HoloLens: Microsoft is giving up on the mixed reality headset

Microsoft is putting an end to HoloLens. There will no longer be a successor to the HoloLens 2. All models of the high-end mixed reality headset sold so far, which once had such an ambitious start, will continue to receive critical updates for several years to come.

Big ambitions, high prices, quiet end

The software company Microsoft is ending the inglorious history of its virtual or augmented reality headset HoloLens, which was launched in a sensational manner almost ten years ago. Like the portal UploadVR Reportedly, the product line will end with the HoloLens 2, with Microsoft aiming to deliver updates by the end of 2027 to address “critical security and software issues” that may arise by then.

It is said that production of Microsoft’s AR headsets has definitely come to an end. According to the report, continued support will only be available for the second-generation HoloLens headset. Support for the first generation HoloLens, however, ends on December 10, 2024.

Is there a final hardware upgrade coming?

The end of HoloLens has been in the offing for years now. The HoloLens 2 was introduced in 2019 and, compared to the first generation model, which was first presented in 2015, offered an expanded field of view, a new Qualcomm processor and thus more performance as well as improved eye tracking.

HoloLens boss Alex Kipman, who was once considered a visionary in this area, left Microsoft in 2022 after massive allegations of misconduct against other employees on his team were made. Microsoft had already made fundamental changes to its hardware teams and their alignment in January 2023.

This meant, above all, a large number of layoffs, with additional employees having to leave in 2024. It is currently unclear whether there will be another new version of the HoloLens headset. The devices are primarily used in an industrial context, also because the costs have never reached a level that is acceptable for end customers. According to previous reports, Microsoft abandoned plans for a 3rd generation HoloLens some time ago.

However, the company later said that it was planning a significant upgrade to the hardware when the time was right. Meanwhile, the project around a special version of the HoloLens for the US Army continues.

The mixed reality headset called IVAS is now being continued in cooperation with a startup called Anduril Industries, which was founded by Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey. The project is repeatedly plagued by problems, but the US Army wants to continue to invest up to 21.9 billion dollars in the project in order to equip its soldiers with the headset.