3Glasses

3Glasses
Information
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Virtual reality
Founded	2014
Founder	Wang Jie
Headquarters	Shenzhen, China
Notable Personnel	Wang Jie (founder)
Products	VR headsets, Windows Mixed Reality headsets
Parent	Digital Domain Holdings
Website	https://www.3glasses.com

3Glasses (a brand of Shenzhen Virtual Reality Technology Co. Ltd., later referred to as VR Technology Holdings Ltd, Shenzhen) is a Chinese Virtual Reality hardware company based in Shenzhen. It was one of the earliest domestic makers of head-mounted displays in China and is credited with producing the country's first VR headset, the D1, in 2014. The company was founded by Wang Jie, and it later became internationally visible as one of the launch hardware partners for Microsoft's Windows Mixed Reality platform. In 2018 a controlling stake in 3Glasses was acquired by the Hong Kong-listed visual effects firm Digital Domain.

History

The 3Glasses brand began as a project inside Jingweidu Technology Co. Ltd., a company that Wang Jie had founded years earlier. The headset effort was kickstarted around 2012, and at the end of 2014 it was separated from Jingweidu to operate as an independent business under Shenzhen Virtual Reality Technology Co. Ltd.

The company's first headset, the D1, debuted in 2014 and was promoted by the company as China's first VR head-mounted display. A second-generation model, the D2, followed on June 30, 2015. It used a 2560 by 1440 TFT-LCD panel, offered a 110 degree field of view, weighed about 246 grams, and sold for 2,199 RMB (roughly 345 US dollars at the time); like most Chinese headsets of the period it lacked positional tracking. China Telecom agreed to stock the D2 in its retail outlets nationwide. At CES Asia in 2016, Wang Jie framed the company's ambitions in competitive terms, saying that Chinese firms did not always want to be the follower and also wanted to lead.

Microsoft Windows Mixed Reality partnership

At Microsoft's WinHEC conference in Shenzhen in December 2016, 3Glasses was named as a hardware partner for the company's Windows Holographic effort, which later became branded as Windows Mixed Reality. In an official Windows blog post dated December 7, 2016, Microsoft listed Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, and Lenovo as building headsets, and added that 3Glasses, described as a leading China-based hardware developer, would bring the Windows 10 experience to its S1 device in the first half of 2017. Microsoft shared its inside-out room-scale tracking technology with these partners, who were expected to produce headsets priced well below existing PC VR systems such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.

The resulting headset, the Blubur S1, was among the earliest of these Windows Mixed Reality devices to reach developers, with its developer kit available globally at around the same time as the Acer and HP units. Pre-orders for the kit, which included twin 3Wand motion controllers and a tracking camera, opened in 2017 at 399 US dollars, discounted from a list price of 499 US dollars.

Acquisition by Digital Domain

On March 22, 2018, the Hong Kong-listed visual effects and media company Digital Domain Holdings Limited (Hong Kong Stock Exchange: 547) announced that it had acquired 60 percent of the effective interest in VR Technology Holdings Ltd, Shenzhen, the parent of 3Glasses. As part of the deal 3Glasses committed to a profit guarantee, undertaking that its annual profits in 2018 and 2019 would be no less than 30 million RMB and 50 million RMB respectively. At the time of the acquisition the company described itself as having more than 15 years of experience in VR and AR technology development.

Under Digital Domain ownership, 3Glasses announced the X1 in Beijing on April 10, 2019, promoting it as the world's first ultra-thin consumer VR glasses and pairing the launch with a computer-generated virtual human named Star as its spokesperson. The X1 was distributed through Digital Domain's "Oasis" location-based entertainment theatres in Greater China.

Founder Wang Jie stepped down as chief executive of 3Glasses on December 17, 2021, after about seven years leading the company, while continuing to be associated with it as a shareholder and founder.

Products

3Glasses produced tethered PC VR headsets, a Windows Mixed Reality headset, and an ultra-thin split-design model. Its lineup spanned the early years of the modern VR industry, from its 2014 debut headset through the 2019 X1.

Product	Year	Type	Notable specifications and notes
3Glasses D1	2014	Tethered PC VR headset	Company's first product; promoted by the company as China's first VR head-mounted display
3Glasses D2	2015	Tethered PC VR headset	Launched June 30, 2015; 2560x1440 TFT-LCD; 110 degree field of view; ~246 g; no positional tracking; 2,199 RMB; stocked by China Telecom
3Glasses Blubur S1	2016 (announced), 2017 (developers)	Windows Mixed Reality headset	First 3Glasses model to run Windows 10; dual 1440x1440 displays up to 120 Hz; 110 degree field of view; bundled with 3Wand controllers and a tracking camera; from 399 US dollars
3Glasses X1	2019	Ultra-thin VR glasses (split design)	Announced April 10, 2019 in Beijing; marketed as the world's first ultra-thin consumer VR glasses; distributed via Digital Domain "Oasis" theatres

Market position

3Glasses was one of a cluster of Chinese hardware makers, alongside companies such as Pico and DeePoon, that entered the VR market in the mid-2010s as domestic competitors to Western systems like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. Its early D-series headsets undercut those products on price but, like most Chinese headsets of the era, omitted positional tracking. The company's selection as the only Chinese member of Microsoft's initial Windows Mixed Reality hardware group, alongside global PC brands, marked a high point in its international profile. Its subsequent acquisition by Digital Domain folded the brand into a wider strategy that combined VR hardware with content production and location-based entertainment venues.