Dell, Lenovo, HP to Launch 'Affordable' VR Headsets Alongside Windows 10 Creators Update

Microsoft showcased its Holographic UI in its full glory during its Surface event on Wednesday and from the looks of it, the company might have given us a glimpse of our 'mixed reality' computing future. The demonstrations given by the company were quite impressive but more importantly, the Redmond-based company announced that it has partnered with companies like Dell, Lenovo, Acer, Asus and HP to make affordable VR headsets that are capable of mixed reality and will launch alongside the Windows 10 Creators Update in Spring 2017.

The Redmond giant says the new VR headsets will have a starting price of around $300 (roughly Rs. 20,100). In a blog post, the company added, "And these accessories will be the first and only with inside-out, six-degrees of freedom. Unlike every other virtual reality headset in the market today, there will be zero need for a separate room and complicated setup." The company says the headsets, apart from being affordable compared to the $500 headsets in the market today, will be designed to work with affordable laptops and PCs.

In order to produce content for these VR headsets, Microsoft announced the Windows 10 Creators Update, which will include a 3D framework designed around Microsoft's HoloLens and other VR experiences. The Creators Update will allow developers to create content for VR with ease, and will be available in early 2017.

The company also showcased its Microsoft new, revamped Paint 3D app, which was leaked recently. The revamped app includes tools for importing and handling 3D artwork, as well as integration with a new online community--Remix3D that allows users to share their creations or search other people's creations. As reported by us earlier, the community is integrated with the massive 3D Warehouse, a repository for Trimble's popular SketchUp software, and already contains millions of 3D objects.

Holographic UI was first unveiled by Microsoft last year in January and was presented as a device that allows users to enter a virtual world, through a headgear, and interact with the virtual objects present in it.