HP has become the first company to preview hardware built with Google Beam, the 3D video communication technology formerly known as Project Starline. It’s launching the HP Dimension, a device that features a 65-inch light field display with six high-speed cameras inside the bezel to create “a true-to-life” 3D video of your caller.
Google first announced Project Starline’s rebrand last month. At the time, Google said that it would let third-party manufacturers, starting with HP, use its design framework to build devices with Beam. The HP Dimension is meant for enterprise use. It costs $24,999, and that doesn’t even include the software needed to hold video calls, as users will need to purchase a Google Beam license separately to gain access to Zoom or Google Meet. (HP and Google haven’t said how much a license will cost yet.)
As my colleague Alex Heath pointed out in a demo of Google Beam, you don’t need a headset, glasses, or any kind of special equipment to see a colleague as if they’re in the same room. Beau Wilder, HP’s head of future customer experiences, said you don’t need a special room either, but having a white background is best for an “optimal” experience.
“We’re not trying to put a caricature in a small box across the table from you,” Wilder said. “We want you to walk into the room and instantly make eye contact without even thinking about it.”
HP Dimension users will still be able to hold calls with people from other video conferencing platforms and devices, but their colleagues won’t be able to see their images projected in 3D — and vice versa. Along with a series of built-in cameras, the HP Dimension features adaptive lighting that “adjusts to the environment,” allowing users to see realistic shadows on facial features and natural skin tones.
The HP Dimension pairs its light field display with spatial audio that Wilder said “never separates the voice from the body.” It comes with HP’s new Poly Studio A2 table mics, as well as four speakers located behind its curved, “acoustically transparent” mid-wall for “a direct path to the ears.”
“The ultimate goal of Google Beam — and it’s manifested on HP Dimension — is to feel like you’re there,” Andrew Nartker, general manager of Google Beam, said during the briefing. “You feel just like you’re there at the table working together … It’s all meant to bring us together and ultimately feel like we’re completely physically present.”
The HP Dimension will launch in the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, and Japan later this year. Companies like Salesforce, Deloitte, and NEC Corporation have already committed to bringing Google Beam into their offices.
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