Samsung's Project Moohan: A High-Stakes Entry into the XR Market

Samsung's upcoming VR headset rumored to be roughly as uber-expensive as Apple's

Samsung's first XR headset, codenamed Project Moohan, is shaping up to be a cutting-edge experiment. It clearly aims to succeed where other premium, immersive VR competitors have failed -- namely, in widespread adoption and units sold. With integrated Android XR functionality, it does have the potential. But it's also looking like another seriously expensive piece of digital headwear, according to recent industry leaks from Korean outlet Newsworks. High-end tech, high-cost development Plus questionable consumer demand According to the leak, the device will land somewhere between $1,800 to $2,900. That puts it below Apple's $3,500 Vision Pro, but not by much, and certainly well above what most consumers are willing to spend on something they won't use every day. The same sources reiterated the expected Oct. 13 launch date. On paper, Project Moohan has a lot going for it. Built in partnership with Google and Qualcomm, it's powered by Snapdragon's XR2+ Gen 2 chip, the same silicon designed to push serious mixed-reality workloads. Samsung is reportedly ensuring full access to Android apps, giving it an instant software library that Apple and Meta can't (and probably won't ever) match. Early hands-on reports point to a lighter, more comfortable design than the Vision Pro, and creators like Marques Brownlee have praised how seamlessly Android apps and Google's Gemini AI slot into the experience. But the obvious problems come in its price and purpose. The Apple VisionPro has struggled with low sales. Project Moohan enters the same uncomfortable space: a premium headset that most buyers know will sit on a shelf after the novelty wears off. We've seen this movie before. Meta tried its luck with the Quest Pro at $1,500, only to quietly discontinue the headset when sales didn't take off. Meanwhile, the company's mainstream Quest 3 sells for about $500 and continues to be the headset people actually buy. Samsung seems to have planned for low initial demand. Newsworks said shipments of Project Moohan are capped at around 100,000 units worldwide, a drop in the bucket compared to the 40 million Galaxy S25 units the company expects to move next year.

Samsung XR headset leak reveals potential price and release date - and it could be cheaper than the Vision Pro

We've been waiting a long time for Project Moohan, Samsung's first XR (extended reality) headset developed in partnership with Google. It was announced back in December, but thanks to a new leak we may now have a release date and a price for the device. According to Newsworks (via GSMArena), Samsung is plotting another Unpacked event for Monday, September 29, to announce the Android XR headset. Sales will then follow on October 13, beginning in Samsung's home country of South Korea. Samsung has already said the headset will be launching in the second half of 2025, so the new information fits with that. Project Moohan is just a codename though ("moohan" means "infinity" in Korean), so we're still not sure exactly what it's going to be called. The report mentions pricing too: between 2.5 and 4 million won. Samsung won't use a direct currency conversion internationally, but for reference that's a starting price of $1,790 / £1,330 / AU$2,765 at today's rates. This is Samsung's first XR headset: the XR term encompasses both augmented reality (digital elements on top of the real world), virtual reality (completely enclosed digital worlds), and mixed reality (digital elements interacting with the real world). In other words, XR = AR + VR + MR, so this sounds like a true all-rounder. The Meta Quest 3 is marketed as a mixed reality headset, and based on the time we've spent with Project Moohan prototypes, this new device will work in a similar way. Apple completely ignores these terms for the Vision Pro, which it calls a "spatial computer", but it's the same sort of thing really. In our testing, we found Project Moohan to be a less premium, more lightweight take on the Apple Vision Pro approach. We'll be able to try out the finished version of the product in the near future. It looks as though there'll be a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 processor fitted inside, together with 16GB of RAM, and Gemini AI will of course be available on board.

Samsung Project Moohan XR price leaked ahead of global launch: Here's what we know

Samsung also working on AR glasses and AI-powered smart wearables as part of its extended XR ecosystem. Samsung is all set to enter the mixed reality race with its much talked about Project Moohan XR headset. The XR headset is expected to launch next month. Now the new reports from Newsworks suggest that the device could be introduced at the Galaxy Unpacked event in South Korea on September 29. The report further added that the sales of the device would begin by October 13 and will be expanded to other countries. The rumours suggest that the Samsung Project Moohan may carry a hefty price tag between KRW 2.5 million and KRW 4 million (roughly Rs. 1.57 lakh to Rs. 2.51 lakh). The reports also suggest that Samsung is expecting a decent demand with internal sales targets set at 100,000 units, treating the device as a stepping stone towards future smart glasses. If true, the device could become Apple's Vision Pro competitor, which retails in Korea for KRW 4.86 million (about Rs. 3.05 lakh), but still firmly in the premium category. Samsung is also reportedly working on a variety of wearable projects including a recently leaked AR focused Project Haean, showcased at Google I/O earlier this year. It is said to get a display free AI glasses which could resemble Meta Ray Ban glasses with speakers, camera and microphone. Also read: Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max available with over Rs 18,400 discount: How to grab this deal Speaking of the hardware, the device could get a 1.3-inch micro-OLED display boasting 3,800ppi, 90Hz refresh rate, 96 percent DCI-P3 colour coverage, and up to 1,000 nits brightness. The headset has also surfaced on Geekbench listing, featuring Qualcomm's Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chip paired with an Adreno 740 GPU, 16GB RAM, and Android 14 at its core. Do note that these are all leaks and we may have to wait for a few weeks to know more about the device.