With virtual reality becoming more popular and with more companies getting into it, you would think that Microsoft might be interested in getting out their HoloLens as soon as possible, especially if they hope to compete in a VR world. Unfortunately if you were hoping for the HoloLens to be released anytime soon, you might be disappointed.
Speaking at a TED conference in Vancouver, the HoloLens’ creator Alex Kipman stated that Microsoft would be taking its time with the HoloLens, simply because they are trying to avoid rushing out the product like they did with the Kinect back when it first launched. Unfortunately this means that it’s really anyone’s guess as to when the headset will be available.
According to Kipman, “When I feel the world is ready, then we will allow normal people to buy it. It could be as soon as we say ‘yes,’ and it could be as long as a ‘very long time.'” He went on to state that the Kinect’s launch wasn’t a pleasant experience due to the lack of software support and technology.
He’s hoping that with the HoloLens, Microsoft will have a bigger ecosystem available to users so that when they do purchase it, they will have many things to do with it. “If a consumer bought it today, they would have 12 things to do with it, and they would say ‘Cool, I bought a $3,000 product that I can do 12 things with and now it is collecting dust.'” We suppose that’s not a bad idea, so until then HoloLens hopefuls will just have to remain patient.
Filed in . Read more about Augmented Reality (AR), Hololens, Microsoft and Wearable Tech.