Gemini is the key to the Galaxy XR experience
Before my personal demo, Samsung engineer Jin Park and Google XR Product Lead Max Spear gave a live demo of the headset on stage, and the main throughline of every app showcase was Gemini. Gemini speedily opened apps, shared good pizza places nearby in Maps, generated a Halloween-themed video with an accompanying nursery rhyme via Veo 3, interpreted and explained the context for YouTube videos about golf and English architecture, and gave gaming walkthrough tips for Stardew Valley as Spear played. Most ambitious was a game called Asteroid, directed by Bourne director Doug Liman, in which Gemini creates scripts and personalized responses for NPCs, voiced by actors and celebrities like Doug Perlman, Hailee Steinfeld, and D.K. Metcalf. Park spoke to “Metcalf,” and when she switched to Korean, so did Gemini, translating Metcalf’s dialogue while still using his voice.
A mix of casual and enterprise use cases
As a Quest 3 owner, I’ve wondered how Galaxy XR would handle gaming. I knew Android XR supported Unity and OpenXR, but that controllers were optional. It was a nice surprise to see Galaxy XR’s independently tracked controllers — even if they cost 9 extra. Any Play Store games should be playable in a windowed format on Galaxy XR. Samsung’s demo had Park playing Stardew Valley, asking Gemini for farming tips, and joining a Meet call with friends simultaneously, with Galaxy XR using its eye-tracking cameras to generate a lifelike avatar for her. Later, in the press lounge, Samsung reps played several experiences, using both the Galaxy XR controllers and a normal Bluetooth gamepad. The headset already has several traditional VR games like Walkabout Mini Golf and NFL Pro Era. But they also demoed playing No Man’s Sky via cloud streaming, while also streaming music and videos in side windows. They made a point of showing that the Snapdragon XR2 Plus Gen 2 and its 16GB of RAM can easily handle multiple apps and tasks. Other headsets have their own multitasking solutions, but Google’s polished apps and Gemini commands make Galaxy XR feel especially polished.
Waiting to put Galaxy XR through its paces
VR headsets have promised an “infinite desktop” space for productivity before. But Samsung has an advantage: “All apps built on the Android platform work right out of the box on Galaxy XR.” Only a few apps will be “Made for XR,” but early adopters won’t be waiting impatiently for the promise of new content. It’s all there to start, filling that “infinite” space. The closest Android equivalent is DeX mode on tablets, filling a larger space with mobile windows, except that the workspace spans hundreds of inches instead of 11–13. And since you can use a controller or mouse/ keyboard in addition to pinch gestures, it’s an upgrade on taps and swipes. The real question is whether people can afford to buy this in addition to a laptop, since wearing anything for eight hours a day can be onerous, let alone a one-pound headset. But if you’d normally consider buying a Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra for ,300, the jump to ,799 may not be that insurmountable to your budget.
