Our Experience: Testing the HP Dimension in New York
Upon entering the demonstration room in New York to test the HP Dimension, the first notable observation was the lack of an intimidating or complex setup. The environment felt surprisingly standard, anchored by a flat table equipped with two microphones laying flush against the surface. Both microphones displayed a steady green signal, indicating they were active and ready for the session. Control of the system was managed externally, allowing for a seamless transition from sitting down to engaging in the call.
Once seated, we were met with a striking visual: an HP employee, Tyler, looking back at us from the screen. The immediate sensation was not one of viewing a 3D image in the traditional sense, but rather a truly lifelike encounter. It was actually her, not an avatar. This is fundamentally different from the digital “Personas” found in devices like the Apple Vision Pro; because the HP Dimension utilizes cameras mounted directly onto the physical frame rather than a headset worn by the user, the result is a fully formed, authentic 3D human looking back at you.
The immersion was further demonstrated when Tyler reached her hand toward us. We could see her hand extend outside the perceived frame, emphasizing the depth of the volume. She encouraged us to take out our hands as well, and while we could not see our own feed during the demo, we were told our 3D likeness was appearing in Texas with the same fidelity. The flexibility of the platform was also on display during a brief presentation; Tyler “floated” or shifted sideways so the presentation could take center stage while she remained present in 3D to guide us through it.
The five-minute demonstration was remarkably smooth, with no perceptible latency issues, leaving a lasting impression of a technology that has moved beyond the experimental. According to the HP team on-site in New York, they already have a strong pipeline of orders. While they declined to provide specific sales numbers during the demo, the momentum was evident. We have put in a request for the official number of pre-orders and shall update this piece when that data is released.
The Technology Powering the Illusion
The underlying technology of Google Beam relies on a sophisticated 65-inch 8K light-field display. This engineering marvel is what creates the optical illusion; unlike a standard television that projects one flat image, a light-field display is designed to send slightly different views to each of your eyes simultaneously. This parallax effect is what tricks the brain into perceiving genuine, 3D depth, all achieved without specialized glasses, VR goggles, or a headset of any kind. You are simply sitting and speaking.Google’s engineering stack for Beam is extensive, combining advanced capture hardware with powerful real-time AI across three key pillars. First, a state-of-the-art Volumetric AI Reconstruction model processes data from a 7-camera array to reconstruct the person opposite you in full 3D, including their depth, texture, and subtle non-verbal cues. Second, to stream this life-sized volumetric data with almost zero latency, Google employs custom compression algorithms that optimize the data flow over standard broadband connections. Finally, the system utilizes Immersive Spatial Audio. By using 12 beamforming microphones and 4 high-definition speakers, Beam tracks the speaker’s mouth so the sound literally “beams” from their position, reinforcing the illusion that their voice is traversing physical space.
The HP Dimension and Workflow Integration
While the technology is Google’s, the first complete hardware solution is the HP Dimension, developed in partnership with HP. Targeted strictly at enterprise, executive, and medical telepresence markets, it is a significant investment estimated at approximately $25,000 per unit. The system is designed as a focused, high-end installation involving a purpose-built booth with specific acoustics and seating designed for optimal camera tracking. In our demonstration, the use of optimized seating paired with MillerKnoll furniture emphasized that this is a holistic communication environment rather than a piece of office equipment.
Recognizing that corporations already rely on established meeting ecosystems, Google has ensured that Beam is not an isolated platform. The HP Dimension hardware can initiate or join standard Google Meet and Zoom sessions, ensuring you are not restricted to “Beam-to-Beam” calls. Furthermore, the system includes real-time AI speech translation capabilities. During our observations, we saw a Japanese speaker in 3D whose voice was translated into English while remarkably retaining their original tone, pitch, and vocal characteristics, creating a uniquely transparent translation experience.
