Augmented reality specialist Meta taking orders for new dev kit

Meta, the firm behind the self-named augmented reality device, has begun taking orders for its latest dev kit.

Meta 2 takes AR one step further by tracking the user’s hands and enabling them to interact with digital objects shown on the display. Players will be able to touch, grab and move digital objects, according to VentureBeat.

The device features a 90-degree field of view and a high-def 2560 x 1400 display, as well as a 720-pixel camera. It’s a marked improvement from the original 2012 prototype, which was based around Vuzix glasses and Xbox’s motion-sensing Kinect technology.

Dev kits can be pre-ordered from www.metavision.com and cost $949. The SDK is built on top of widely-used game engine Unity.

Meta CEO Meron Gribetz recently demonstrated the new tech at the recent TED conference. He said: “We are creating an experience that merges the art of user interface design with the science of the brain, creating ‘natural machines’ that feel like extensions of ourselves rather than the other way around. 

“Our natural hand motion doesn’t rely on clicks or buttons, thereby maintaining the flow and connecting people to each other and the moment.”