R-8 Smartglasses
More actions
| R-8 Smartglasses | |
|---|---|
| |
| Basic Info | |
| VR/AR | Augmented reality |
| Type | Head-mounted display |
| Subtype | Standalone AR |
| Creator | Osterhout Design Group |
| Developer | Osterhout Design Group |
| Manufacturer | Osterhout Design Group (ODG) |
| Release Date | Announced January 3, 2017; not commercially shipped[1][2] |
| Price | Under US$1,000 (announced target)[1] |
| System | |
| Operating System | ReticleOS on Android 7.0 Nougat (announced)[3] |
| CPU | Qualcomm Snapdragon 835[4] |
| Storage | |
| Storage | 64 GB (announced)[3] |
| Display | |
| Display | Dual OLED microdisplays (contemporary optical analysis)[5] |
| Resolution | 720p per eye (announced)[6] |
| Image | |
| Field of View | Greater than 40 degrees (manufacturer claim; axis unspecified)[4] |
| Optics | |
| Optics | Folded see-through optics (contemporary report)[7] |
| Tracking | |
| Tracking | Visual-inertial motion tracking (announced)[4] |
| Positional Tracking | 6DoF, demonstrated in 2017[8] |
| Audio | |
| Audio | Dual microphones; integrated directional speakers (announced)[3] |
| Camera | Dual 1080p stereo cameras (announced)[3] |
| Connectivity | |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0; Wi-Fi 802.11ac; USB-C (announced)[3] |
| Device | |
| Weight | Under 4.5 oz (manufacturer claim)[1] |
| Sensors | High-speed inertial measurement unit; GPS/GNSS with iZAT (announced)[3] |
| Input | Onboard buttons and dials; Bluetooth accessories (contemporary reports)[6][7] |
The R-8 was a self-contained, see-through smartglasses design by Osterhout Design Group (ODG), announced alongside the R-9 at CES on January 3, 2017.[4] ODG aimed it at consumer early adopters for movies, sports, games, navigation and reading.[1]
Developer shipments were planned for the second half of 2017.[9] TechCrunch reported in January 2019 that the R-8 and R-9 never shipped.[2]
Features
The R-8 combined onboard computing with a transparent binocular display, so it could display content while the wearer continued to see the surroundings. It was promoted for augmented, virtual and mixed reality applications.[4] Its Snapdragon 835 processor and built-in wireless connections supported a design that did not require a tethered phone or PC for computation.[4][7]
Contemporary reports distinguished its 720p display from the R-9's 1080p display.[6][10] Qualcomm advertised more than 40 degrees for the R-8, against 50 degrees for the R-9.[4] Road to VR described OLED displays and a folded optical arrangement, as reported at the launch.[7] Karl Guttag's analysis of published R-8 photographs described a beam splitter directing display light toward a curved partial mirror and then back toward the eye. His proposed display supplier was an inference, rather than an ODG-confirmed component identification.[5]
Hardware
It had a pair of 1080p stereo cameras, a high-speed inertial measurement unit, dual microphones and directional speakers in the announced specification.[3] The camera resolution describes captured images, rather than the resolution of the displays.
The proposed tracking system combined camera observations with inertial sensing through Qualcomm's Snapdragon VR SDK. Qualcomm described hardware-accelerated visual-inertial odometry and six degrees of freedom.[4] In a June 2017 Augmented World Expo demonstration, Joe Durbin used an R-8 after a software upgrade and could walk toward and through virtual Earth and Sun models. He reported that ODG described the system as SLAM, with a depth tracker near the nose bridge and stereo cameras behind detachable sun guards. His account noted occasional jitter; it was a demonstration report without a quantitative tracking-error or latency measurement.[8]
Mark Hachman's CES hands-on described Menu, Back and Power buttons, a rocker for returning or selecting, and dials for menu choices and volume.[6] Road to VR also reported phone-app control and support for Bluetooth keyboards and a ring controller.[7] Chris Davies reported an ambient-light sensor that adjusted the display and noted that the R-8 shown at CES had Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, without a cellular radio.[11]
Hachman found the R-8 relatively comfortable during his brief demonstration, but reported that ODG had not disclosed its battery capacity or endurance. His demonstration consisted of movie trailers rather than interactive AR or VR content.[6] Raymond Wong likewise described a brief video demonstration and said he had not tested VR experiences or the controls.[12] These accounts establish what the journalists tried, rather than battery-life or extended-wear test results.
Technical specifications
The table records announcement-era specifications, rather than a commercially delivered configuration. The cited sources do not supply independent field-of-view, endurance or tracking-accuracy measurements.
| Item | Announced R-8 specification |
|---|---|
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 835[4] |
| Operating system | ReticleOS on Android 7.0 Nougat[3] |
| Display resolution | 720p per eye[6] |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9[3] |
| Field of view | Greater than 40 degrees; measurement axis not specified[4] |
| Storage | 64 GB[3] |
| Cameras | Dual 1080p stereo cameras[3] |
| Motion sensing | High-speed inertial measurement unit; embedded 6DoF tracking[3][4] |
| Location sensing | GPS/GNSS with iZAT[3] |
| Audio | Dual microphones and integrated directional speakers[3] |
| Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11ac[3] |
| Connector | USB-C[3] |
| Weight | Under 4.5 oz[1] |
| Target price | Under US$1,000[1] |
The R-8 lacked the R-9's modular expansion connector. The latter was intended for additional cameras or sensors; its 13-megapixel front camera and 128 GB storage were R-9 specifications.[3]
Software
The ODG R-8 ran Android-based ReticleOS, with Android 7.0 Nougat identified in its announcement-era specifications.[3] Road to VR reported a legacy mode for ordinary Android applications, alongside applications adapted for head-worn AR.[7] ODG described Vuforia support as expected at the launch; this was a development plan, rather than confirmation of compatibility for every application.[1]
ODG's CES showcase advertised Fox entertainment, an Alien proof of concept, OTOY's Octane and Vuforia demonstrations across its new devices, without assigning every exhibit specifically to the R-8.[1]
In February 2018, Xperi listed the R-8 and R-9 among planned Mobile World Congress demonstrations of DTS:X Ultra 1.0 audio and FotoNation depth sensing. Xperi described depth maps intended to let virtual objects appear occluded by real objects. The announcement documents planned partner technology demonstrations, rather than retail shipment or measured occlusion performance.[13]
Developer
ODG's January 2017 developer invitation covered porting Android applications and creating new software, with links to its developer resources.[1] The historical invitation does not establish present developer-service availability.
Background
Osterhout Design Group began as a technology incubator in 1999.[4] A company profile reproduced in Gaebler's VentureDeal-supplied directory describes earlier handheld biometric computers, miniature unmanned aerial vehicles and portable servers, followed by rugged smartglasses beginning in 2008.[14]
The R-8 followed the enterprise-oriented R-7 and accompanied the R-9 in ODG's planned consumer expansion.[1] In the COO's CES interview, the planned R-8 developer availability was the third quarter of 2017 and consumer availability the fourth quarter. Those dates were projections.[3] The company's launch document gave the broader second-half-2017 developer target.[1] The under-$1,000 target was less than half the R-7's $2,750 price reported at that time.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 "Industry Leader ODG Introduces R-8 and R-9 Smartglasses at CES 2017®" (PDF). ODG press release, hosted by Qualcomm. Osterhout Design Group. 2017-01-03. https://www.qualcomm.com/content/dam/qcomm-martech/dm-assets/documents/industry_leader_odg_introduces_r-8_and_r-9_smartglasses.pdf. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lucas Matney (2019-01-10). "An AR glasses pioneer collapses". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/10/an-ar-glasses-pioneer-collapses/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 John Gaudiosi (2017-01-03). "ODG Debuts Two New AR Glasses Aimed At Consumer Market". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/ces-2017-odg-r9-r8/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 "Qualcomm and ODG Announce the First Augmented Reality Smartglasses Powered by the New Snapdragon 835 Processor". Qualcomm Newsroom. Qualcomm. 2017-01-03. https://www.qualcomm.com/news/releases/2017/01/qualcomm-and-odg-announce-first-augmented-reality-smartglasses-powered-new. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Karl Guttag (2017-01-04). "ODG R-8 and R-9 Optic with a OLED Microdisplays (Likely Sony’s)". KGOnTech. https://kguttag.com/2017/01/04/odg-r-8-and-r-9-optic-with-a-oled-microdisplays-likely-sonys/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Mark Hachman (2017-01-04). "Hands on with the ODG R-8: AR/VR smartglasses that use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835". PCWorld. https://www.pcworld.com/article/411509/hands-on-with-the-odg-r-8-arvr-smartglasses-that-use-qualcomms-snapdragon-835.html. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 Ben Lang (2017-01-03). "ODG Announces Two New Smartglasses With Positional Tracking, Expanded Field of View". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/odg-announces-smart-glasses-r8-r9-ar-qualcomm-snapdragon-835/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Joe Durbin (2017-06-02). "Hands-On: ODG Keeps Getting Stronger With 6 DOF Upgrade For AR Glasses". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/odg-6-dof-ar-glasses/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ Ingrid Lunden (2017-01-03). "ODG unveils its first consumer AR/VR glasses, built on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 chip". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/03/odg-unveils-its-first-consumer-ar-glasses-built-on-qualcomms-snapdragon-835-chip/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ Mariella Moon (2017-01-03). "ODG launches its Snapdragon 835-based mixed-reality glasses". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2017-01-03-odg-r-8-r9-mixed-reality-smartglasses-snapdragon-835.html. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ Chris Davies (2017-01-04). "ODG AR Smart Glasses Hands-On: Snapdragon 835 Gets Real". SlashGear. https://www.slashgear.com/odg-ar-smart-glasses-hands-on-snapdragon-835-gets-real-04470339/. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ Raymond Wong (2017-01-03). "Cheaper 'mixed reality' smart glasses that do both AR and VR are coming". Mashable. https://mashable.com/article/qualcomm-r8-r9-mixed-reality-glasses. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ "Xperi Corporation to Showcase Latest Technologies at Mobile World Congress 2018" (PDF). Xperi press release. Xperi Corporation. 2018-02-22. https://s21.q4cdn.com/329092987/files/doc_news/2018/02/1/2e3803e3-acce-4b48-9776-214916fb1c4d.pdf. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
- ↑ "ODG - Corporate Tech Investor Profile". Gaebler.com Venture Capital Database. Gaebler Ventures. https://www.gaebler.com/VC-Investors-FFE7320F-6EBB-4385-B401-33906B304278-ODG. Retrieved 2026-10-14.