A detail that almost escaped our radar after the release of build 14971 of Windows 10 under the Insider program is the presence of an app called "Windows Holographic First Run". The software represents part of the effort Redmond is making to optimize its concept of virtual reality (or rather mixed reality), and although it is at a very early stage of development, it has already revealed what the company considers to be the minimum hardware requirements.
Windows 10 and virtual reality have had several dates in recent months, and everything seems to indicate that they will reach a much more serious commitment. Microsoft will make a very big bet with its Creator’s Update (also known as Redstone 2), and if we are guided by the announcements the company made last month, virtual reality will occupy a privileged place. The structure that will seek to keep the relationship between Windows 10 and virtual reality stable is the Windows Holographic platform, which shows some progress in the so-called Fast Ring of the Insider program, through the recent build 14971. Almost at the end of the announcement we find a reference to Windows Holographic, which communicates the presence of the application "Windows Holographic First Run".
https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gu09UWqS8-QMinimum Hardware Requirements
The app is responsible for evaluating the hardware present in the computer and comparing the results with the minimum requirements to access a virtual reality experience in Windows 10. With the help of this application we already know that Windows Holographic expects to find 4 GB of RAM, a graphics card compatible with DirectX 12, USB 3.0 connectivity, and a quad-core processor. The processor parameter deserves special attention, since several Intel chips with two physical cores and four logical ones (courtesy of Hyper-Threading) are successfully passing the initial evaluation.
The second phase of the application will assist us in preparing our room, however, since it does not detect virtual headsets, it is impossible to proceed (for now). We estimate that a couple of builds will pass before Windows Holographic First Run correctly registers the existence of a headset, but we must also take the minimum requirements with a grain of salt. If Redmond discovers that their platform needs more firepower, they will not hesitate to change results.
