Buy or Build Your XR Solution? Your Guide to Effective AR & VR Solutions
XR solutions have become a hot topic lately, and the future of these technologies goes far beyond the fields of entertainment and gaming. These days, countless industries — including healthcare, construction, energy, and manufacturing — have begun using VR and AR headsets for employee training and more. It’s not hard to see why a PwC report stated that, by 2030, XR technology could add $1.5 trillion to the world’s economy.
To put XR solutions to use in your organization, you’ll have to start by making some tough decisions. One of the first XR-related choices you’ll need to make is whether you want to buy a prebuilt XR solution or build your own. Here’s everything you need to know about both of these XR options.
Buying a Prebuilt Solution
An XR solution isn’t just one device or program — instead, this term covers VR/AR headsets, accessories, software, and more. Since creating these solutions can be complex, many enterprises opt to purchase prebuilt solutions for their needs. While this isn’t the right path for every company, it’s ideal if there are off the shelf solutions that meet your needs; for instance offering industry-standard training to your employees.
Benefits
Using prebuilt hardware and software solutions for your XR strategy can help you sidestep the time and money you’d otherwise spend putting these solutions together on your own. It’s simple, easy, and faster to get started since there’s less planning involved.
Plus, if you partner with qualified XR experts like MACE Virtual Labs, these can be acquired as true turnkey solutions. MACE VL can recommend hardware and software, assist with fleet management, and even provide technical support.
Challenges
On the other hand, prebuilt XR solutions are less flexible than building your own — and as such, you might not be able to create the exact experience you envision for these systems. You might try it out with high hopes, only to realize you were hoping for something else.
That said, there is a way to test a prebuilt solution without fully committing to it. MACE VL offers VR equipment rentals, which you can use to dip your toe into the world of XR.
Examples
Prebuilt XR solutions are perfect for industries that follow similar training standards nationwide. If your enterprise falls into this category, there’s a strong chance that the VR training software you’re looking for already exists. Aside from that, prebuilt solutions are ideal for experiences that are common across industries, like holding meetings in virtual reality, soft-skills training, etc.
Building Your Own Solution
The availability of prebuilt XR solutions has increased dramatically in the last few years. However, many businesses new to XR may not realize there’s an alternative — creating a solution of your own!
If your enterprise is part of a niche industry or you need to adhere to specific requirements that aren’t met by existing solutions, going this route may be your best bet.
Benefits
If you know what you’re doing while you put your own XR solution together, it’ll be hard to argue with the results — you’ll get the precise experience you want. These solutions can be fully customized and optimized to fit your organization’s unique reqirements.
Challenges
Since building your own solution adds an extra step to the process of establishing your XR fleet, you’ll need to spend more time and resources to get this technology ready. Setting up a custom XR solution can also be challenging if you aren’t already well-versed in this field, but the creative problem solvers at MACE VL will be happy to help you select the right mix of hardware, development tools, device management tools, and connect you with a development studio in their partner network.
Examples
If your business offers a genuinely cutting-edge product or service, you’ll be best off with a custom-built XR solution — after all, prebuilt solutions won’t exist if you’re the first to the market. Enterprises that are building products to sell to their customers incorporating XR are great candidates for custom solutions. Additionally, enterprises seeking to build XR based sales and marketing experiences will want to consider custom XR solutions.
Which XR Solution Strategy Is Right for You?
When it comes to choosing whether you should go with a pre-made XR solution or invest in building your own, a solid buy-vs-build analysis will help guide your decision. Knowing as much as possible about off-the-shelf and custom XR solutions can make this process much more manageable. You’ll also need to consider internal factors like your goals, budget, and capacity while seeking the correct choice for your organization.
Working closely with XR professionals can help accelerate the analysis process and provide you with access to better data. As the largest and most tenured organization in Enterprise XR, MACE Virtual Labs can assist with building and buying solutions. After we help you decide which route to take, we’re here to guide you through the process of setting up, managing, and maintaining your fleet. Contact us today to find the right XR solution for you.