[Here’s an idea: Get rid of the headset and glasses all together. This first-person Mashable report from the 2023 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas explores some of the new options for high resolution 3D displays that can evoke presence without having to be worn on your head. See the original story for three different images and a 49 second video (also available on YouTube) about the Brelyon Fusion; the Brelyon press release is available from PR Newswire and there’s more information on the company’s website.  –Matthew] CES 2023: The future of Metaverse and VR depends on these glasses-free…

[The recent study described in this story from Psychology Today focuses on a type of presence phenomenon Matt Jones and I identified in a 2015 book chapter (and supplementary interactive online figure) as parapresence, a “perception that a person or entity is physically present in one’s environment when they are not, and could not logically be, present.” While it can be evoked using technology (e.g., complex magnetic fields), in this case technology is not involved. Aside from being fascinating, the parapresence in this story is a good reminder of how malleable our perceptions of reality can be. –Matthew] What It…

[As reported in this CNBC story, the ABBA Voyage concert experience that features 3D digital avatars of the music group performing in a dedicated arena in London has been a huge success and, despite some significant challenges, is expected to lead to more presence experiences that simulate live musical performances. See the original story for five more images and a 2:16 minute video. –Matthew] [Image: View of the ABBA Arena on May 26, 2022 in London, England. Credit: Dave J Hogan / Getty Images] ABBA’s successful avatar show in London offers a glimpse at a daring new direction for live…

[It may seem basic, especially for those familiar with the work of scholars like Short, Williams and Christie (specifically their 1976 book The social psychology of telecommunications), but this story from The Irish Times describes new research and a new framework that demonstrates how to best match the purpose, content and other characteristics of a meeting to the most appropriate level of presence and therefore mode (from audio conference to telepresence to face-to-face). See the original story for an additional picture and read the new article in Business Horizons, “Business meetings in a postpandemic world: When and how to meet…

[With heavy, uncomfortable headsets and even glasses a major source of interference with presence. there’s long been talk of a contact lens or other eye-based alternative technology. This short story from Futurism’s The Byte and the excerpts from a Futurism interview that follow it don’t provide too many details but they reinforce the hope not only for improving the prospects of restoring vision with prosthetic eyes but eventually creating “the ultimate AR/VR display technology.” –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Getty / Futurism] Neuralink Cofounder Says New Company’s Eye Implant Could Be “Ultimate” VR Tech “We Think We See a Way To Create…

[As some of us have with presence and presence-related terminology, the author of this essay in VentureBeat argues that we need to “tame the jargon” related to mixed and virtual reality and the metaverse. While the essay doesn’t credit the people who developed the “reality-virtuality continuum,” it provides useful insights about design considerations for current and future presence experiences. Here’s the missing citation (you can download the article from ResearchGate): Milgram, P., Takemura, H., Utsumi, A., & Kishino, F. (December 21, 1995). “Augmented reality: A class of displays on the reality-virtuality continuum.” Proceedings of SPIE 2351, Telemanipulator and Telepresence Technologies.…