MR system from Varjo and Lenovo are best of Autodesk University 2022.
The star of the show was not the bright yellow $250K Aston Martin SUV that greeted attendees at Autodesk University 2022, but Lenovo’s MR system next to it. Those that got to try it were given a state-of-the-art MR experience.
MR stands for mixed reality, a mix of VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality). But in Lenovo’s case, the “M” stands for “magic.”
Unlike any other system we had seen, the Varjo headset (available in a MR bundle from Lenovo along with a premium, high-end workstation), this one has forward looking cameras. Why is that important when other headset shows you only the virtual world? Because exploring the virtual world will invariably have you trip over the real world. Walking around like Mr. Magoo with a VR headset on holding controllers in your hand, you can’t see anything. It you are one a construction site or shop floor, what you can’t see can and will hurt you.
We proceed to the demo. Yet another VR demo it certainly is not. Instead of a blindfold of ordinary VR, we get the immersive experience of VR plus the world around us. We are not detached from the real world, but instead, we are grounded in the real world and at the same time, offered a glimpse of a better one. The real and the virtual world play off each other.
You can see the reflection of your real shoes in the chrome of the virtual Aston Martin. On the inside, you see the dashboard, the controls, the steering wheel, the yellow stitching in the leather that match the exterior, all rendered in exquisite detail. If Lenovo would have had the new car smell waft in, we would have started it up and taken it for a spin around the convention center.
It’s not perfect, to be sure. Sometimes the images get choppy. But choppy images of hazards are better than no images. Then there’s the “electric ponytail,” the wires that drag and bind the user to the workstation. We do need to cut those cables, Lenovo. Don’t you know wireless is the new black?
This is turning into the ultimate mixed reality experience with 3D photorealistic images all around. I sit in the car of my dreams, an ordinary man transformed into a debonair James Bond in an Aston Martin. This is a heady experience.
The ordinary man has to ask the question: How much does this cost?
The cost may be more than the ordinary VR headset, such as the Oculus Quest 2, which can be had for $399.
But for the ultimate mixed reality experience, one that transcends gamers playing Call of Duty, usable for serious product design, the outcome potentially a breakthrough product, the next iPhone or next year’s EV, all worth millions of dollars. Even failing short of a design jackpot, product design stakes are still higher. And then, paying as much as $20K for a mixed reality system doesn’t sound like too much.
