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Inside Magic Leap

forbes.com

61–70 of 220 posts

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#61
post #15

Magic Leap goes against all the concepts we learned in "startup schools" - launch fast and iterate, get feedback, pivot and grow with your users etc.. they work away from the public for product they don't know if the public want. it's a bet, i hope it will pay off.

They can't launch until the thing is at least portable - and in the carefully-managed rumours are right, it started out as an optics bench and then a tethered rack and ... nobody's seen anything that can be launched. We're still waiting for that "DK1".

If appearances are to be trusted, Magic Leap is not doing a DK1.

Considering the hundreds of people they've hired and their partners (Disney, ILM, Weta) They are launching with applications already, a bit like a games console more than anything.

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#62
post #27
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I remember that we were going to revamp existing cities and build new cities in accordance to this wonderful transportation device that would change everything, of which I cannot recall the name. I currently see them used as joke props in movies.

If you include 'hover-boards' these battery powered, two wheeled, self balancing, things sold over 2.5 million of the things in just the USA in 2015. So, it really is becoming increasingly widespread. You can see this as and extension of the skateboards vs scooters vertical stick argument. PS: For comparson 17.5 million cars where sold in 2015 and 12.5 million bikes with 20+" wheels.

> So, it really is becoming increasingly widespread.

I don't know if this is really true. I saw a lot of hoverboards on my university campus last year. I don't see nearly as many this year. I'd like to see sales data for at least another year before declaring that anything is becoming increasingly widespread.

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#63
post #41

I believe Magic Leap has a new kind of display technology, but the article is pretty bullshit-sounding with statements like this: "Throw out your PC, your laptop and your mobile phone, because the computing power you need will be in your glasses, and they can make a display appear anywhere, at any size you like." Yeah sure, they not only made a new display tech but integrated the computing power of desktops or laptop…

They've been doing this for how many years? And sinking how much money into content development? How about developing an actual product?

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#64
post #44
post #15

Magic Leap goes against all the concepts we learned in "startup schools" - launch fast and iterate, get feedback, pivot and grow with your users etc.. they work away from the public for product they don't know if the public want. it's a bet, i hope it will pay off.

These guys aren't building an invoicing app. They're building a brand new high-tech platform. The traditional startup approach clearly isn't going to work well here. The line for what a "minimum viable product" could be is pretty high... and once it is out, you can't upgrade it again (well not cost effectively at least). Hardware has a different cycle. Traditional waterfall methodology is still kind of essential for…

> Traditional waterfall methodology is still kind of essential for hardware.

I mean, if you read the article they claim they're doing Agile-hardware instead

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#65
post #49
post #41

I believe Magic Leap has a new kind of display technology, but the article is pretty bullshit-sounding with statements like this: "Throw out your PC, your laptop and your mobile phone, because the computing power you need will be in your glasses, and they can make a display appear anywhere, at any size you like." Yeah sure, they not only made a new display tech but integrated the computing power of desktops or laptop…

I assume the GTX 1080 lives in the cloud. We shall see I guess.

Latency is also critical for VR and AR

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#66

So clearly the author is sympathetic to the aura that Magic Leap is cultivating through secrecy and selective media engagements: > When it arrives–best guess is within the next 18 months–it could usher in a new era of computing, a next-generation interface we’ll use for decades to come. ...which may be a pretty valid statement or sentiment overall, but later in the article, we get to the crux of the "potential" futur…

I was also disappointed by that statement. I would expect much more from the first applications. Let me try to be constructive and think of some:

+ To have a cat even if you can't feed it or clean up (elderly).

+ To find out how it is to have a baby, how to feed it, how to care for it.

+ Dating first with an avatar before going for the real deal.

+ Searching for things without having to open cabinets or boxes.

+ Colored lights etc will be outdated. Colors, paintings, candles, can all be virtual.

+ Augmentation including audio can give a voice to your pets, to inanimate objects, even the food on your plate. Your plant will tell you that it's thirsty.

Also I think screens are definitely not outdated. I look forward to have a screen the size of a wall and "wormhole" functionality so I can virtually couple it to a similar wall somewhere else. Then I will feel much closer to my grandma for example. Or my wife to her loved ones at the other side of the ocean.

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#67

Here's a peek at your future.... https://vimeo.com/166807261

I. Can. Hardly. Wait. /s

We're already dealing with issues of sensory and information overload without having this layer of immersion.

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#68
Sorry, but this article is way to fluffy. Big words, and not much to show for it. The way I see it, it's basically an ad for the author's upcoming book.

Magic Leap itself does seem to be doing amazing stuff, given how much money has been pumped into it. At least, I hope that's the case!

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#69

So clearly the author is sympathetic to the aura that Magic Leap is cultivating through secrecy and selective media engagements: > When it arrives–best guess is within the next 18 months–it could usher in a new era of computing, a next-generation interface we’ll use for decades to come. ...which may be a pretty valid statement or sentiment overall, but later in the article, we get to the crux of the "potential" futur…

This has about as much hype as Ginger (Segway Transporter) did before it was launched. Disrupting multi-billion dollar industries in a single bound, changing the world forever at it's launch.

But in reality what it really takes to disrupt an industry is both a disruptive product and a really compelling mass-market price point. One of the reasons the Segway PT failed is it was $6k to buy. That severely limits the addressable market to only the rich and those that really want a new form of transport.

This is the same problem Magic Leap and Microsoft's Hololens have. If the product is more than say around $700, it's not going to be a mass consumer product, and it's not going to disrupt entire industries. The iPhone is a good example of a product that is sold for about the maximum price point a user can tolerate in most countries, and even then a lot of iPhones are sold in installments to bring the upfront cost down.

I find it hard to imagine that Magic Leap can hit that entry level price point in a Version 1 product, and if they can't then there will be quite a few big tech companies gunning to catch up with their technology by the time they hit a V2 to erode there exclusivity. Just look at how Google turned Android around after the iPhone launched to go with full screen touch just 6 months after the iPhone.

Re: Inside Magic Leap

#70
post #62
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you include 'hover-boards' these battery powered, two wheeled, self balancing, things sold over 2.5 million of the things in just the USA in 2015. So, it really is becoming increasingly widespread. You can see this as and extension of the skateboards vs scooters vertical stick argument. PS: For comparson 17.5 million cars where sold in 2015 and 12.5 million bikes with 20+" wheels.

> So, it really is becoming increasingly widespread. I don't know if this is really true. I saw a lot of hoverboards on my university campus last year. I don't see nearly as many this year. I'd like to see sales data for at least another year before declaring that anything is becoming increasingly widespread.

Earlier in the year I would have attributed this to issues with the supply chain and how hard it was to get the upgraded devices. Now, however, I believe that the exploding battery issues heavily reported in the media and the subsequent Amazon refund program put a massive cool on purchasing and usage.
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