OpenXR is an open-source library developed by The Khronos Group’s Virtual Reality Standards Organization (VRSO) designed to standardize the way XR applications are developed across platforms. OpenVR is similar and more of an open standard that allows any computer with a standard PC graphics card to be used for development and distribution of virtual reality content.
Use OpenXR Makes App Development Easier
Using OpenXR, developers will be able to more easily write one set of code that would run on any platform.
On the other hand, OpenVR is an open standard that allows any computer with a standard PC graphics card to be used for development and distribution of virtual reality content.
This saves money over proprietary standards because companies do not have to develop different content, release several versions of the same game, and worry about customers only being able to run specific types of games on their PCs.
Using OpeVR saves money over proprietary standards because companies do not have to develop different content, release several versions of the same game, and worry about customers only being able to run specific types of games on their PCs.
Similarities And Differences Between OpenXR And OpenVR
OpenXR is an API intended to be a direct competitor to OpenVR. Both are intended to provide a single API that works across multiple headsets and controllers.
Unlike OpenVR, OpenXR is not a trademarked product of a particular company, but an open-standard free to use platform used by any entity that wishes to use it.
OpenXR is currently not a ratified standard and is releasing in “pre-release” as of this writing. OpenVR is a trademarked product of Valve Corporation, released as a closed-source, proprietary platform designed to be used with Valve’s own hardware.
OpenVR is currently the leading VR API in use today and is the primary API used by the OpenVR SDK from Valve.
Difference Between OpenVR and OpenXR Compatible Devices
This is a question that is asked quite often, since the two are often confused. Many times, the two are used interchangeably. However, the two are significantly different.
The OpenVR and OpenXR both are competitive standards: they are both open source codebases that allow developers to create a broad range of devices that would be compatible with virtual reality or augmented reality.
OpenXR is a standard that allows for virtual and augmented reality devices to be connected. The OpenVR is a standard that allows for virtual reality devices to be connected.
Platforms Supported By OpenXR
- Windows Mixed Reality
- HoloLens 2
- Oculus
- SteamVR
Platforms Supported By OpenVR
- Windows PC
- PlayStation 5
- PlayStation 4
- Xbox Series X
- Xbox One
- Nintendo Switch
- Google Stadia
- macOS
- iOS
- Android
- AR
- VR
- Linux
- SteamOS
- HTML5
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – OpenVR Versus OpenXR
How Is OpenXR Compatible With OpenVR?
OpenXR is compatible with OpenVR. OpenXR is a standard that is cross-platform and hardware agnostic. It is a proposed standard that will be a successor to both OpenVR and OpenMR, and will be designed to allow for greater flexibility in virtual and augmented reality, and to lower the cost for businesses to develop VR and AR software.
How is OpenXR better than OpenVR?
Robots using VR to experience the world have been a mixture of life imitates art and imagination.
From Star Wars to Small Wonder, viewers tend to equate robots with autonomous physical agents but they often forget that most robots are in fact very similar to virtual assistants and AI in form such as HAL 9000 (1981) or Cortana (2016) – invisible, disembodied and embedded as agents into vast computational networks.
In contrast, the OpenXR standard for Virtual Reality will lower the cost for businesses wanting to create VR software by making it more readily available and accessible on a much wider variety of devices from PCs and game consoles like PS4 Pro and Xbox One X which were released last year.
A proposed standard rather than a complete or finished product within this new system, it is nonetheless set to replace both OpenVR and OpenMR when ready.
How Is OpenXR Used With The Unreal Engine?
Unreal Engine, by default, has an OpenXR plugin which promotes and allows for Virtual Reality compatibility with various devices.
The developer is able to add functionality to the OpenXR plugin through extension plugins of their own so long as they may do so without placing any reliance on engine updates.
There are a variety of OpenXR extension plugins that are currently available in Unreal Engine, some of which include the following: OpenXRHandTracking, XRVisualization, OpenXREyeTracker, OpenXRMsftHandInteraction, HP Motion Controller, and Oculus OpenXR.
