Nolo VR Glass
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| Nolo VR Glass | |
|---|---|
| |
| Basic Info | |
| VR/AR | Virtual Reality |
| Type | Head-mounted display |
| Subtype | Mobile VR |
| Platform | Android |
| Creator | NOLO VR |
| Developer | NOLO VR |
| Announcement Date | 3 January 2023 (preview announced for CES 2023, shown 5-8 January 2023)[1] |
| Release Date | February 2023 (planned); retail availability unverified[2] |
| Website | https://nolovr.com |
| System | |
| Operating System | Android (connected smartphone)[2] |
| Display | |
| Display | Panel type not specified in CES releases[2][1] |
| Resolution | Exact resolution not specified in CES releases[2][1] |
| Refresh Rate | Not specified in CES releases[2][1] |
| Image | |
| Field of View | 92° (advertised; axis unspecified)[2] |
| Optics | |
| Optics | Pancake lenses[1] |
| IPD Range | Not specified in CES releases[2][1] |
| Tracking | |
| Tracking | Headset tracking not specified in CES releases[2][1] |
| Hand Tracking | Ring motion sensing (advertised)[2] |
| Audio | |
| Audio | Speakers integrated into the temples[2] |
| Connectivity | |
| Power | No embedded battery; powered by a connected Android smartphone[2] |
| Device | |
| Input | 3DoF finger-ring controllers, touch controls on the temples[2] |
The Nolo VR Glass (styled NOLO VR GLASS) is a glasses-style virtual reality head-mounted display announced by the Beijing company NOLO VR at CES 2023 in Las Vegas. It has no battery, processor or storage of its own: a connected Android smartphone powers it and runs its content. NOLO showed it with pancake lenses, touch controls on the temples and a pair of finger-ring controllers in place of handheld controllers.[2][1][3]
NOLO announced the VR Glass together with the Nolo Sonic 2 standalone headset and said both would be available in February 2023.[2] Retail availability was not confirmed in the source check on 16 October 2026. NOLO's English product directory then listed the Sonic 2, Sonic, X1, CV1-family tracking kits and the NOLO RING among its hardware, but not the VR Glass.[4]
History and development
Company background
NOLO's earlier products included positional tracking add-ons for phone-based VR. Ahead of CES 2017, Road to VR reported on its planned US$99 kit, made up of a headset marker, a base station and two wireless motion controllers, which added positional tracking to Android mobile headsets such as Cardboard, Gear VR and Daydream.[5] The kit was crowdfunded on Kickstarter in 2017 and reached its US$50,000 goal within a day of launch.[6]
The company had worked with lightweight, phone-tethered VR glasses before the VR Glass. In a 2023 interview with the Chinese outlet VRAR星球, NOLO CEO Zhang Daoning said that Huawei chose NOLO to supply the dedicated 6DoF solution for the Huawei VR Glass. The outlet reported that the Huawei headset reserves a dedicated USB port for NOLO's hardware, and described the combination of a Huawei phone, the VR Glass and NOLO's CV1 Air kit as a mobile VR product form unique in the industry.[7] The company's own timeline lists the release of the CV1 Air in December 2019 and describes it as compatible with mainstream short-focus VR glasses on the market.[8]
CES 2023 announcement
On 3 January 2023 NOLO said it would preview the VR Glass and the Sonic 2 at CES 2023, and invited CES visitors to its booth (#9272, Las Vegas Convention Center North Hall) from 5 to 8 January.[1] Its main launch release, dated 6 January 2023, described the VR Glass as "an uncompromisingly lightweight VR headset that's worn like regular glasses". The release said the headset worked with mainstream Android phones, that it was "promoted to cooperation with telecom operators like China Mobile", and that it would be available in February 2023. It did not give a price.[2]
The Chinese outlet 青亭AI, reporting on the CES launch, wrote that NOLO expected to release both headsets in February. Its report described the VR Glass as a "PC VR" headset with a resolution above 4K, pancake lenses and a thin, light body, a description that differs from NOLO's own statement that the headset is driven by an Android phone.[9]
After CES 2023
VRAR星球 reported in August 2023 that the NOLO RING had been shown paired with the VR Glass at both CES 2023 and MWC 2023.[7] The CES releases did not give a price.[2][1] On 16 October 2026 its English product directory did not list the VR Glass, and the homepage promoted NOLO EgoCapture, which it describes as first-person data collection for embodied intelligence, and an AI smart glasses series.[4]
Design and hardware
Form factor
NOLO designed the VR Glass to be worn like ordinary eyeglasses. It contains no embedded battery, processor or storage; all computing is done by the connected smartphone.[2] Writing about CES 2023, The Ghost Howls described it as "a visor featuring pancake lenses and two ring controllers (one per hand)".[10]
Display and optics
The headset uses pancake optics.[1] NOLO stated a pixel density of 1,512 PPI and a 92-degree field of view, and claimed "absolutely zero screen door effect", meaning no visible screen-door effect.[2] The company compared the image to "being in front of a 1,000-inch 4K+ Ultra HD display with a high refresh rate", and its preview release called the result "4K+ Ultra vision".[2][1] Neither release gave an exact resolution or refresh rate. The stated 3DoF applies to the ring controllers; the releases do not specify the headset's tracking degrees of freedom or an IPD adjustment range.[2][1]
Audio
Speakers are built into the temples of the frame. NOLO said they use "sound-phase elimination" to reduce sound leakage and protect the wearer's privacy, and that the headset has binaural sound.[2][1]
Input and controllers
Touch controls
The temples of the headset carry touch controls.[2]
Finger-ring controllers
NOLO paired the VR Glass with 3DoF (three degrees of freedom) finger-ring controllers, worn one per hand. The company said the ring interaction keeps the user's hands free and that the controllers support hand tracking and interaction.[2][1][10] 青亭AI reported that the ring controllers could be used to select, confirm and open or close items, and that NOLO had already shown ring-based play in December 2021, with a ring on each hand to play Beat Saber.[9]
NOLO also lists a separate product called the NOLO RING. Its product page describes it as a multi-terminal XR motion sensing controller with a 12 x 13 mm touchpad, IMU-based gesture recognition for pinches and swipes, and 3DoF control, and lists uses with car cockpits and home audio-visual devices.[11]
Software and compatibility
NOLO's launch release said the VR Glass was compatible with mainstream Android phones, which provide the processing power and content.[2] NOLO did not name supported phone models or a software platform for the headset in its CES 2023 releases.
Reception
In its CES 2023 roundup, The Ghost Howls wrote that NOLO "was presenting a few new devices at CES this year", but that it had not been able to find much information about them, and that it hoped to read hands-on reports in the following weeks.[10]
Specifications
The following values are those NOLO stated in its CES 2023 releases.
| Specification | Details |
|---|---|
| Optics | Pancake lenses[1] |
| Pixel density | 1,512 PPI[2] |
| Field of view | 92 degrees[2] |
| Controllers | 3DoF finger-ring controllers[2] |
| Other input | Touch controls on the temples[2] |
| Audio | Speakers in the temples, binaural sound[2] |
| Power and computing | No embedded battery, processor or storage; powered by a connected Android smartphone[2] |
| Announced availability | February 2023[2] |
See also
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 "Next Generation XR Technology from NOLO Delivers Immersive VR Experiences". FinancialContent. Get News (NOLO press release). 2023-01-03. https://markets.financialcontent.com/stocks/article/getnews-2023-1-3-next-generation-xr-technology-from-nolo-delivers-immersive-vr-experiences. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 "NOLO Unveils Two Game-changing VR Headset Models- HMD That Wears Like Glasses, 6DoF VR Headset With Hand and Finger Tracking". ACCESSWIRE. NOLO. 2023-01-06. https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/business-and-professional-services/nolo-unveils-two-game-changing-vr-headset-models-hmd-that-wears-l-733810. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ Gavin Sheehan (2023-01-08). "NOLO Reveals New VR Glass During CES 2023". Bleeding Cool. https://bleedingcool.com/games/nolo-reveals-new-vr-glass-during-ces-2023/. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "NOLO - Embodied Intelligence Data Infrastructure". NOLO. https://www.nolovr.com/En. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ Paul James (2017-01-02). "NOLO VR Promises $99 Positional Tracking and SteamVR Gaming on Any Mobile VR Headset". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/nolo-mobile-vr-positional-tracking-system-compatible-steamvr-ces-2017/. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ Jamie Feltham (2017-01-31). "NOLO Phone-based SteamVR Project Fully Funded on Kickstarter". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/nolo-turns-phone-steamvr-device-funded-kickstarter/. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Vivi (2023-08-29). "对话 NOLO CEO 张道宁：坚持自主研发，创新要"敢为天下先"". VRAR星球. https://www.vrarworld.cn/renwuzhuanfang/2537.html. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ "关于我们". NOLO. https://www.nolovr.com/Culture. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "CES 2023：NOLO发布光学Inside-Out VR一体机SONIC 2". 青亭AI (Sohu). 2023-01-06. https://www.sohu.com/a/626011997_395737. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Skarredghost (2023-01-19). "All the best AR/VR news from CES 2023". The Ghost Howls. https://skarredghost.com/2023/01/19/best-ar-vr-news-ces-2023/. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
- ↑ "NOLO RING". NOLO. https://www.nolovr.com/En/ring. Retrieved 2026-10-16.