小米推出廉價版虛擬現實頭盔
Xiaomi has joined the virtual reality land-grab with a cheap smartphone-based headset, the Mi VR Play, which pits the Chinese mobile maker against its sometime partner Google and further hampers Facebook’s hopes of dominating the VR market with its Oculus headsets.
中國手機制造商小米(Xiaomi)發佈了基於智能手機的廉價虛擬現實(VR)頭盔——小米VR眼鏡玩具版(Mi VR Play)，與曾經的合作伙伴谷歌(Google)展開對壘，同時會進一步遏制Facebook以Oculus頭盔稱霸VR市場的希望。
More than 1m consumers have already signed up to test Xiaomi’s headset, available as a beta version in China practically free of cost at Rmb1 ($0.15). It will be tested by “tens of thousands” of users, according to a spokesperson, before a full launch in coming months. Partners contributing content to its Mi VR app include glossy magazine Condé Nast Traveller and Chinese video side Youku.
申請小米VR頭盔公測的用戶已超過百萬，中國用戶只需支付1元人民幣（合0.15美元）就能獲得測試版，這幾乎相當於免費。小米新聞發言人表示，小米VR頭盔將接受數萬名用戶測試，幾個月後再正式發佈。向其小米VR應用貢獻內容的合作伙伴包括時尚雜誌《悅遊》(Condé Nast Traveller)以及中國視頻平臺優酷(Youku)。
The headset, made of Lycra, requires a compatible smartphone, either iOS or Android, of 4.7in to 5.7in. It is being marketed as an affordable entry-level product.
小米VR頭盔採用了萊卡棉材質，需配備一部4.7到5.7英寸的iOS或Android智能手機。其市場定位是價格實惠的入門級產品。
Xiaomi’s low-priced entry comes just days after Samsung updated its headset, and puts it in competition with Google’s efforts to build a VR platform called Daydream.
就在小米推出這款廉價入門級產品的幾天前，三星(Samsung)剛升級了它自己的VR頭盔，以此與谷歌打造的“白日夢”VR平臺(Daydream VR)一爭高下。
As recently as May, Xiaomi pledged to build devices that support the nascent Daydream standard, alongside Samsung, HTC and LG. Despite its competitive headset launch, Xiaomi confirmed it still planned to partner with Google to develop Daydream-ready Android phones this year.
就在5月份時，小米還承諾要與三星、HTC和LG一道打造支持新興的“白日夢”標準的設備。雖然小米推出了與這一標準競爭的頭盔，但它證實自己仍計劃與谷歌合作，在今年開發符合“白日夢”標準的Android手機。
In China, the VR market remains in its infancy, with a dominant headset maker still to emerge. The domestic market size for Chinese VR is expected to cross Rmb55bn by 2020, according to Chinese research group iiMedia.
中國VR市場處於起步階段，仍未涌現出一個可以稱霸市場的頭盔製造商。中國研究公司艾媒諮詢(iiMedia)的數據顯示，到2020年時，中國VR市場規模有望突破550億元人民幣。
