Magic Leap 2 Specs Revealed

Updated September 11, 2023

2020 was a challenging year for Magic Leap – its valuation fell from $6.4 billion to just $450 million, massive layoffs occurred, and many thought the company might never recover. However, the recent unveiling of many crucial specifications of the forthcoming Magic Leap 2 may give some critics pause.

Taking a swipe at Facebook’s recent rebranding as Meta with the boastful tagline “The metaverse is already here,” Magic Leap has officially announced details of the successor to its Magic Leap 1 AR (or “spatial computing”) device. Dropping virtual elements into real-world spaces has always been a chief goal of virtual technologies, and many pundits suggest that truly successful AR will leave VR far behind when it arrives. The everyday uses of AR are, in theory, truly staggering. Does Magic Leap 2 bring us closer to a genuine augmented reality?

In comparison to Magic Leap 1, Magic Leap 2 will be lighter. Its computing box will double the memory, storage, and overall power, forgo the former’s NVIDIA GPU, and instead use an AMD chip, cementing a partnership announced in December 2021. Dynamic Dimming, a unique optical technology, will vary the amount of light Magic Leap 2’s lenses will let through to the user and allow virtual elements to be visible whether the viewing space is a bright or dark environment.

More Comfortable. More Powerful. More Potential.

Tracking capabilities have also been upgraded, bringing the number of tracking cameras per eye from one to two. Offering an approximate 70° diagonal FOV, a 20° increase from its predecessor’s FOV. A more complete view of the performers and proceedings is always favorable when dealing with adult content. Given Magic Leap’s focus on enterprise use, your average AR porn fan won’t be doling out the dough for an ML2, but it does bode very well for AR tech in general and for comfort-oriented uses like adult entertainment.

Held up against the popularity of technical achievements of VR porn, AR porn has somewhat lingered in the realm of speculative tech and encouraging, if not conclusive, tests. Magic Leap has shown its dedicated to AR and especially to the delivery of incredibly high-quality AR graphics. Such dedication and commitment to progressing AR tech isn’t likely to go unnoticed by others manufacturers and developers. And with competing devices due to arrive from major players like Apple, Meta, and Microsoft, the pressure is well and truly on to be the first to launch a mega-selling AR unit.

Magic Leap 2 Update – Release info

Released to the public at the tail end of September 2022, Magic Leap 2 asserted itself as the “most immersive augmented reality headset” on the market. Available to customers in the United States, Canada, UK, Saudi Arabia, and much of Europe and expected to be released in Japan and Singapore before the end of the year, Magic Leap 2 was aided by an Early Release Program that saw a diverse group of companies contribute to the refinement and improvement of the device.

Magic Leap CEO Peggy Johnson spoke of the device upon its release: “The Magic Leap 2 is the smallest and lightest augmented reality device built for the enterprise market. After working with customers across industries like healthcare, manufacturing, and the public sector, we’re proud to release a device that features innovative breakthroughs critical to driving widespread adoption, including… the industry’s largest field of view and unparalleled image quality and text legibility. Magic Leap 2 will take the current use cases to the next level, and we can’t wait to see what our customers create.”

The base model Magic Leap 2 costs $3,299, with a Developer Pro edition running $4,099. A feature-rich Enterprise model is priced at $4,999. All these iterations of Magic Leap 2 are basically out of reach to the average VR/AR consumer, but its radically advanced technology is certain to filter down to more accessible devices in the near future.

Farewell to Magic Leap 1

After more than five years in the AR marketplace, an email from Magic Leap to customers has confirmed what many were already expecting: Magic Leap 1 will cease to be supported, being effectively discontinued at the close of 2024.

The launch of Magic Leap 2 and a pivot away from gaming and entertainment towards the enterprise market were already strong signs that the life of Magic Leap 1 was in jeopardy. For those who forked out more than $2,000 USD back in 2018, this news may still sting. For die-hard (and deep-pocketed) AR/MR fans, however, this could be seen as natural and positive evidence that the technology is steadily evolving. With Apple Vision Pro on the horizon, what’s bad for early Magic Leap adopters may end up being great for AR in general and Apple devotees in particular.