Microsoft: ‘VR is beautiful for gaming’ but HoloLens is a ‘new paradigm’ for information

We are in a world where high-end consumer virtual reality devices are shipping to people around the globe, but Microsoft is already preparing for the next era of computing.

HoloLens is one of Microsoft’s new key products, and the company has a lot to say about what it means for the future and for its business. HoloLens is a computer that you wear on your face. It has a screen that mixes together what you see in the real world with digital images. It uses a variety of sensors and cameras to sense where walls and objects are, and then developers can build apps that can interact with those real objects. Microsoft thinks this tech could get developers invested in its Azure cloud platform and that it could usher in a new generation of mobile. But this kind of talk can feel a little premature considering Facebook’s Oculus VR only just released the consumer version of the Rift VR headset in March. Meanwhile, Microsoft only just started selling a $3,000 development kit for the HoloLens — a final product is still likely years away.