The ThinkReality A3 data glasses from Lenovo are designed to increase productivity in the office – by displaying up to five virtual monitors that can be used in the same way as conventional screens. A Windows PC coupled via USB-C plays these virtual displays. The A3 glasses cannot be operated independently, you either have to connect a PC (“PC Edition”) or, in the “Industry Edition”, a Motorola smartphone with at least one SoC of the Snapdragon – 800 coupling the series and the DisplayPort function. Lenovo recommends the headset not only for setting up virtual monitors, but also for remote maintenance (“Remote Expert”) and 3D visualization.

The currently technically most advanced, but also 3800 Euro expensive augmented reality headset Microsoft Hololens 2 (c’t test, fee-based) can convince virtual displays spatially build into the real world; In other words: When you look through the glasses, it really looks as if a screen is hanging on the wall, for example. A test has to show whether and how well the ThinkReality A3 can do this, in the announcement Lenovo speaks at least of room-filling tracking with dual fisheye cameras.

Under the hood: Qualcomm Snapdragon XR1 The ThinkReality A3 glasses are under 130 Weight light, Lenovo specifies the resolution as “Binocular 1080 p”. In addition to the two ultra-wide-angle tracking cameras, an 8-megapixel RGB camera as well as speakers and microphone are installed. As a hardware platform, the A3 uses the XR-1 system from Qualcomm, which is designed for low-cost AR / VR headsets. This is a Snapdragon optimized for glasses 820 / 821 without smartphone-specific components such as a modem. For comparison: The Hololens 2 uses the much more powerful Snapdragon 850 Mobile Compute Platform with Microsoft’s own graphics unit (“Holographic Processing Unit 2.0”) – does not require a connected PC or smartphone.

The 2019 Lenovo’s ThinkReality A6 data glasses presented have a Snapdragon 845 on board, which is in the “Compute Box” provided. You can’t connect a computer or smartphone to the A6 glasses any more than to the Hololens.

According to Lenovo Mitte, the ThinkReality A3 should 2021 come on the market. A price has not yet been determined.

(jkj)