2018 has been the year of innovations, with some of the groundbreaking technologies announced by Apple, Google, uSens, and Kaaya Tech among others. With companies vying to deliver the best virtual reality experience to the users, Mozilla has also brought another solution to the ever-expanding VR and AR arena. The company recently shared the news of a cross-platform browser, Firefox Reality that could completely shift the dynamics of internet access.
“We believe that the future of the web will be heavily intertwined with virtual and augmented reality, and that future will live through browsers. That’s why we’re building Firefox Reality, a new kind of web browser that has been designed from the ground up to work on stand-alone virtual and augmented reality (or mixed reality) headsets.”
~ Sean White, Chief R&D Officer at Mozilla
Although there are other solutions for web browsing and access on stand-alone headsets, they are platform specific and closed. Firefox Reality, however, supports a broad range of devices and platforms and will work independently. By making it compatible with all headsets, Mozilla aims to make it easier for the manufacturers to add the browser to their platform.
The advancement in any technological avenues has always raised one common red flag: what about user privacy? As a company that takes their user privacy very seriously, Mozilla adds an additional layer of transparency for its users and commits to providing even more protection than their native apps.
The leaps and bounds made by immersive technologies have raised the bar for the future as it’s no longer just about building apps but to deliver the experience. Thinking forward, moving from one experience to another will most likely become a common experience. With WebVR laying the groundwork, Mozilla wants to remove any friction during this transition while creating and delivering immersive experiences.
The general belief may lean towards thinking VR browsers as portals for 2D web pages, but by using standards like WebVR they can also launch 360-degree videos or full VR experiences hosted online. The reveal of Firefox Reality implies a vote of confidence by the company in virtual reality and its potential to an otherwise device-specific and closed VR platforms.