Former Quest Engineer Praises Vision Pro Imitation

“Hold on, does the Apple Vision Pro come in black?” Nope, but the Play For Dream MR certainly does, and it’s causing quite a stir! Some are even dubbing it the “Android Vision Pro,” thanks to its Android-based OS. At CES 2025, this intriguing headset from Play For Dream, a company hailing from China, definitely drew some attention.

Having hit the Asian market last year, Play For Dream didn’t stop there. This ambitious headset maker quickly set its sights on the Western markets. Launched via a Kickstarter campaign in September, the Play For Dream MR raised an impressive 2.27 million Hong Kong dollars, which translates to about $292,000 USD.

So, what’s inside this little device? Well, quite a lot, actually. It’s equipped with a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset running Android 15, boasts dual 3,840 × 3,552 micro-OLED displays with a 90Hz refresh rate, and includes features like eye-tracking and auto IPD adjustment. It also offers both wired and wireless PC streaming and a rear-mounted battery inspired by the Quest Pro design along with some Touch-style controllers.

In essence, this headset seems to have it all—even a user interface reminiscent of the Vision Pro.

Putting design influences aside for a moment, Amanda Watson, a former Quest engineer, managed to get some hands-on time with the Play For Dream’s MR headset. She shared her thoughts on X, calling it “absolutely the best all-around HMD demo I saw on the floor today.”

“It’s essentially an ‘Android Apple Vision Pro,’ but executed very well. Impressive performance, clear optics, an intuitive UI, and excellent media capture and playback features,” said Watson. To give you some background, she left Meta in 2022 after working on several projects at the company, like the tethered Link and Air Link, Meta’s Wi-Fi streaming tool. She was the sole developer of Air Link for 13 months, so her positive words carry weight.

Regarding connectivity, Watson mentioned, “It supports both USB and wireless PCVR streaming (I tested with USB). While this feature is still a work-in-progress in terms of frame rate and latency, it’s relatively new. However, the basics like controller motion were spot-on, and the resolution was impressive.”

The team at Play For Dream didn’t stop there, offering high-quality Touch-style controllers. Though they mentioned hand tracking is an option, it wasn’t demonstrated. Their pancake lenses stood out with “excellent distortion correction,” which Watson noted as particularly crucial for her experience.

Founded under the name YVR in 2020, Play For Dream has already rolled out two generations of VR headsets, namely the YVR 1 and YVR 2, both of which debuted in China in 2022.

As for the Play For Dream MR’s launch, there’s no confirmed release date or pricing yet, but the company suggests it will cost under $2,000. Stay tuned to Play For Dream’s website for more details on specs and buying options as they become available.