Micro OLED 6.3 micron pixel pitch DCI-P3 95% Refresh Rate: 60Hz, 72Hz (default), 90Hz (max, upon service request) Viewing angles: 109° horizontal, 100° vertical |
| Tips | Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 platform |
| camera | 3D photo and video recording compatible 18mm / F2.0 6.5MP Resolution may vary depending on usage conditions |
| sensor | 2 high-resolution pass-through cameras, 6 world-facing tracking cameras, 4 eye-tracking cameras, 5 inertial measurement units (IMUs), 1 depth sensor, 1 flicker sensor |
| optics (iris) | Iris Recognition Support – Use iris recognition to unlock your device and enter passwords in certain apps |
| Audio & Video | Two 2-way stereo speakers (woofer + tweeter) Six- microphone array – multiple microphones support beamforming depending on usage Audio playback – Codecs: MP3, AMR-NB/WB, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, Vorbis, FLAC, Opus, Dolby Digital (AC3), Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC3), Dolby ATMOS (E-AC3 JOC, AC4) Video playback resolution: UHD 8K (7680×4320) @ 60fps Video playback (HDR10 and HLG supported) – Codecs: H.263, H.264, HEVC, MV-HEVC, MPEG-4, VC-1, VP8, VP9, AV1 |
| battery | Galaxy XR can run for up to 2 hours of typical usage and up to 2.5 hours of video viewing while charging. Actual battery life will vary depending on network environment, features and apps used, and many other factors. Typical usage was tested with Wi-Fi connection on, playing a video from YouTube in a virtual environment, three websites open in Google Chrome, and avatar settings turned on in Google Meet. Video playback was tested using 2D video content from YouTube in a virtual environment. |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 7 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be) BT 5.4 (max) |
| Interpupillary distance (IPD) | 54 to 70 mm |
| vision correction | Galaxy XR supports vision correction with optical inserts (sold separately) *Prescription lenses sold separately |
| weight | 545g (with forehead cushion attached) . Weight may vary depending on whether or not a light shield is attached. The weight of the battery (sold separately) is 302g . *The above product weight includes the weight of the device with only the forehead cushion attached. The product weight was measured without other accessories such as the cushion size adjuster or light shield. |
