Introduction to the World of Virtual Technologies
- Adrian Bartoň
- Oct 27
- 1 min read
You may have already heard terms like VR, AR, or even MR – and now there’s another acronym in the mix: XR. What does it all mean? And how is anyone supposed to make sense of it?
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. In this article, I’ll explain in simple terms what each of these actually means and how they differ from one another.
XR (Extended Reality) is a general term for all technologies that combine or replace reality with digital content. It acts as an “umbrella” concept that covers:
VR (Virtual Reality) completely immerses you in a digital world — you put on a headset and suddenly find yourself in an entirely different reality where you can no longer see your surroundings. Everything you perceive is computer-generated — whether it’s a game, a simulation, or a virtual journey through space.
AR (Augmented Reality), on the other hand, combines the real world with digital elements. Using a headset or a mobile phone, you can still see your surroundings, but digital objects — such as 3D models, text, or animations — appear naturally integrated into the space around you.
MR (Mixed Reality) takes AR a step further. Digital elements not only appear in the real environment but can also interact with it — for example, a virtual object can bounce off a real table, or you can grab it and rotate it as if it were physically there.
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