Google I/O is usually an important event. It’s where Google usually lays out the next year of software innovation. But this year, I think it’ll be an especially important event as Android XR is all but confirmed to take an important role in the festivities.
Android XR is Google’s latest operating system created exclusively for XR devices – VR and MR headsets, or AR glasses.
We know Samsung is collaborating with Google on an Android XR headset in Project Moohan, and in a pair of smart glasses, but I suspect I/O will showcase plenty more. Here are my three predictions of what we’ll see.
1. Project Moohan: a date and a name
Right now Project Moohan is known solely by its codename, but I suspect it’ll get a proper title at Google I/O as the gadget gears up to go from prototype to consumer product.
Nothing has been leaked at the time of writing, but Samsung Galaxy Vision, or something in that vein, would be my guess – maybe Galaxy Eye, or Galaxy I25.
Enough of the name guesses, my second prediction is we’ll get a release date, or at least a release month. We know from Samsung’s own teasers it’ll be in the second half of 2025, and I’d put my money on a release around the end of the year (September to November) as that’s between Samsung’s major foldable announcement in the summer and its standard smartphone release at the start of the following year.
I don’t expect us to get a price at this stage.
For one, because I suspect it won’t be cheap, and Google and Samsung might not want to dampen anyone’s Android XR excitement. For another, I suspect it has not been decided yet.
There will be a whole load of factors at play, but while things have calmed down slightly, US tariff drama could very well rear its head again, and so it’s safer for Samsung to wait until closer to launch before announcing one price and having to adjust it.
2. Software, Software, Software
Google I/O is always software-heavy, and I expect Android XR’s showcase will be no different.
Besides any news about the operating system, I hope Google will also be keen to highlight apps and developer partnerships it has for Android XR software.
Exclusive games and app announcements – rivals to Meta’s own selection, like Batman: Arkham Shadow – seem less likely at this stage, given Google’s struggles with platforms like Google Stadia and in-house game development. Google could, though, buy one from a third party.
At the very least, I’m hoping we’ll see a presentation slide filled with recognizable VR, MR, and AR apps that users will know from Meta Quest, Steam, and other XR app stores.
3. More partners?
Google’s Android XR announcement currently feels as much its own as it does the announcement of its two biggest collaborators – Qualcomm and Samsung – with Google and Samsung execs co-announcing headsets and glasses when Android XR was first teased.
But Samsung is one of many Android partners in the world of phones, and so it would make sense that Android XR would appear on glasses and headsets from a variety of brands.
Sony and HTC seem like very possible candidates given their expertise in the world of XR and Android smartphones, but there’s a whole suite of candidates across both the Android and XR space who could announce Android XR collaborations at Google I/O 2025.
Google hasn’t announced its own hardware yet either. There’s not yet official word on any Google Pixel glasses – everything we’ve seen so far involves Samsung – but perhaps that will change.
The big question is if we’ll see anything concrete (i.e., a prototype, or less likely a ready-to-ship model), but some verbal confirmations feel very plausible.
You might also like
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/CgyKkoRoKfH6HRJQjJH3QF.jpg
Source link
hamish.hector@futurenet.com (Hamish Hector)
