There’s a lot you can do with XR

Till a few years back the common man thought that Virtual Reality was just a novelty which might be used in things like gaming. We’ve come a long way and even Facebook has invested in Oculus. Many are betting big on VR, AR (Augmented Reality) and MR (Mixed Reality). An umbrella term used for this is XR—Extended Reality.

In 2016, the world saw the sale of 5 million head-mounted VR displays. This year, with most people being forced to stay at home and the Covid crisis accelerating digitization and digital transformation, one estimate puts the sale to be in the region of 68 million. At this rate, VR headsets could become mainstream and more affordable in a few years. And there’s a lot you can do with XR.

Transform education: It looks like remote/online education is here to stay. But Staring at a screen all day is tough on the students, especially the younger ones at school. While offline breaks are a must, another thing to break the monotony and enrich experiences could be to change the reality.

It could be handy in the geography where you could explore the globe and visit places virtually. The same with history except you would be visiting places in the past. Medical students could also really get familiar with the human body. There are applications in every possible subject like engineering, architecture, archaeology etc.

Make training easier: While the education industry is one thing, it is useful in in military war simulations. In the corporate world it can reduce training costs, help in product demonstrations, and help in visualization. The same for industrial training.

Collaboration: Collaboration has already taken off and bandwidths are increasing. It is just a matter of time before 3D collaboration catches on. When it comes to Zoom calls, a certain amount of screen fatigue has set in. A more immersive kind of collaboration could do the trick in terms of interacting, sharing virtual images and scenarios to help business.

Boost tourism: When we visit historical places many times they are in ruins. Roaming around with an XR headset would enhance the experience to the very next level and you could view it as it was once upon a time. When driverless cars come, they could become XR powered mobile rooms that would enhance large landscapes with virtual information.

Digital Reality India: If every government office had a VR headset, then it would be easier to view projects, plans and documents for both officials and citizens. It’s not inconceivable for every Indian to own a cheap VR headset paired with the ubiquitous smartphone. Citizens could participate on a large-scale with things like city planning. It can be made part of e-governance.