May I have just randomly found in China a potential substitute for the HoloLens?

One of the biggest problems for companies that invested in augmented reality to improve their production processes is that the two leading headsets, HoloLens and Magic Leap, have both been discontinued. And there is no clear substitute in sight, apart from the new HMS Singray G2 headset, maybe. Well, it may be that I found a potential substitute during today’s visit to VR AR Expo China. Keep reading to discover more about it.

[Disclaimer: I have been paid for my accommodation in Shanghai by the organizers of the event, since I’m both a speaker and a media partner]

The video version of this article, shot directly at the event venue

Shoujing Science & Technology

I was shooting my usual video, where I record all the booths of the event to allow the people who were not able to travel there to see what was available. Suddenly, I noticed that the booth of a Chinese company I had never heard of before had a military helmet with under it what looked like a sort of IVAS modified HoloLens headset. This made me curious, so after I finished recording the video, I went back together with my translator to that small booth.

This clearly looked like a military-oriented HoloLens clone

I asked for explanations about the military helmet, but with much disappointment, I discovered that it was basically just a device with a 2D screen. Putting it in front of my face, I could see a HUD with a lot of information in front of me. To be a sort of “big smartglasses” device was pretty good though. The text was readable very well, and the FOV seemed larger than the 46° mentioned in the specs. It was pretty cool that it was mounting a lot of sensors, like night vision or thermal detection. Thanks to this, I have been able to see the environment around me with a thermal visualization as if I were Predator. There was a bit of lag in the visualization, but apart from that, it worked quite well.

I asked if there was another headset to see 3D content. They gave me another device, the AR-MX1, which was a very lightweight headset that basically showed in front of me a 3D model… and that was it. I asked if there was something with 6DOF tracking, and so they mentioned an upcoming product that they couldn’t showcase yet.

Shoujing AR-MX2

At that time, they brought to the table the Shoujing AR-MX2, a headset meant for 6DOF augmented reality, which kinda looks like a rougher HoloLens.

These are the specifications I’ve been able to get:

Display type: binocular array optical waveguide
Resolution: 1920×1080
FOV: 46°
RAM: 8GB
Camera: 48Mp
Storage: 512GB
Battery: 5000mAh
Audio: Integrated speakers
Operating System: Android (version to define, either 12 or 14)
Connectivity: 5G/Wifi/Bluetooth
Positioning: GPS, BDS (the Chinese version of GPS)

The headset clearly features multiple cameras and sensors on the front, but I was stupid enough not to ask them what they were.

Front view of the device, where you can see many of the sensors installed on it

There are a few things in the spec that I’ve found interesting. First of all, the FOV is not bad: 46° is not the 52° of the HoloLens 2, but it is something that can be okay-ish for current industrial AR applications. The fact that it is using waveguides and not birdbath should guarantee a better image quality. And the mention of 5G may mean that the headset can even work in conditions where Wi-Fi is not present, which could be very important for employees like construction workers who operate outside buildings.

Side view of the device: as you can see, the weight is split between the front and the back

The design looks definitely rougher than the HoloLens. I don’t know if it is because what I saw was still a prototype or if it is really going to be this way. The good thing is that they clearly tried to split the weight by putting the battery on the back, so that the headset results more balanced. The fitting mechanism is a halo band with the classical knob that you close to make it fit around your head.

I asked the company if they see this as a substitute for the HoloLens, and they clearly said yes. They even said that, regarding some features, this will be even better than the HoloLens.

Little hands-on

At this point, you would like to know if it really delivers as a HoloLens competitor, and, unfortunately, I have no idea. I tried in every possible way to ask them to turn it on, but since the device has not been finalized yet, they didn’t feel comfortable showing it to me.

So the only thing I could do was to put it on my head, even if it was turned off. I can only say that the lenses were a bit darkening out the world around me, like it always happens with waveguide displays like HoloLens. Plus, thanks to the battery being positioned in the back, the headset felt quite balanced.

Unluckily, I can’t say more than this.

Price and availability

The Shoujing AR-MX2 should be officially launched in a few months, around August 2026. The launch is going to happen in China, but the company can also ship worldwide.

The price has not been defined yet, but I’ve been told that the order of magnitude will be around 10,000 RMB, which is around $1500. This may sound expensive, but it is much cheaper than the price of the HoloLens. And discounts are available for customers buying headsets in bulk.

Company reliability

Honestly, I’ve never heard about Shoujing before, so I have no idea if this company has a reliable track record in delivering headsets. I don’t even know if it has a long life in front of it and you can be sure to buy a B2B headset that is not discontinued tomorrow.

The only thing I can say is that the other devices that I tried were kinda delivering what they wanted to offer, so they have for sure some expertise.

And if you’re thinking “Chinese startups can’t make HoloLens clones”… well, back in the days when HoloLens was still cool, there was already a Chinese company called Shadow Creator, which was offering a rougher version of it. HoloLens was a fantastic package, including stellar tracking, environment scanning, and integrations with Microsoft Azure… I personally doubt that a startup can offer exactly the same thing. But it can for sure deliver a good see-through AR headset with 6DOF.

Final impressions

It was interesting to find a potential substitute for the HoloLens at a random booth at an event in China. Shoujing AR-MX2 seems to have, on paper, many of the characteristics that companies looking for new AR hardware for B2B are looking for. It offers 6DOF AR, it uses waveguides, it has various sensors on it, and it has a reasonable price.

But there are still too many unknowns about it: the headset has not been launched, and no one has been able to try it, so we still have to verify that it can keep its promises. And we also have to discover more about this company, to understand if it can not only sell the headsets, but also guarantee long-term support for them.

I’ve agreed with the people at Shoujing to stay in touch with them, and, optionally, that they will send me a review unit when the device is officially launched. This way, I will be able to review the device and let you know if this can really be the HoloLens substitute many companies are looking for. I definitely hope so, and will keep you posted about it in the upcoming months.

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This article was originally published on skarredghost.com