All Mode
The long-teased forthcoming debut device from Nreal, a mixed reality wearable called Nreal Light, just got a whole lot more exciting, especially for fans of virtual porn. Along with its lightweight design, small form factor, and accessible price tag, Nreal Light will now offer hand tracking as standard.
Get Behind Me, Lawsuit
Image: An exploded Magic Leap One, alleged to “inspire” Nreal Light
In the months spent embroiled in a legal battle with Magic Leap, Nreal’s CEO and founder Chi Xu hit back with a formal motion to dismiss after a lawsuit from his alleged former employer claimed he stole trade secrets and used them to bring Nreal into existence. After the two parties settled the matter in arbitration, Nreal pressed ahead with bringing its Light glasses to market.
Magic Leap, meanwhile, laid off dozens, lost two executives, and is now rumored to be looking for a buyer. Is this Nreal’s chance to stake its claim on the predicted MR market explosion? Perhaps even to land that prime market demographic: the porn fan?
Image: Nreal Light prototype.
Pressing ahead, Nreal recently announced that its forthcoming Nreal Light mixed reality headsets will include a hand tracking system designed by Clay AIR. Nreal Light has already had a fascinating development history, initially attached to a hip-mounted computer, then moving to smartphone-based operation in a later prototype.
Squarely aiming at a consumer market (unlike the exclusively industrial and enterprise-focused agendas of other major VR and MR hardware developers), Nreal now confirms that its mid-range device will allow controller-free operation that’s perfect for VR and MR porn use.
Aiming for Gestural Freedom
Image: Nreal Light will feature a Clay AIR hand tracking system.
Bulky headsets can weigh down your experience, and, to some, knowing that immersive virtual sex requires an almost full detachment from reality can be a barrier. The more (ahem) naked a physical experience rendered virtually, the less baggage you should be bringing along with you. Nreal Light seems to have landed on an appealing mix of features that could not only thrill existing MR users but may prove accessible enough to bring many more into the fold.
Image: Hand tracking by Clay AIR.
With majors like Apple still to unveil their debut AR/MR devices, Nreal could slide into the market at just the right time to cement a hold on growing MR audiences. This possibility of early, affordable adoption makes Nreal Light a potentially significant device for casual users. And when it comes to porn, most fans profess only casual use, pointing to gaming, communication, and non-explicit entertainment as other significant factors in choosing a VR or MR device.
Keep Calm and Wash Your Hands
Image: MR porn is still in its infancy.
Mixed Reality doesn’t cover the existing physical world with an all-enveloping layer of virtuality as VR does. As MR develops and devices like Nreal Light find their user base, the blended reality they embrace will become increasingly normal and commonplace.
Sooner or later, we may find it too easy to forget that our surroundings are real, and other elements are not. The further MR porn develops, the more fluid the movement between reality and fantasy will become. Nreal Light’s touted hand-tracking capabilities guarantee users two things: an increasingly seamless blend of the virtual and the real worlds; and plenty of handwashing.
Great potential gear.