Samsung Galaxy XR review: Paving the way for the future
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AC thVRsday
In his weekly column, Senior Android Content Producer Nick Sutrich delves into all things VR, from new hardware to new games, upcoming technologies, and more.
Samsung’s Galaxy XR is one of the most interesting VR headsets I’ve ever used, and I’ve been testing VR headsets for over 12 years now. It’s far from Samsung’s first VR headset – that would be the Gear VR, which launched in September 2014 – but it’s easily the best headset the company has ever made.
Mostly very well, and that’s because the true power of earphones isn’t in the hardware at all. It is held almost entirely in the fact that this headset features seamless compatibility of the Android application through the Google Play Store. That means every app you already know and love to use already it’s available, and it works so seamlessly that it almost bypasses the negative aspects of headsets.
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Section |
Details |
|---|---|
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Show |
3552 x 3840 pixels, 90Hz |
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Lenses |
Cake, 109-degree horizontal with 100-degree vertical FoV 54-70mm IPD It supports prescription supplements |
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The chipset |
Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 |
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RAM |
16GB |
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Storage |
256GB |
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Camera |
6.5MP 3D camera, f/2.0 |
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The senses |
2 high resolution pass cameras |
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Security |
Iris recognition |
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The sound |
6 microphone array, 2 speaker pairs (woofer + tweeter) It supports 8K video playback at 60FPS |
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Battery |
Up to 2.5 hours of use per charge |
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Communication |
WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
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Weight |
it’s 545g |
I’ve put a ton of hours into the Galaxy XR and have made it part of my daily routine. Although I may be at my desk for part of the day, I also find myself working elsewhere around the house from time to time. When I’m on the couch, I look down at my laptop and my neck hurts after a while. Using the Galaxy XR as a monitor is easy as can be, especially with apps like Virtual Desktop, which make it the perfect way to play SteamVR games on the headset.
Using my computer’s virtual monitor alongside a few Android apps means I can put my phone down and do everything on the headset. That keeps me moving and focused on my work better than being constantly distracted by the phone next to me. It also means I can do everything without having to juggle between devices. This headset does it all, and it does extremely well.
Every single Android app I’ve tried works flawlessly on the Galaxy XR. Whether it was playing Minecraft or Roblox with my son on the big screen (using my beloved 8BitDo Bluetooth controller), or using Google Instant Sharing to send and receive files between my phone, PC, tablets, and family devices, I was always impressed by how well the Samsung device worked with all my non-Samsung products.
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In fact, the navigation works so well that I often find myself looking at things in real life and trying to pinch myself to pick them out as if they were part of the XR experience. If you don’t know, the Galaxy XR includes eye tracking capabilities in its lenses, allowing you to look at UI features and select them with the flick of a finger. As with the Apple Vision Pro, you don’t need to raise your hand like a laser pointer. Just leave it on your lap, and the cameras on the bottom of the headset can see it clearly.
Samsung also uses built-in eye-tracking to automatically space the lenses to accommodate varying interpupillary distances (IPD). A faulty IPD can lead to headaches and dizziness, so it’s good to see the system do this without the need for user intervention. The Galaxy XR also features biometric iris recognition (yes, that one), making it easy to access all your services and pay with complete security. This is another area where the Galaxy XR beats the Meta Quest headsets, especially when it comes to making it easier to access all your favorite apps and services.
The OLED display behind the lenses is very bright and sports a lot of contrast to make mixed reality content look great. While the PWM dimming on most Samsung Galaxy phones usually bothers me, the Galaxy XR gave me discomfort just when there is not enough light in the room.
It’s also surprisingly easy to multitask between apps or use them back and forth, though Android XR has a little to do to compete well with desktop apps. Snapping windows isn’t as seamless as it is on Windows, Mac OS, or the Meta Quest headset, and while it’s easy to move and resize, there are no advanced options for bending windows or anything like that.
This touches on the main area where the Galaxy XR needs a lot of work: polishing. Taking a screenshot is easy, but you have to navigate through several menus to record the screen. Launching apps on the home screen is ridiculously easy, but Google’s promise of a Gemini AI that can control everything isn’t true. I found a lot of things that Gemini can’t help with in the Galaxy XR, and that might be the most disappointing thing of all, given the hype of this being the first version of Android “built for the Gemini era.”
I’m also confused by Samsung’s decision not to include controls in the box. Of course, these headsets are designed for production or entertainment purposes, where controls aren’t needed, but the lack of controls means that most VR experiences won’t work without them. Buying them separately might also be nice if they weren’t $250 a pair, but both of these negative factors weigh heavily on the price of the headset.
This could easily be the best wireless SteamVR headset available if Samsung just included those controls in the box, and the lack of automatic controls has created an environment where most VR developers won’t port their games to the headset. In other words, you should consider this only for gaming if you plan to buy controllers.
Watch it open
I hate that this is so bad for a headset, because I really like the design, fit, comfort, and battery design, even if it won’t work for everyone. The overall design is remarkably similar to the 2022 Meta Quest Pro, taking the weight out of the headset with generous forehead pads and a built-in cradle for the back of your head.
But while Samsung improved the forehead pad design with magnetically attached pads, it didn’t learn from the Meta’s headstrap design. Both headsets use a hard plastic strap that isn’t removable and can’t be rotated, so there’s a specific way to wear them rather than letting users adjust them to fit. theirs comfort level.
To me, the design is good, but I can see how some people would like to reduce the weight on another part of their head. That good design extends to the weight, which is made lighter by removing the weight of the battery into a removable pack that you can leave in your pocket.
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This also makes it easy to plug into the wall for long-term “office work” or plug in another battery to keep playing for longer, a huge improvement over the Quest Pro’s built-in, non-removable battery design.
If Samsung would just put the controls in the box, it would be a lot easier to recommend this earphone. That’s especially true now that Meta no longer has the first-party studio it once had, which means Android XR and Galaxy XR could be an alternative to Meta when developers start shipping on the OS.
As it stands, the Galaxy XR’s main goal is to be an “infinite canvas” for all your apps, and while it achieves that goal admirably, it doesn’t have the best VR library that the Meta Quest headsets have. However, the ability to use all Android applications from the Google Play Store is a landmark achievement that makes this headset something truly special and accomplishes what Meta or Apple simply cannot: to provide you with all the applications you love through expandable, removable windows wherever you are.
The Galaxy XR is an uber-comfortable mixed reality headset that combines the best Android apps with the best, bespoke XR experience.
