At the recent foldable-focused Galaxy Unpacked event, Samsung and Google teased that we'd finally see the results of their XR partnership “this year,” and it looks like things are on track, as performance scores for the Samsung XR earbuds have seemingly leaked on Geekbench. If the leak is correct, the device looks set to be a genuine Apple Vision Pro rival, which could feature some AI integration.
While the Geekbench score isn’t explicitly labeled as something like a “Samsung VR headset,” this is a device called the Samsung SM-I130 — a designation that a leaker attached to the Samsung headset back in January. Additionally, the CPU information listed as a 2.36GHz 6-core processor would match the only known hardware detail on the Samsung headset: that it uses a Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2.
The Samsung earbuds' reliance on Qualcomm's Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 was teased by Qualcomm itself, and the chipset is a 6-core processor, the cores of which can run at up to 2.4GHz.
As for new details, the leak says the device has 16GB of RAM. That’s the same amount as the Apple Vision Pro and double what you’d find in the Meta Quest 3. Not only will this help XR apps and experiences run more smoothly, but I suspect it will make AI integration easier.
Improved RAM was the most notable upgrade to Google’s Pixel phones at its recent Google Pixel 9 event (the Pixel 9 received 12GB and the Pixel 9 Pro models received 16GB), and the reason behind this upgrade was AI. More RAM means the phones can do more with Google’s on-device Gemini AI, so results are faster and your data doesn’t have to be shared with a server off-device, making it more private.
With 16GB of its own RAM, the Samsung XR buds could theoretically perform many of the same tricks we've seen on the Pixel 9 Pro.
Considering Apple and Meta aren't yet leveraging their AI platforms in a meaningful way with their XR devices (with the exception of the Meta AI integration of the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses, though to be fair, they're not XR glasses), having Google and Samsung focus on Gemini would be a smart way to stand out from the crowd and make the upgraded hardware worthwhile.
We also have confirmation that the device will run a version of Android 14. This again supports my AI theory, as Gemini is a key part of the latest Android OS, but otherwise, it’s not surprising or really noteworthy. Meta’s own HorizonOS is a derivative of Android, and since Android is Google’s own OS, it’s not a surprise that Google would adapt the latest version to run on the VR headset it’s helping to create.
As with all leaks, we should take these details with a grain of salt – until either Google or Samsung says something official, there’s no guarantee what specs the Samsung XR earbuds will offer. Regardless of whether the leak is correct, we shouldn’t have to wait too much longer for the device to be revealed – the end of 2024 is fast approaching, putting a time limit on Samsung’s “this year” promise, and our bet is that we’ll see something in just over a month at Samsung’s Developer Conference, which is scheduled for October 3, 2024. Whenever it is announced, you can rest assured that we’ll be ready to fill you in on all the important XR details.
