At MWC 2022, HTC presented its Viverse: HTC’s strategy to conquer the metaverse with the VR glasses HTC Vive and HTC Vive Flow. Between choosing to replace the smartphone with VR or simply expanding it, HTC made its choice, and I believe it was the right one.
Yes, I will tell you about the HTC Vive in 2022, six years after its launch. But the fact of the matter is that VR, which we thought was a bit dead until a year ago, is back in vogue. This is mainly due to the enormous hype surrounding the Metaverse. Also, the HTC Vive stand at tech shows like the MWC in Barcelona is kind of a tradition, a must. A tech journalist stumbling over nothing with a VR headset on his head and sweating profusely is something like the archetype of futurism, the famous Web 3.0.
Instead of a 1 p.m. news report in “Virtual Reality between Modernity and Tradition” mode, however, I would like to bring you a reflection on the place of VR in the tech market and within our existing product ecosystems.
VR glasses and headsets will not replace the smartphone
Within the NextPit editorial team there is a real schism on this point. On one side, among others, is Fabien, our boss, who believes that smartphones are finished and will soon be replaced by a whole new category of products powered by VR and/or AR. And on the other hand, there are those who, like me, are right and think that the smartphone is on the right track to stay.
Well, I’m hearing that developing metaverses, immersive virtual worlds, requires a shift in the way we interact with our product ecosystem. Well, if we want to use them at all, which is by no means a matter of course. The user interface has to be as intuitive as possible in order not to destroy the illusion that you are in a completely fake world.
If you follow this logic, you can understand why manufacturers like Apple, Oppo or Xiaomi are working on smart glasses that support 5G and can work completely independently. In short, they would be smartphones that you wear on your nose. There’s no need to hold them in your hand, and they don’t need to be plugged into a screen or headset as everything is integrated. I understand that idea, that product strategy given the perspectives that the Metaverse opens up.
In my opinion, however, a crucial detail is forgotten that was already a problem in the development of connected glasses in the days of Google Glass: the form factor!
The HTC Vive Flow still remains dependent on the smartphone it is connected to / © NextPit
A smartphone in the form of glasses is far too stupid to work
I personally find the whole concept of connected glasses a little laughable. I’m not talking about glasses like the Bose Frames, for example, which are pretty cool and fill a pretty niche need. These glasses as an accessory entirely dependent on the smartphone are a good idea. Like TCl’s Nextwear G, which can be used to virtually replicate a large screen, e.g. B. To consume multimedia content.
No, I mean the concept of glasses replacing my smartphone as the hub of my ecosystem. You could e.g. B. start with the limitations of ergonomics and comfort. I don’t want to carry something around with me all day. I don’t want to have to deal with a glasses case 24 hours a day. I don’t want to keep wiping the liner every time I’m watching a video or reading a message.
But these minor annoyances are not unique to smart glasses, nor are they insurmountable. No, the real deal breaker for me lies in two points: I want to be able to use my smartphone passively and I am too tied to the smartphone as an object. let me explain
Smart glasses mean you have to be proactive in using them. You have to wear them and keep them on your nose to stay in touch with the interface. You can’t ignore what’s happening on screen unless you close your eyes. The smartphone, on the other hand, allows passive use to a certain extent.
Through gesture navigation, shortcuts to the power or volume buttons, or the knowledge you have about the interface of your apps, you can use your smartphone without focusing 100 percent of your attention on it. With glasses, the displayed interface and content are more contextual, but also more permanent and therefore more intrusive.
For me, glasses have to be networked, but connected to the smartphone on which they remain dependent. Connected glasses as an accessory to enhance the user experience of the smartphone, as HTC is doing with the Vive Flow, corresponds to a logic that I accept more easily.
The smartphone as an object is anchored too much in my usage habits
Finally, and maybe this thinking makes me a boomer: I’m attached to this block of glass and polymer. I love my smartphone, as a tech product, but also and above all, if not primarily, as a product in general. The design is very important to me, the choice of material for the back coating, the placement of the photo module, etc. And I have the feeling that this aspect is not so important in glasses (apart from the shape of the lenses and the color of the temples?).
There are far too many form factor choices before the smartphone becomes obsolete as an object. And yes, it sounds silly putting it that way, but form factor is critical to a product’s success. Form factor is inextricably linked to user experience and the value we place on a particular tech product.
There’s a reason manufacturers are desperate to build more compact smartphones without sacrificing battery life or performance. Or why they are trying to push foldable smartphones onto the market. Sometimes they even go completely crazy and delight us with craziness like the LG Wing.
To better understand my reasoning, take the digitization of media content as an example. With music streaming and video platforms, physical formats such as vinyl or CD are experiencing a new boom. I myself am trying to buy a DAP (digital audio player). So something like a Walkman to listen to my songs in FLAC instead of loading them onto my smartphone.
We want to hold something tangible in our hands, we want to own something, we want to touch something. Our hands are literally our interface to the world, it’s not for nothing that we are true cuddly machines, unlike most of the rest of the animal kingdom. For this reason, I think that smart glasses should only be an accessory for smartphones, not a replacement. Just as little as a 4K pico projector can replace an OLED television, no matter how practical. While it can be handy, it’s just not the same.
So much for this short mood report. I know this is a very niche topic that only interests 2.73 percent of the population, especially right now. But let me know if you think I’m exaggerating. If you advocate the end of the smartphone age, I’m also interested in the “why”. Can you seriously imagine walking the streets with such bulky smart glasses on your nose without feeling ashamed?