Mozilla announced at CES this week that it’s bringing Firefox Reality, its VR web browser, to Pico headsets soon.
Launched in late 2018, Firefox Reality is a made-for-VR web browser that includes the ability to sync your Firefox Account, send tabs, sync history and bookmarks, and easily browse a curated selection of WebVR content.
Along with Firefox Reality comes Mozilla Hubs, the web-based social VR platform, both of which are said to arrive on all Pico headsets sometime in Q1 2020.
Hubs allows users to simply follow a hyperlink to quickly collaborate in a customized virtual space, replete with the ability to upload 3D assets, chat in VR, and share documents and photos. The web-based, low-poly social space is accessible to both VR headsets and desktop web browsers, making it potential tool for businesses looking for a quick way to shift in-person meetings from the physical to the virtual.
It seems with the upcoming release Mozilla is making a continued effort to widen its reach into the standalone headset segment, as it most recently brought Firefox Reality to Oculus Quest last summer. Firefox Reality already supports Oculus Go, HTC Vive Focus, and Google Daydream headsets, so its continued push to support newer headsets is a good sign of the overall health of the project. At the time of this writing Firefox Reality has yet to launch on Steam for PC VR headsets as it was previously announced in April 2019.
The announcement was timed with Pico’s unveiling of the 6DOF standalones Neo 2 and Neo 2 Eye on Monday. Like its name suggests, Neo 2 Eye includes integrated eye-tracking, so it will be interesting to see whether Mozilla will be accommodating that functionality into both the web browser itself as well as Hubs.
