Panasonic

Panasonic
Information
Type	Public company
Industry	Consumer electronics
Founded	March 7, 1918
Founder	Konosuke Matsushita
Headquarters	Kadoma, Osaka, Japan
Products	Consumer electronics, batteries, automotive systems, VR glasses prototypes
Website	https://www.panasonic.com

Panasonic is a Japanese multinational electronics company headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka. It was founded on March 7, 1918, by Konosuke Matsushita as Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works, renamed Panasonic Corporation in 2008, and reorganized into a holding-company structure as Panasonic Holdings Corporation on April 1, 2022.

In virtual reality, Panasonic is known for a series of ultra-compact VR glasses it began showing as prototypes at CES in 2020, and for Shiftall, a subsidiary it owned from 2018 to 2024 that turned the concept into the shipping MeganeX PC VR headsets. The prototypes used dual Micro-OLED microdisplays co-developed with Kopin and pancake lens optics to reach a form factor closer to eyeglasses than to a conventional head-mounted display. Panasonic sold Shiftall in early 2024 and ended its remaining involvement with the MeganeX line at the end of 2025, after which Shiftall continued the product independently.

Company background

Konosuke Matsushita founded the company in Osaka in 1918, at age 23, to make electric lamp sockets and plugs; it was incorporated in 1935 as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Over the following decades it grew into one of the largest consumer-electronics makers in the world, selling products under the Panasonic, National, and Technics brands. The Matsushita Electric Industrial company adopted the Panasonic Corporation name in 2008. On April 1, 2022, the group moved to a holding-company system: the parent became Panasonic Holdings Corporation, and a new operating company took the Panasonic Corporation name. The company's main businesses are consumer appliances, batteries (including electric-vehicle cells), automotive and industrial systems, and B2B connected solutions; VR hardware has only ever been a small reference-product and subsidiary activity rather than a core line.

VR glasses prototypes (2020 to 2021)

Panasonic showed its first VR eyeglasses as a reference product at CES 2020 on January 7, 2020, describing them as the world's first HDR-capable ultra-high-definition VR glasses. The design was small enough that Panasonic presented it as eyeglasses worn without a headband rather than as a headset. Press reports at the show put the weight at roughly 150 grams. The displays were micro-OLED panels co-developed with Kopin, and the optical module was built jointly by Kopin, 3M, and Panasonic, which Panasonic said allowed natural, distortion-free images and reduced the screen door effect. Audio used a dynamic driver from Panasonic's Technics audio brand. The diagonal field of view was reported at around 70 degrees.

At CES 2021 Panasonic returned with an improved version. Road to VR reported dual 2,560 x 2,560 micro-OLEDs at about 2,245 pixels per inch, support for 120 Hz refresh and HDR, pancake lens optics, and the addition of optical 6DoF (six degrees of freedom) room-scale tracking, which the 2020 prototype lacked. The 2021 model also added interpupillary-distance and diopter adjustment for near-sighted users and moved audio to built-in Technics drivers. Panasonic at the time framed the glasses as tethering to a PC or to a 5G Android smartphone, and gave no consumer price or release date.

Shiftall and the MeganeX

Shiftall Inc. was established on February 13, 2018, by the Japanese hardware startup Cerevo, whose founder Takuma Iwasa became Shiftall's chief executive; Panasonic acquired all of Shiftall's shares the same year, making it a wholly owned Panasonic subsidiary that develops IoT and lifestyle gadgets. Shiftall took the prototype VR glasses toward a product.

At CES 2022 in January, Shiftall introduced the headset as the MeganeX, calling it the world's first 5.2K HDR VR glasses. It used two 2.6K x 2.6K (2,560 x 2,560) micro-OLED displays from Kopin and all-plastic pancake optics, supported 6DoF and SteamVR applications, and used a folding frame with built-in speakers. At CES 2023 in January, Shiftall set a consumer price of 1,699 US dollars and targeted an early-2023 launch, alongside a separately priced Business Edition; the headset weighed about 320 grams, ran at 120 Hz, and supported both inside-out tracking and SteamVR base stations, with the pancake lenses still credited to parent company Panasonic. The original MeganeX shipped only in limited numbers in Japan and never reached a wide US launch on that timeline.

Sale to Creek & River and the superlight 8K

On January 31, 2024, Panasonic sold Shiftall to the Tokyo-based agency Creek & River Co., ending Shiftall's status as a Panasonic subsidiary while Panasonic continued to supply the optical lenses. In October 2024 Shiftall opened pre-orders for a new model, the MeganeX superlight 8K, announced at a joint Tokyo press conference with Panasonic. It used 1.35-inch micro-OLED displays at 3,552 x 3,840 per eye (about 8K total across both eyes), 90 Hz refresh, 10-bit HDR, and proprietary pancake lenses built by Panasonic, weighed under 185 grams excluding the strap, and used SteamVR base-station tracking for 6DoF. It was priced at 1,899 US dollars with shipments scheduled for February to March 2025.

MeganeX 8K Mark II and the end of Panasonic involvement

On October 16, 2025, Shiftall announced the MeganeX 8K Mark II, a revised version at the same 1,900 US dollar price, with shipments estimated to start in late December 2025. It kept the 3,552 x 3,840 per-eye micro-OLED panels and 90 Hz refresh, dropped weight to 179 grams, and added newly designed Panasonic pancake lenses, a relocated and reinforced front USB-C port, a wider nose gap, and a more durable strap, along with an upgraded processor, operating system, and firmware that cut startup time. Shiftall gave a horizontal field of view of about 100 degrees. In a notice dated January 5, 2026, Shiftall said Panasonic had withdrawn from the MeganeX series business as of the end of December 2025 and had transferred the related business assets to Shiftall, which would develop, sell, and support the line on its own from 2026 onward.

Products

Year	Product	Notes
2020	VR eyeglasses prototype	Reference product at CES 2020; HDR-capable UHD micro-OLED with Kopin, pancake optics with Kopin and 3M, about 150 g, around 70 degrees FOV
2021	VR glasses prototype (2nd gen)	CES 2021; dual 2,560 x 2,560 micro-OLED, 120 Hz, added optical 6DoF, IPD and diopter adjustment
2022	MeganeX (announced)	Shiftall product shown at CES 2022; 5.2K HDR, Kopin 2.6K x 2.6K OLED, all-plastic pancake optics, 6DoF, SteamVR
2023	MeganeX (5.2K)	Consumer version priced 1,699 US dollars; about 320 g, 120 Hz, inside-out and SteamVR tracking; limited Japan shipments
2024	MeganeX superlight 8K	3,552 x 3,840 per eye, 90 Hz, 10-bit HDR, under 185 g, 1,899 US dollars; ships Feb to Mar 2025
2025	MeganeX 8K Mark II	Revised model, 179 g, about 100 degrees FOV, 1,900 US dollars; ships late December 2025; Panasonic exits MeganeX development