Microsoft Hololens features demonstrated at the Build 2015 Developer Conference already reveal consumer-friendly specs of the virtual reality headset but tech developers are warning of the breakthrough device going the way of the failed Google Glass project.
Microsoft unveiled the untethered holographic computer that had no need to be wired to a gaming console, a gadget, or a smartphone - "turning what was once science fiction into science fact." The rave consumer reviews also praised the user-ease with its comfortable fit, spatial sound, and processing power, all running on the new universal Windows 10.
Business Insider reports, however, that despite the Hololens' user-friendly features revealed at the Build demonstrations in April some tech developers and marketers are warning against mass-marketing the standalone holographic computer.
International Business Times agrees with the warning and says the powerful Hololens holographic computer is "ideally suited to enterprise applications and that is where the company needs to focus its attention."
Google revealed the smaller head-mounted computer Google Glass in 2012 to great consumer reviews but never got around to developing it for the mass market until it finally shelved the project in January. Business Insider says Microsoft should take a cue from reports that Google is redirecting the Glass application for enterprise and industrial use.
The report quotes former Google X marketing specialist Beau Hanley's assessment that the public will not welcome wearing unnatural-looking gadgets on their heads. "I think people in general will be uncomfortable with it for now just because it brings attention to them, and sometimes people don't like that attention," Hanley surmised.
Hanley also notes the Hololens' feature of the user overtly touching objects invisible to others as another possible sore point for the everyday consumer. "If you're walking down the street and putting your hands out and moving them in weird ways, that might not be something people are comfortable with in a public setting," adds Hanley.
TechPinions analyst Tim Bajarin wrote how tech companies should learn from the Google Glass mistake. Bajarin says Microsoft Hololens, along with Facebook's Oculus and Sony's Morpheus, will necessarily have to offer the device to "a higher-end gaming audience or those focused on virtual and augmented reality and be priced like vertical market products - well out of reach for the general consumer for a long time."
Microsoft needs a revolutionary product like the Hololens to lift its image association with "boring" products like Office and Windows but the device is not (yet) a mass consumer product, adds IB Times.
The makers of Microsoft Hololens have not yet revealed plans for the device beyond displaying its technology in action.
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