Samsung Galaxy XR comes to the UK at last – it's squeaky bum time for Apple Vision Pro
UK preorders open for Samsung's Android XR headset
Quick Summary
The Samsung Galaxy XR arrives in the UK for the first time, with preorders starting today.
The headset directly rivals Apple Vision Pro and is the first to run on the Android XR platform.
Samsung has finally brought its premium Android XR headset to the UK, with preorders now being accepted and shipping expected to start on 8 July 2026.
The Samsung Galaxy XR was released at the tail end of 2025 in the US and South Korea, so it's taken a while to reach the UK too. However, it could be that Brits are the lucky ones, as many of the initial bugs may well have been ironed out by now.
The Galaxy XR is the first headset to launch using Google's Android XR platform. It was designed in collaboration between Samsung, Google and Qualcomm – which provides the Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset. There's 16GB of RAM on board, along with 256GB of storage.
Although we don't have a final price at the time of writing, the headset is priced at $1,799.99 in the US – similar to the Apple Vision Pro, which is seen as a direct rival.
That puts it in a totally different category to the Meta Quest 3 and 3S, and the specifications support that step-up.
The display in particular is super high-end. You get a 3552 x 3840 resolution on a Micro-OLED panel. This results in 27 millions pixels in view, so images are super sharp.
It is also capable of refresh rates up to 90Hz, with a 109-degree horizontal field-of-view.
There are two high-resolution passthrough cameras on board, along with six front-facing tracking cameras. Inside the visor you also get four eye-tracking cameras, which helps make the experience more natural and limit motion sickness.
There are dual two-way speakers built-in, to provide stereo sound without needing headphones, and beamforming microphones for chat and voice recognition capabilities.
Battery life lasts up to two hours on a charge with normal use, and like the Apple Vision Pro it's a separate pack that is connected to the headset. You can also use the Galaxy XR while the battery is charging.
Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 are supported, and the whole headset weighs 545g. Prescription lenses are also available separately for glasses wearers.
"The UK launch of Galaxy XR marks a significant milestone for Samsung, introducing a new category of AI-native devices," said Samsung UK's vice president of product and marketing, Annika Bizon.
"Our ongoing collaboration with Google and Qualcomm Technologies reflects our long-held belief that an open ecosystem accelerates innovation and creates seamless, connected experiences across the Galaxy ecosystem."
Samsung will also launch its first smart glasses later this year, also in collaboration with Google.
