Xreal Beam
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| Xreal Beam | |
|---|---|
| Basic Info | |
| VR/AR | Augmented Reality |
| Type | Accessory |
| Creator | Xreal |
| Developer | Xreal |
| Manufacturer | Xreal |
| Announcement Date | 25 May 2023 |
| Release Date | 25 July 2023 (United States and Japan); pre-orders from 1 June 2023 |
| Price | US$119 (United States, July 2023); JPY 16,980 (Japan, July 2023) |
| Requires | Xreal Air series glasses (Xreal Air, Xreal Air 2) |
| Successor | Xreal Beam Pro |
| Storage | |
| Storage | 32 GB (per Tom's Hardware) |
| Memory | 4 GB (per Tom's Hardware) |
| Tracking | |
| Tracking | 3DoF, using the motion sensors of the connected glasses |
| Audio | |
| Audio | DTS:X Ultra spatial audio, played through the glasses |
| Connectivity | |
| Connectivity | Wired DisplayPort over USB-C; wireless casting over AirPlay, Miracast and DLNA |
| Ports | Two USB-C (one for the glasses, one for video input and power) |
| WiFi | Wi-Fi 5 |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 |
| Power | USB-C, up to 27 W PD fast charging; usable while charging |
| Battery Capacity | 4870 mAh |
| Battery Life | Up to 3.5 hours (manufacturer figure at launch) |
| Device | |
| Dimensions | 105.8 x 65.86 x 18.2 mm |
| Weight | 153 g |
| Input | Four-way navigation ring with OK button, back button, mode switch button, volume rocker and power button |
The Xreal Beam is a pocket-sized companion device for the Xreal Air series of AR glasses, made by Xreal. It takes video from a phone, computer or game console, over a USB-C cable or by wireless casting, and sends it to the glasses. It uses the glasses' motion sensors to add 3DoF head tracking, so the virtual screen can stay in place while the wearer turns their head, a feature Xreal calls Spatial Display.[1][2]
Xreal announced the Beam on 25 May 2023, the day the company changed its name from Nreal. The device began shipping in the United States and Japan on 25 July 2023.[1][3] It has a 4870 mAh battery that powers the glasses, two USB-C ports and a small built-in fan. Xreal's announcement described it as shaped like the classic iPod, and Tom's Hardware's reviewer compared its rounded shape and circular navigation wheel to an early Apple iPod.[1][4] In June 2024 Xreal announced an Android-based successor, the Xreal Beam Pro.[5]
History
Background
The Xreal Air glasses, sold as the Nreal Air until 2023, have no battery, processor or wireless radio of their own. They draw power and video from a host device over one USB-C cable.[6] Before the Beam, most host devices showed the Air's image locked to the wearer's head. A tracked screen that stayed in place was only available on some Android phones and on Apple Silicon Macs running Xreal's Nebula software.[2][1] iPhones with a Lightning port needed two adapters to connect: Xreal's own US$59 adapter and Apple's US$49 Lightning Digital AV Adapter.[4]
Announcement
Nreal announced its new name, Xreal, on 25 May 2023, together with the Beam and the Spatial Display software modes.[1] The company said disputes over the Nreal mark had been "resolved amicably". UploadVR linked the change to a 2021 lawsuit in which Epic Games alleged that Nreal's name "looks and sounds virtually identical" to its Unreal Engine.[2] Xreal said it would show the Beam at Augmented World Expo 2023 in Santa Clara the following week.[1]
In the announcement, Xreal described the Beam as an iPod-shaped device that turns video from other devices into Spatial Display on the Xreal Air. It supports wired and wireless connections to smartphones, game consoles and computers. Co-founder Peng Jin said: "XREAL Beam is the kind of product that can connect AR technologies with the mainstream market."[1] At that point Xreal gave a battery life of up to three hours.[1][7] The company said the first phase of the rollout would target gamers and PC users. Smartphone users could watch YouTube and TikTok wirelessly, and support for DRM-protected content was planned for a second phase.[1] According to UploadVR, DRM content would at first work only over a wired connection, with wireless DRM support expected later in the year.[2]
No price was given at the announcement. Pre-orders opened on 1 June 2023, and Xreal said the device would be available globally in the second half of July 2023.[1][8] In early July, CNBC reported a price of US$109 and said that people in 85 countries had signed up to be notified about the Beam, according to Peng Jin.[9]
Release
The Beam began shipping in the United States and Japan on 25 July 2023, and it was sold through Xreal's online stores in both countries.[3] At launch, Tom's Hardware and TechRadar gave the US price as US$119, and a bundle with the Xreal Air cost US$488.[4][10] GSMArena listed the Japanese price as JPY 16,980, or JPY 62,980 for a bundle with the glasses.[3] By early August the Beam was also sold on Amazon in the United States.[11] In its review published on 13 August 2023, GSMArena gave the price as US$109.[6]
The Beam also worked with the Xreal Air 2 and Xreal Air 2 Pro, which followed in late 2023. In China, Xreal sold a bundle of the Air 2 and the Beam for CNY 3,298.[12] MIXED's guide to the Air 2 listed the Beam as an optional accessory, required for wireless casting and one of two ways to connect a Lightning iPhone or a game console.[13] UploadVR's coverage of the Air 2 series described the Beam as an optional US$120 dongle that anchors the virtual screen in front of the body.[14]
Successor
On 18 June 2024, at AWE 2024, Xreal announced the global launch of the Beam Pro, an Android 14 device with a 6.5-inch touch screen. Xreal called it "a major advancement from the first-generation Beam". The press release said the Body Anchor mode had been "popularized with the first generation XREAL Beam". Xreal offered qualifying first-generation Beam owners US$50 off the Beam Pro for purchases made on its website by 10 July 2024.[5]
Design and hardware
The Beam is a grey, rounded rectangular box. GSMArena lists its size as 105.8 x 65.86 x 18.2 mm and its weight as 153 grams, about the size of a compact power bank.[6] On the front is a circular four-way navigation ring with a centre OK button, a back button, and an LED bar that shows the battery level. A mode switch button on the left side changes the display mode, a volume rocker sits on the right side, and the power button is on top.[4][6] The Beam also switches on automatically when the glasses are connected.[6]
Two USB-C ports sit on the bottom edge. One connects only to the glasses. The other accepts power and DisplayPort video over USB-C, so the Beam can be used while it charges.[6] The 4870 mAh battery supports charging at up to 27 W over USB Power Delivery. Xreal said a 30-minute charge restores 50 percent, and at launch it gave a battery life of up to 3.5 hours.[4][6] Because the glasses have no battery, they draw power from the Beam instead of from the host phone.[10]
The Beam has enough processing hardware to need active cooling. A built-in fan exhausts through a vent behind the power button.[4][6] The specification table in Tom's Hardware's review lists 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of storage, Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0.[4] The announcement also mentioned DTS:X Ultra spatial audio.[1]
| Specification | Xreal Beam |
|---|---|
| Battery | 4870 mAh[1] |
| Battery life | Up to 3 hours (announcement); up to 3.5 hours (launch)[1][6] |
| Charging | Up to 27 W USB PD; 50 percent in about 30 minutes (manufacturer figure)[4] |
| Ports | Two USB-C[6] |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.0[4] |
| Memory and storage | 4 GB RAM, 32 GB storage[4] |
| Dimensions | 105.8 x 65.86 x 18.2 mm[6] |
| Weight | 153 g[6] |
| Cooling | Internal fan[4] |
Software and features
Spatial Display modes
The Beam reads the accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer in the Air glasses to track head rotation.[6] Its Spatial Display software offers three display modes.[4][15]
| Mode | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Body Anchor | Fixes the virtual screen at a chosen point in front of the wearer (3DoF). Turning the head moves the screen out of view, as with a physical monitor.[4] |
| Smooth Follow | Keeps the screen in front of the wearer's face and uses algorithms to steady it against small, sudden movements; Xreal presented it as suited to commuting.[1][4] |
| Sideview | Shrinks the screen into a window in one corner of the view, so the wearer can see more of the surroundings, for example while walking.[1][6] |
In Smooth Follow and Body Anchor modes, the wearer can adjust the size of the virtual screen and how far away it appears.[6] Xreal said the Spatial Display could show a screen of up to 201 inches.[1] When the Beam starts in Body Anchor mode, the glasses show seven dots, one every 45 degrees, to indicate that the display is on but anchored in another direction.[15]
Connections
Over a cable, the Beam accepts DisplayPort video over USB-C. GSMArena reported that, unlike the Air glasses alone, it worked when plugged straight into a Nintendo Switch.[6] TechRadar also connected a Switch with a single USB-C cable.[10] HDMI sources such as Xbox and PlayStation consoles need a separate HDMI adapter cable, which GSMArena believed was not included in the box.[6] Xreal sold its own H-C cable for this at US$24.99.[13]
Wireless casting uses AirPlay and Miracast, and MIXED also listed DLNA.[4][13] In Tom's Hardware's review, an iPhone 14 Pro, a MacBook Pro and a Windows 11 PC all connected as wireless displays.[4] TechRadar found that Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 7 phones could not use the Beam. Those phones lack DisplayPort output over USB-C and cast only through Google's Chromecast technology.[10]
Apps and updates
When first set up, the Beam asks for a language, a location and a Wi-Fi network. Text is entered with an on-screen keyboard using the navigation ring.[15] In GSMArena's review, only two tutorial apps ran on the device itself, with streaming and gaming apps reportedly on the way.[6] The Gadgeteer's reviewer reported that the Beam received three software updates during his review period. He also found that DRM-protected content could not be cast wirelessly but played when the source was connected directly, and that the Air glasses' 3D side-by-side (3840 x 1080) mode was not supported.[15]
Reception
Tom's Hardware's Brandon Hill wrote that the Beam "brings wireless connectivity to the Air AR glasses, greatly improving their usefulness". He called it a "boon for iPhone users" because it replaced the earlier adapter chain. His criticisms were the price, stutter and audio dropouts when playing fast PC games such as Cyberpunk 2077 over a wireless connection, heat, and a first-time update of about 787 MB that took two hours to download. Xreal told him it would fix the download problem on the server side.[4]
TechRadar's Hamish Hector said the Beam solved many of the Air's problems but called it "a hard sell considering the glasses themselves aren't cheap".[10] GSMArena said the image smeared in the tracked modes while the head moved. It also found text less sharp in tracking mode than in the glasses' standard mode. It still called the Beam "a powerful addition to the XREAL Air" and recommended it to Apple users for AirPlay casting.[6]
Steam Deck HQ's Noah Kupetsky, who used the Beam with a Steam Deck in a review sponsored by Xreal, called it a necessary addition for Air owners who mainly play games. The adjustable screen size fixed his problem of screen corners being cut off in some games. He criticized the heat, especially after charging, and the placement of the two USB-C ports, which made the cables cross.[11] The Gadgeteer's Howard Sneider found Smooth Follow effective in everyday use and wrote that Android users with the Nebula app could get a similar experience without the Beam.[15]
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 Sam Sprigg (2023-05-25). "Nreal rebrands as XREAL, announces new hardware and software". Auganix. https://www.auganix.org/ar-news-nreal-rebrands-as-xreal-announces-xreal-spatial-display-technology-and-xreal-beam/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 David Heaney (2023-05-31). "Nreal Rebrands To Xreal, Reveals iPhone & Consoles Adapter". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/nreal-rebrand-xreal-beam-adapter/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Peter (2023-07-25). "The Xreal Beam starts shipping in the US and Japan". GSMArena. https://www.gsmarena.com/the_xreal_beam_starts_shipping_in_the_us_and_japan-news-59310.php. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 Brandon Hill (2023-07-27). "Xreal Beam Review: Air AR Glasses Go Wireless". Tom's Hardware. https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/xreal-beam. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Connecting Millions of Apps to Your AR Glasses, XREAL Launches XREAL Beam Pro Mobile Device Globally at AWE 2024". PR Newswire. XREAL. 2024-06-18. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/connecting-millions-of-apps-to-your-ar-glasses-xreal-launches-xreal-beam-pro-mobile-device-globally-at-awe-2024-302175517.html. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 Victor (2023-08-13). "XREAL Air AR glasses and XREAL Beam review". GSMArena. https://www.gsmarena.com/xreal_air_ar_glasses_and_xreal_beam_review-news-59478.php. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ Brandon Hill (2023-05-25). "Nreal Becomes Xreal, Launches Beam Module for AR Gaming on PCs and Consoles". Tom's Hardware. https://www.tomshardware.com/news/xreal-beam-spatial-display-ar. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ Chris Hall (2023-05-25). "The Xreal Beam adapter just supercharged the Nreal Air AR glasses experience". Pocket-lint. https://www.pocket-lint.com/xreal-beam-adapter-xreal-air-ar-glasses/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ Evelyn Cheng (2023-07-04). "Before Apple's Vision Pro hits the shelves, lower-priced rival Xreal claims it's near 200k shipments". CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/04/before-apple-sells-vision-pro-ar-rival-xreal-sees-shipments-climb.html. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 Hamish Hector (2023-07-25). "Xreal Air and Xreal Beam review: impressive AR tech but still not perfect". TechRadar. https://www.techradar.com/reviews/nreal-air-ar-glasses. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Noah Kupetsky (2023-08-03). "XREAL Beam Review - A Necessary Addition to the Augmented Reality Glasses". Steam Deck HQ. https://steamdeckhq.com/news/xreal-beam-review/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ Ram Ronquillo (2023-09-07). "XREAL Air 2 and Air 2 Pro AR Glasses Introduced in China". Gadget Pilipinas. https://www.gadgetpilipinas.net/2023/09/xreal-air-2-and-air-2-pro-launch/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Josef Erl (2023-10-26). "Xreal Air 2: Release, price, resolution - all you need to know". MIXED. https://mixed-news.com/en/xreal-air-2-info-guide/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ David Heaney (2023-10-24). "Xreal Air 2 Pro Brings Adjustable Dimming To Media Glasses". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/xreal-air-2-pro/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 Howard Sneider (2023-10-07). "XREAL Beam review - 3 new modes and great connectivity for your XREAL AIR glasses". The Gadgeteer. https://the-gadgeteer.com/2023/10/07/xreal-beam-review-3-new-modes-and-great-connectivity-for-your-xreal-air-glasses/. Retrieved 2026-09-29.