Microsoft's HoloLens adds to reality without disconnecting you from it.
Microsoft's HoloLens is an augmented-reality headset.
It's a self-containedWindows 10 computer that projects high-definition holograms onto real objects, walls and surfaces.
I was left alone in the living room to discover the digital information all around me. The juxtaposition of three-dimensional holograms and real objects created a mixed reality. Interacting with the projections peppered in the room quickly started to feel like some sort of technological hallucination. The holograms were only visible to me.
One of the first things I noticed about the headset was its see-through "holographic lens." It's held in place by a matte black frame that looped around my head. I could move the lens front and back ever so lightly to fix it at a comfortable distance away from my face (and enough room for my large-framed prescription glasses too). There's a second black rim with an adjustment wheel to tighten the device around the head. It supports the entire contraption and keeps it firmly but comfortably in place.
The headset, which weighs a little more than one pound, is packed with sensors, a custom-built holographic processing unit and a ton of cameras. There's a front-facing camera and four environment-mapping cameras -- split into pairs on the left and right corners of the lens –- that make the precise placement of holograms possible.
The HoloLens experience requires a complete engagement of senses. It's not trying to hack the senses to create a virtual world; instead it works with sight, sound and movements to create an interaction between human, machine and the environment. That's what makes the experience feel unique yet natural. While the system imposes an artificial overlay on reality, it relies on intuitive controls like direction of gaze, gestures and voice.
It's easy to draw comparisons between the two new mediums that are starting to shape new realities –- the virtual and the augmented. But everything from the physical headsets, the experiences, the human impact and the future applications are entirely different.
I had no trouble returning to the reality of the hotel suite. Unlike VR, where I was often disoriented after taking off the headset, this time my brain wasn't struggling to differentiate between the real and the virtual.
