Beam Pro is a fantastic accessory that allows you to watch 2D programs in 3D space. Although it looks like a telephone, it’s a small (and affordable) space computer that connects to your XREAL glasses. Plus, being able to create 3D videos and images is fun. Having an additional USB-C port on the bottom allows you to charge it while using it or connect some other accessory to it. Additionally, this means that your phone can be freely used as a phone while using Beam Pro. Some apps are complicated when used with Beam Pro, but updates can fix this problem.
Navigation is familiar thanks to nebulaOS founded on Android 14
Cheap for a computer
Works with “millions of applications”
Easy to use
1080p with up to 90Hz refresh rate
It offers decent battery life and saves phone battery life.
Perform work with computers, consoles, and handheld devices.
Some apps are in space mode.
Not very powerful
Earlier this year, I was able to experience XREAL products for the first time and learned firsthand why this augmented truth (AR) company has “the largest share of the global AR headset market in 2023” (thanks CNBC). Their AR glasses are very comfortable to wear, but historically require you to connect them to your phone, computer, or other device to work. In the case of a phone, this means it would take up the single USB-C port and drain the battery faster. Another challenge is that only some phone brands incorporate the proper internal parts that make the XREAL glasses compatible with the phone. For example, I love my Google Pixel 8, but it doesn’t have XREAL glasses.
To address those issues, the AR eyewear company has developed the Beam Pro, a standalone accessory that can run millions of apps without cutting off your phone’s power. Although it looks and behaves a lot like a smartphone, the Beam Pro is an affordable area. PC supplied with two cameras for taking 3D videos and photographs.
I spent over a week using the XREAL Beam Pro with a pair of XREAL Air 2 Pro glasses (as shown in our XREAL Air 2 Pro review). During this time, I used apps, played games, and took 3D videos of my pets. Here’s what I think of the XREAL space computing accessory.
This XREAL Beam Pro exam unit is provided through XREAL. The company did not have access to the contents of this magazine prior to its publication.
There are two Beam Pro configuration features to choose from: a Beam Pro with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of SSD for $199. 00 or a Beam Pro with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD for $249. 00. Both can be purchased on the XREAL website. When it comes to local computers, the value is incredibly low. You just want to compare Apple’s ridiculously expensive Vision Pro to the XREAL Air 2 Ultra and Beam Pro to see just how affordable the Beam Pro is. Even in terms of phone, the Beam Pro doesn’t charge as much for the configurations on offer.
We’ve already looked at the memory and storage options, but what about the Beam Pro’s other specs?The XREAL accessory comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with an Adreno 710 mobile GPU. One of the standout features of this phone-like device is the dual cameras on the back. They allow Beam Pro to capture 3D video in 4K. Meanwhile, the display itself is a 6. 5-inch LCD touchscreen that supports 2K and reaches a refresh rate of up to 90Hz.
There are two ports on the back of the Beam Pro. One is dedicated to the XREAL glasses, while the other can be used to rate the device or connect other accessories to it. You can even rate your phone by connecting it to USB-C. port on the XREAL Beam Pro.
XREAL ships Beam Pro to the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Czech Republic, China, Japan, and Korea. The company also plans to ship its products to other destinations in the future. -Orders began on July 15 and are expected to ship to consumers starting July 16.
Most people will be well catered for with the Beam Pro’s basic configuration of 6GB of RAM and 128GB of SSD. That’s plenty of space and strength to run smoothly without running out of space too quickly. If necessary, you can charge the charging area with a microSD card.
As soon as I took the XREAL Beam Pro out of the box, I realized it had smart quality. This device weighs a smart 204g (7. 2oz) without being too heavy. For context, that’s less than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, which weighs 8. 22 ounces (233g). While we’re at it, the Beam Pro (6. 41 x 2. 97 x 0. 39 inches) is also larger than the Galaxy S24 Ultra (6. 39 x 3. 11 x 0. 34 inches).
As for the rest of the Beam Pro’s design, the white frame looks wonderful and feels pretty sturdy in my hand. Looking at the back of the device, notice two cameras with a flashlight slot between them. These dual cameras allow me to capture 3D videos and photos whenever I am in a well-lit area. It’s also easy to see the screen outdoors as this 2K LCD screen is very bright, displays photos clearly, and looks very vibrant.
The control buttons are located on the left side of the device. There is an orange-red button, a volume button, and a strength button underneath. I’ll talk about this orange-red button in more detail later, but for now, it’s enough. to say that those controls are undeniable and responsive.
As for the ports, there are the two USB-C ports on the back that I mentioned earlier. One is intended for your XREAL glasses, while the other can be used to plug in the power adapter or some other accessory. This is huge because it means you can keep using the XREAL Beam Pro while charging it, which is a challenge when you’re wearing XREAL glasses with your phone. In addition, a microSD card slot on the side of the device makes it easy to load additional storage if needed.
Overall, the Beam Pro looks, feels, and functions a bit like a phone when connected to XREAL glasses. In particular, it runs nebulaOS, which is XREAL’s Android-14-based operating system. This familiarity with Android makes it very intuitive to use from the first step. The circular widget with the two black circles opens the camera when you tap it to quickly record videos or take photos.
I also have access to several Google apps directly from the home screen, but I can swipe to the right to access more rows of apps. Of course, I can move on to the Google Play Store and download more apps since most, if not all, are supported. Whether 3-D compatible or not, programs can be viewed in Beam Pro’s spatial computer mode, as it presents 2D programs in 3-D space.
Speaking of which, as soon as I connect the XREAL Air 2 Pro’s USB-C cable to the Beam Pro port, the device switches to PC area mode. The screens of the XREAL glasses show applications in a nice floating trend in front of my eyes, which simplifies everything.
The first time I plugged in my XREAL glasses, an instruction popped up showing me how to do everything in PC mode. All I have to do is shake the Beam Pro like a Nintendo Wii remote and then press the center of the Beam Pro’s screen to choose a program or interact with the settings. If I’m on a scrolling page, I swipe up and down to advance through the content of the page. Generally, those text messages are pretty simple to master right away.
If I need more options, I simply point the Beam Pro’s reticle away from the window and swipe up on the screen to bring up a menu. Swiping down removes this menu again. There were a few times where I lost sight or it wasn’t in sync with where I wanted it to be, but it’s easy to fix. If the reticle was calibrated in the middle of the screen, I simply point the phone forward. and press the Home button to remedy it.
Remember that red-orange button on the side of the Beam Pro? If the screen was focused the way I need it, I simply place my head at the desired angle and press the red-orange button to re-center the screen. By temporarily pressing this, you can also transfer between two demo modes: Body Anchor and Smooth Follow. Body Anchor means that the displayed screen will stay in one position, to the point that turning my head can remove the screen from my field of vision. This is ideal when you are sitting in the same position and not moving.
Meanwhile, Smooth Follow is wonderful for when you’re in a moving vehicle or on the pass. This mode allows the screen to stay in front of your eyes no matter which direction you turn, but does so in a smooth way to save money. You’ll enjoy viewing without it being choppy or jarring. As an example, I tested the Beam Pro Smooth Follow mode while doing laundry and putting away dishes. No matter which way I turned, the screen displaying my Netflix screen was in front of me without causing any discomfort to my eyes. Overall, it is a very undeniable control device.
In space mode, I spent time watching shows, interacting with free apps from the XREAL store, and playing various video games while using my phone or an Xbox console. I can even connect a wireless mouse using a USB-C dongle and stuff like that. Everything works very well without problems. Plus, connecting wireless accessories is a breeze thanks to the Beam Pro’s Bluetooth. However, since the device doesn’t have cellular data, you’ll need to be connected to Wi-Fi to access the Internet. This made it difficult to use while traveling.
Arguably the most complicated part of using Beam Pro is entering text. Some apps display an on-screen keyboard that’s easy to interact with, but others require you to look at the Beam Pro screen and use a keyboard displayed there. Every time this happened, it took me out of the viewing experience and I felt quite uncomfortable having to awkwardly look at the AR specs. This is something that can be consistent over time with updates, if the developers decide to work on it.
As mentioned earlier, Beam Pro allows me to take videos and photographs in 2D or 3D. To check out the two 50MP True 3-D cameras, I took several videos indoors and outdoors with my pets. While I was in the park at noon with my dog Penny, the camera captured the perfect colors and sharp details.
However, the video camera had more problems than the indoor camera, providing more pixelated and blurry symbols when there wasn’t enough light in a room. I’ve included an example of this in the stencil above, where a photo of my cat, Sabrina, taken in a dark room, is less difficult to see than a video of my cat taken immediately after. This brightness in the dark challenge is nothing unusual, but it’s smart to be aware of it. As long as you capture stills and videos in sufficient light, the 4K solution allows for transparent captures and colorful colors.
Rewatching a 3D video I made or seeing a 3D photo I took while wearing the XREAL glasses is great, but the visual delight feels a little unnatural. The feeling is no different when my eyes have to focus more on one of those 2D autostereogram visual puzzles that create an optical phantom of intensity. In a way, that’s precisely what’s happening here. Each eyeglass lens features one of the camera captures, but because they’re at a different angle, this creates the ghost of intensity when you focus properly.
XREAL recommends keeping items 3 to 8 feet away from cameras when recording or capturing for the most productive experience. I can attest to that. In some of my videos my corgi has walked away or gotten too close to the camera, and it’s in those conditions that it doesn’t look as 3-d in the videos.
For a more quantitative read on performance, I ran Geekbench 6 on the Beam Pro to check CPU and GPU performance. In the CPU test, the Beam Pro only scored a 960 single-core score and a 2,783 multicore score. It’s pretty low when compared against the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s 2,172 single-core score and 6,782 multicore score. Really, what this all tells you is that the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 processor and Qualcomm Adreno 710 inside the Beam Pro don’t provide the most powerful mobile experience, but it is stable enough to work well for most of the spatial experiences the device is intended for.
When it comes to battery life, one of the main reasons XREAL created the Beam Pro is to solve the battery drain challenge that glasses cause in cell phones. Now, thanks to the Beam Pro, there’s a separate device with plenty of power so you can use your telephone as a telephone and the Beam Pro as an area PC. The Beam Pro can last around 3 and a half hours when used as an area PC or can last more than 24 hours when used more like a regular telephone.
To check the battery life, I spent a day walking around with the Beam Pro in my pocket and took it out every time I went to use my Pixel 8. Having a phone-shaped device in either pocket is strange and time-consuming. . space when you wear feminine jeans with small pockets, but it’s doable. The Beam Pro lasted all day without problems and without running dangerously low on power. When I was getting ready to go to bed, I checked and found that there was still more than 60% battery left, which is past.
Overall, the Beam Pro works very well and has a clever design. However, this is not suitable for everyone.
Personally, I tend to wear XREAL glasses with my laptop, computer, and gaming handhelds a lot more than I do with my phone. However, Beam Pro is only suitable for improving the cellular user experience. As such, it’s only useful for other people who, in particular, need to wear AR glasses with a cellular device.
Plus, it’s just as easy to interact with some apps on the Beam Pro as it is on regular phones. I’ve already mentioned that it’s harder to enter text in spatial mode when using certain apps, but betting on some mobile games can also be tricky on Beam Pro.
For example, I downloaded some Netflix games like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. This particular game features on-screen mobile controls that you need to get your hands on. However, since Beam Pro switches to area mode when connected to the glasses, those controls do not appear on the Beam Pro panel. As such, I had to use the scope to press all the attack buttons and buttons on the D-pad, which made the game much more choppy and complicated to play. play. Sure, you may be able to fix this problem with an Xbox controller, but not everyone has one. Also, not all mobile games offer controller support. If you need to increase your chances of controller compatibility, you can still access to express game installs like Xbox Game Pass games along with the Beam Pro and XREAL glasses.
In fact, the Beam Pro’s only genuine competitor also comes from XREAL in the form of the XREAL Beam. As you can see from the naming convention, this is the precursor accessory to the Beam Pro, but the difference is that it doesn’t have a screen or cameras; Of course, this means that you can’t shoot 3D videos. The lack of those features makes this accessory particularly less expensive than the Beam Pro. At the time of writing, the XREAL Beam retails for $119. 00 on Amazon.
After the days I spent with Beam Pro and XREAL Air 2 Ultra, I can say that this new XREAL accessory complements the cellular user experience. I didn’t have to worry about my phone getting tired after prolonged use and it offers solid functionality. able to handle spatial computing tasks. Also, I had a good laugh making 3D videos and photographs, and then checking the optical ghost with my XREAL glasses.
Being able to look at screens while walking and doing housework makes the experience much faster. Plus, Beam Pro’s Smooth Follow mode makes the experience greater for your eyes. This device may not work perfectly with all apps, but it can. makes it more convenient to use some while using AR specs.
This accessory allows you to access your AR and 3D programs without draining your phone’s battery. Simply plug in your XREAL glasses and you’re ready to go. It runs on Android and has 3D cameras that allow you to capture 3D videos.
Rebecca Spear, a self-proclaimed gaming expert, is one of the editors and reviewers of Windows Central and focuses on handhelds, PC games, and laptops. When you’re not watching the newest games on Xbox Game Pass, PC, ROG Ally, or Steam Deck; She can be discovered by drawing digitally with a Wacom tablet. He has written thousands of articles ranging from editorials, reviews, trailers, features, advancements, and hardware reviews over the past few years. If you want information on any gaming-related topic, their articles can help. He also likes to try out gaming accessories and any new generation that exists on the market. You can follow his @rrspear on X (formerly Twitter).
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