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On a business trip to New York, I did what any reckless geek would do: splurge on a tech product.
The Samsung Galaxy XR isn’t available in France yet, but I wasn’t about to wait for it to be available in Europe before getting my hands on what’s touted as the anti-Vision Pro.
I’m a VR and XR enthusiast: I have a Quest 3 lying around on my desk, I use Xreal One glasses on planes, and I’ve seen my colleagues Nicolas, Cassim, and Arnaud rave (or not) about Apple’s headset. But now, it’s my turn.
The product isn’t localized for France, but to my surprise: it’s fully usable in French right from the start. However, a small but significant detail for the rest of this story: I didn’t get the pack with the controllers. Yes, at $1800 entry price, Samsung also sells the controllers separately. So, I’m offering a “hands-free” experience, after 72 hours of testing.
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Technical Specifications
| Specifications | Samsung Galaxy XR |
| Screens | Micro OLED 4K per eye, 90 Hz, FOV 110° |
| Chip | Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 |
| RAM / Storage | 16 GB / 256 GB |
| Weight | 528 g (without external battery) |
| Battery | External (wired mandatory), ~2h30 of autonomy |
| OS | Android XR with Play Store |
| Sensors | 4 tracking cameras, 2 RGB (Passthrough), Depth |
| Paid Price | $1799 excluding tax (without controllers) |
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Unboxing and Setup
The box is bulky, but what immediately strikes is the number of accessories provided… except the ones we really want. Inside, you’ll find the headset, an external battery (which looks like a standard Samsung power bank but with a proprietary connector similar to USB-C), a 45W charger, and a fairly long braided USB-C cable.
The initial visual impression is mixed: it looks a bit more “plastic” than the Vision Pro, but it feels sturdy. It’s typical Samsung: efficient, industrial, no frills.
The attachment system is intriguing. Unlike most headsets that squeeze your face like a suction cup, the Galaxy XR has a rigid headband that rests on the top of your forehead. There’s a dial at the back for tightening. When you put it on, magic happens: nothing touches the nose or cheekbones. The screen floats in front of your eyes. It’s disorienting at first, but it’s an absolute relief for anyone who has ever sweated under the foam of a Quest.
However, you have to manage “The Beast”: this external battery. The cable clips to the side of the headset with a somewhat fussy locking mechanism. Once plugged in, you have this wire dangling down your shoulder, heading towards your pocket. The battery itself is dense, decently weighted. You mustn’t forget it’s there when you get up suddenly, otherwise, it’s sure to cause drama.
Adjustment is a matter of millimeters. Since the optics are “Pancake” lenses, the sweet spot (the area of sharpness) is broad, but you need to position the headset correctly for text to be clear. Samsung provides magnetic light blockers (“light blockers”) to close off peripheral vision if you want to isolate yourself. Without them, you can see your feet and the walls on the sides. It’s an “open” approach by default that changes everything: you’re not cut off from the world.
The setup is like setting up an Android smartphone (preferably Samsung, but it works with others).
A QR Code scan, and voila, your Google account is transferred. No need for painful password entry on a virtual keyboard. In five minutes, I was in the interface, ready to dive in. It’s smooth, it’s guided, it’s clean. You can tell Google and Samsung have worked hard on user onboarding (“onboarding”). In short, it feels a lot like a smartphone.
Let’s take a tour of the owner, as the physical ergonomics hold some surprises. On the upper edge of the visor, there’s a classic volume toggle and a multifunction “action button”. A simple press opens the launcher, a long press summons Gemini. They’re perfectly positioned under the index finger, with a reassuring and distinct click. In terms of connectivity, aside from the proprietary side port for the battery, Samsung has hidden an extra USB-C port behind a small magnetic flap on the other arm. It’s clever for connecting accessories or transferring data without unplugging the power, but good luck opening it without nails. And of course, don’t expect a wired jack for sound.
The front face is a real festival of sensors, giving it a cybernetic spider look. There are no fewer than four wide-angle cameras at the corners for environmental tracking (6DoF), two high-definition RGB cameras in the center for color Passthrough, and a depth sensor (ToF) to manage hand occlusion.
It’s technically impressive, but aesthetically, it’s very “surveillance”. Samsung has also integrated a flicker sensor to prevent LED lights or screens around you from flickering in mixed reality mode.
Finally, the inside is just as packed. The Pancake lenses are surrounded by eye tracking rings (Eye Tracking) essential for foveated rendering (which improves sharpness where you look). The facial interface, i.e., the fabric part that touches (or brushes against) your forehead, is held by quite strong magnets.
It detaches in a second for cleaning, which is excellent news for hygiene, especially if you plan to let your friends try out the beast. You’ll also notice the discreet ventilation grilles on the top: yes, there’s a fan in there, and as we’ll see later, it’s not always quiet.
My First Impressions
Let’s start with the most important point: comfort. In fact, you don’t realize this if you haven’t tried another headset. The fact that the headset doesn’t touch the face changes everything. I was able to wear it for two hours straight without having that red bar on my forehead or feeling like my sinuses were compressed. The air circulates, and you don’t sweat from your eyes. By far, it’s the most comfortable headset I’ve worn for a seated session.
But there’s a huge “but”: the rear headrest. Samsung placed the tightening dial and the balancing battery right behind the skull. Result? It’s impossible to rest your head against a sofa back, a pillow, or an airplane seat. It’s a fairly serious design flaw for a device meant to let you watch movies. You have to keep your head straight, in the air. So much for relaxation.
The image quality is breathtaking. Coming from a Quest 3 (which is already good), the leap to Micro OLED is stark. The colors are vibrant, the blacks are absolute. The Android XR interface is crisp, precise. You forget about the technology and focus on the content.
Let’s talk about this cable. I hate it. In 2025, being tethered to a brick in your pocket feels like a step backward. You get your arm caught in it, it pulls on the side of the headset if you move too much. And the battery life… 2h30 at most. That’s little. Barely enough time to watch a Marvel movie (and not even the extended version). You spend your time watching the battery percentage. For professional use, it’s a constraint.
The noise of the fans is audible. In the quiet of my hotel room, I hear a constant hum above my eyes. It’s not a blower, but it’s there. I felt like someone was vacuuming in the hotel corridor. When you’re watching a movie, it’s okay, but for reading an article in peace, it’s a white noise you’d rather not have at this price.
The lack of controllers is a real pity. I weigh my words. Selling an XR system without a precise means of interaction for gaming is stingy. Maybe I say this because I come from the Quest 3. Hand tracking is good for navigation, but it lacks haptic feedback, precision for quick actions. You feel limited, as if you bought a console and had to play with the TV remote.
The software is promising but still young. I’ve encountered bugs. Windows that won’t close, tracking that drops if I put my hands too low, audio that skips. It’s stable 95% of the time, but the remaining 5% reminds you that this is a first version. Android XR is powerful, but sometimes lacks polish and “magic” in the animations.
Heat management is well done. The headset gets warm in the front, but since it doesn’t touch the face, you don’t feel it. It’s a major strength compared to the competition. You don’t feel like you have a toaster on your nose.
The integrated audio is okay, nothing more. It lacks bass. For immersion, you need Bluetooth earphones (no Jack socket, obviously). It’s a shame because with such a beautiful image, you want big sound. Here, it’s the sound of a good smartphone, not a home cinema.
Finally, a point for the “glasses team” of which I am a proud member. I wear glasses daily, and usually, VR is a nightmare: the frames press against the temples, the lenses touch the glasses, it’s hell. Here, I tried the unthinkable: I took them off before putting on the headset. And surprise… I didn’t need them. I don’t know if it’s the focal distance of the Pancake lenses that is particularly tolerant or if Samsung has performed some optical black magic, but I could see perfectly clearly without my glasses. It might be specific to my prescription, but what a joy not to have glasses frames squeezed between the skull and the headset for 3 days.
Let’s Start the Adventure
The experience starts with “Passthrough,” and this is where the term XR (Extended Reality) really makes sense. Unlike classic VR where you’re blind, here, the system scans your room and overlays digital elements with unsettling stability.
I placed a giant YouTube window on the wall of my hotel room and a Chrome window on the bedside table. I left, came back an hour later: they hadn’t moved an inch. You quickly feel like a digital interior decorator, transforming an empty space into a command center worthy of Minority Report.
Managing windows is a guilty pleasure. You grab an application by “looking” at it (staring at it), pinch your fingers, and move it. You can resize them on the fly, from a vertical smartphone format to an IMAX cinema canvas by spreading your hands. Android XR handles this better than I expected: the windows curve slightly to remain readable. It’s smooth, it’s natural, and it gives a quite exhilarating sense of power, even if you look ridiculous from the outside waving your arms in the air.
But the magic really happens when you decide to leave the real world. A double tap on the right arm (or a slider in the menu) and voila, the real world fades away to make room for a virtual environment (a mountain, a desert, or outer space). The transition is smooth, immersive. It’s perfect for isolating yourself on a plane or in a noisy open space. You switch from “augmented reality” to “virtual reality” in a fraction of a second, and the level of detail in Samsung’s environments is polished enough that you’ll want to stay there.
The major advantage over Apple is app compatibility. It’s simple: it’s the Play Store. You’re not limited to three demo apps. I’ve installed my everyday apps: Slack, Gmail… They display in 2D, like on a giant floating tablet. Granted, they’re not all “spatial” (they don’t
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Maya Singh is a senior editor covering tablets and hybrid devices. Her work explores how these tools reshape digital productivity and learning. She also contributes to feature editorials on emerging tech.