Monday, February 9, 2015

Microsoft HoloLens: The Next Big Thing?




Holographic computing will soon be available to consumers thanks to Microsoft HoloLens, a device that enables users to shape and create holograms that blend with our natural world or surroundings. This head-mounted wearable technology provides a wave of new possibilities since it enables users to take advantage of technology in new and exciting ways.


With HoloLens, consumers can learn, explore, create, share and collaborate with others without being confined to an alternate reality. This is one of the main ways in which HoloLens distinguishes itself from Google Glass, Oculus Rift and other emerging technologies. 



The Form Factor



The form factor makes HoloLens ideal for a multiplicity of uses. Since the device’s see-through headset is light, business leaders, other professionals and regular consumers will be able to use it at their convenience to enhance productivity as well as access entertainment. 

With HoloLens, users can also access holographic computing without the need of wires or additional devices. Thus, consumers will have the freedom to move from place to place whether at work or at home and interact with the 3D images they create via apps like Holo Studio.




Tap Into Your Creative Talents


Microsoft’s HoloLens, seems ready to equip consumers with the tools that will make them better creators and learners within an ever-expanding technological world. The project, which has been in development for almost a decade makes it easy to learn and create thanks to the Holo Studio as well as its gesture and voice control capabilities.



Holo Studio


Hub Studio enables users to create 3D holograms which can then be brought to life thanks to 3D printers. You could build aircrafts – design just about anything really – via the app. With this tool you can easily change colors, copy designs and more, all while viewing your 3D designs through the see-through lens of the device. 

This offers a significant advantage to apps found on traditional computing devices since consumers who access HoloLens will be able to interact more dynamically with their designs without being separated by a computer screen. In a promotional video, Microsoft highlights the benefits of interactive 3D designs by showing how a user’s redesign of a bike could be brought to life. As the HoloLens user looks at the existing bike, holograms appear – 3D design which the user can interact with through hand gestures and other means. 



Gesture and Voice Control


Microsoft’s holographic computing device has embedded sensors which enable consumers to customize their creations by simply using gesture and voice control. By sensing a user’s viewing range, gestures and voice commands, the sensors in addition to the device’s holographic processing unit enable users to interact with holograms. Thus, users can tap and give commands while they navigate apps and explore the holograms that appear within their viewing range. 

Whether you are creating a miniature spacecraft or a retrofitted motorbike, anything can be customized through gesture and voice control. If the HoloLens is really as good as those who've tried it suggest, our imagination may be the main factor that determines what’s possible with this device. 


 

HoloLens Vs. Virtual Reality



The great thing about HoloLens is that it allows users to access interactive features without confining users to an alternative reality. In essence HoloLens enhances a user’s existing reality or surroundings, by using the natural environment as a framework, thus enabling users to get the best of both worlds.
Virtual reality (VR) when it is done right can be extraordinary. We’ve already seen this via the likes of Oculus Rift and other emerging VR products. But this technology does not enable users to interact with the world around them, but also allows them to interact with and navigate solely within the VR world.


With Microsoft HoloLens, the user becomes a vehicle through which a new reality (holograms) aligns itself and co-exists with existing reality (the user’s surroundings). This results in an even more dynamic range of possibilities in areas as diverse as gaming, education, medicine and business. 



What to Expect from Holographic Computing



Holographic computing offers endless possibilities. Imagine using your living room as a game level, viewing Facebook notifications on your refrigerator, displaying Skype on your bedroom wall or just about anywhere for that matter. Imagine being in a classroom that could suddenly transform into a new environment – the peaks of the Himalayas, the surface of Mars – based on the subjects being taught. Imagine a home entertainment system made of holograms that you can adjust to any size or view in any room or location.  



Though some may argue that HoloLens is Microsoft’s comeback strategy – a mere gimmick – it’s hard to ignore its potential. After all, if this holographic computing device is as impressive as it seems, it could transform our view of computing and the future of technology. 

The future seems bright for holographic computing. Already companies like Leap Frog are making the leap towards this emerging technology, and developers are joining the movement to create apps that will enable consumers to get the most out of holographic computing. 


With HoloLens, a new computing experience will be available, one that is not limited to the world within the screen but one that merges with the user’s surrounding to offer a whole new experience. This product opens the doors to extraordinary possibilities in areas related to home entertainment, business, medicine and education. It is expected to hit the market in upcoming months.

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