Hold on a second, are we seriously talking about an Apple Vision Pro in black? Well, not exactly. Meet the Play For Dream MR, a headset that’s being dubbed the ‘Android Vision Pro’ due to its Android-based operating system. This new player definitely turned some heads at CES 2025 last week.
Originally launched in Asia last year, Play For Dream, a Chinese company, has aimed to introduce their Vision Pro-inspired mixed reality headset to a Western audience. They rolled out a Kickstarter campaign back in September and successfully raised HKD 2,271,650, which is around $292,000 USD.
The Play For Dream MR packs a punch with an impressive suite of modern XR features. Under the hood, it boasts a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset running on Android 15, dazzling dual 3,840 x 3,552 micro-OLED displays at 90Hz, eye-tracking technology, automatic IPD adjustments, and both wired and wireless PC streaming capabilities. Plus, it includes a rear-mounted battery and Touch-style controllers inspired by the Quest Pro.
In essence, this headset seems to have it all—even mimicking Vision Pro’s user interface quite effectively.
Putting aside where inspiration might have struck, former Quest engineer Amanda Watson shared her hands-on experience with the Play For Dream MR headset. She took to X, calling it “absolutely the best all-around HMD demo I saw on the floor today.”
Watson elaborates, describing it as, “quite literally an ‘Android Apple Vision Pro’, but executed brilliantly. Great performance, optics, UI, and media functions.” Watson, who left Meta in 2022, brings significant expertise, notably from her work on various Quest projects, including the tethered Link and Air Link, Meta’s Wi-Fi streaming tool. She was the sole developer behind Air Link for over a year before its release, so her commendations carry substantial weight.
She highlighted, “It has both USB and wireless PCVR streaming (I tested USB) — this was still a [work-in-progress] in terms of frame rate and latency, but such features are relatively recent developments. Fundamental aspects like controller motion were perfected, and the resolution was solid.”
Watson also praised the Touch-style controllers as “very good.” Although hand tracking is reportedly a feature, it wasn’t demonstrated at CES. She especially commended the headset’s pancake lenses, saying they offered “excellent distortion correction,” which she personally values highly.
Founded in 2020 under the moniker YVR, Play For Dream has previously launched two generations of standalone VR headsets, YVR 1 and YVR 2, in China in 2022.
As for when the Play For Dream MR will hit the market, we’re still waiting for a confirmed release date and pricing details. However, the company indicates it will be priced under $2,000. For those interested, visiting Play For Dream’s website might provide more specs and the chance to order when available.
