During the Facebook Connect 2021 event, the social media giant confirmed that it is working on a new high-end AR/VR headset under the codename Project Cambria, sharing details about some of its advanced hardware and capabilities. Facebook has recently been rumored to be working on a new Oculus headset called the Quest Pro, and speculation suggested the device would make its debut at today’s event. However, that didn’t happen.

So far, Facebook’s attempts have remained limited to the domain of VR, with its Oculus headsets delivering the experience across both entry-level and high-end segments. Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg has wildly hyped up the metaverse where AR and VR will combine to deliver a more holistic and immersive experience. While the AR hardware has been missing from the company’s portfolio, that will change next year.

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Codenamed Project Cambria, Facebook’s next Oculus VR headset will make its debut in 2022 and will “sit at the high end of the price spectrum,” said Zuckerberg. The company is using a new display tech called “pancake” optics that involves folding light rays several times between lenses before they hit the eyes. This optics design allows the headset to achieve a slimmer profile than the current lens technology used in rival offerings. These pancake lenses also appear to have a slimmer profile than the Fresnel lenses used in a majority of VR headsets, but not much detail was shared about them during the event. Facebook is not alone in this game, as Apple is reportedly working on its own AR/VR headset as well.

The First True Metaverse Hardware?

Facebook Project Cambria lenses

Facebook says it wants to offer a high-quality artifact-free passthrough display on its next AR/VR headset that will pave the way for Mixed Reality experiences. The company explains that it has essentially combined the power of advanced sensors and reconstruction algorithms so that the physical world is represented on the headset’s screen with a sense of depth and directional perspective. Facebook — now Meta — adds that increasing the visual fidelity will be a core focus area for the Project Cambria headset. Facial expression and eye-tracking will be a part of the package, and user characteristics, such as skin tones and facial features, will be more accurately represented in avatars.

According to a brief teaser shared during the event, the Project Cambria headset looks similar to the image of a prototype headset tweeted by Facebook’s VR lead Andrew Bosworth a couple of weeks ago. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also shared an image of a bulky prototype, but that looks a lot different from the Project Cambria teaser device. Interestingly, a series of short videos that surfaced on Reddit earlier this week allegedly show an upcoming Oculus headset. The device appears to be capable of full-body tracking and looks similar to the prototype headset image shared by Bosworth. During the event, Zuckerberg mentioned that Facebook is working on multiple hardware projects at the moment, so it can’t be said conclusively whether Project Cambria is the headset depicted in the leaks, or not.

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Source: FacebookReddit