At CES 2025, Brelyon showed off its latest immersive display called Ultra Reality Extend and even after seeing it in person, my brain still can’t fully comprehend a monitor that feels bigger and deeper inside than outside.
Touted as the world’s first commercial multifocal monitor, the Ultra Reality Extend merges the ease of use and simplicity of a traditional desktop display with the kind of spatial depth you can normally only get with a VR headset. Granted, the maximum simulated depth that Extend provides is only 2.5 meters, which is nowhere near as far as you’d get with devices like a Meta Quest 3S or a Apple Vision Probut given that Brelyon’s monitor requires no additional equipment (apart from a connected PC), the effect is truly impressive. And it’s also much easier to use, all you have to do is stand in front of it and the monitor will do the rest, leading to much less eye strain or potential nausea that many people experience with glasses Modern RVs.
This allows the monitor to defy its dimensions, because even though it is much bulkier than a typical screen, the view inside is absolutely monstrous. Starting with a 30-inch frame, the Ultra Reality Extend offers a virtual display equivalent to a 122-inch curved screen. Meanwhile, its 4K/60Hz resolution uses 1 bit of monocular to deliver spatial content that appears closer to 8K with elements in the scene able to look closer or further away depending on the situation.
When I watched a game clip of Spidermanthe trees and streetlights flashing past my face seemed so real that I began to flinch unconsciously. Then, in other scenes, Brelyon’s monitor was able to separate different layers of the content to make the snow in the foreground blurry as it crossed the screen while the characters in the distance remained in focus. It’s kind of strange because the effect is visceral in a way that games and movies on flat screens just can’t match.
Meanwhile, underpinning the monitor is Brelyon’s visual engine, which allows the screen to automatically assign different depths to elements in games and videos on the fly without additional programming. That said, developers can further optimize their content for Brelyon’s technology, allowing them to add even more depth and immersion.
Unfortunately, the downside is that Ultra Reality Extend’s unique approach to spatial content is quite expensive. Indeed, while the monitor is available now, the company is aiming for a price between $5,000 and $8,000 per unit, with exact numbers depending on the customer and any partnership with Brelyon. Unfortunately, this means the screen will be limited to professional buyers who will use it to create ultra-realistic flight simulators with an in-depth user interface, instead of normal people who might want a sophisticated monitor for movies and gaming . But if Brelyon’s technology takes off, one day, perhaps…
