The Magic Leap 2 augmented reality headset is now on sale. Its industry-leading image quality is carried over from its predecessor – but something fundamental has changed.

The new headset is purpose-built for enterprise use. In particular, the firm is targetting manufacturing, defence and medicine. To meet the requirements of these sectors, the new headset has a wider, taller field of vision than its predecessor.

It also has dynamic dimming capabilities. You can make objects in a room look lighter or brighter. If you're in a room with harsh lighting, you can "spotlight" a virtual object to improve your focus. One reviewer compared it to looking at a museum exhibit.

It's light and compact, consisting of a headset, a processor pack that you wear at your side and a handheld controller.

And it has spatial audio. One reason why video conferencing sometimes doesn't feel lifelike is that the sound is all coming from one place – your device's speaker. With Magic Leap 2, you can hear voices "placed" around the room, as though you were there.

All of these attributes make it a versatile, cutting-edge bit of kit. But can it really transform industries as varied as defence, manufacturing and healthcare?

Well, it has three main use cases for these industries. The first is "remote assist", where a frontline member of staff can hook up with an expert in Abu Dhabi or Albuquerque by video link.

Second, it can provide training that's way more immersive and memorable than current offerings.

And finally, it can be used to visualise 3D objects as part of training or planning. These objects can be viewed from all angles and handled as though they were real.

Let's take a closer look at how these capabilities can be deployed in different industries.

Healthcare

The Magic Leap 2 has earned IEC 60601 certification. This means that it can be used as a piece of electronic medical equipment.

One of its big use cases is 3D visualisation. This is where a 3D object is overlaid on reality. In the context of healthcare, this could be a 3D organ. Instead of viewing a static 2D image on a screen, doctors could walk around a 3D heart.

This has awesome potential for education and pre-surgical planning. These crucial processes would become more experiential, more absorbing and more memorable.

It's like the difference between reading a recipe and standing next to someone while they make it – but the consequences are, of course, much more serious.

During the pandemic, surgeons in Sacramento, California used the original Magic Leap to prepare for the separation of conjoined twins. This was a big operation that involved 30 people.

A 3D reconstruction of the babies was created from MRI and CT scans. This was then viewed on the Magic Leap via Brainlab's Mixed Reality Viewer software. The surgeons could walk around this lifelike recreation before making an incision.

Magic Leap 2 can do this, but better. Now that it's certified for use, it can be used to plan surgery and increase its chances of success.

Manufacturing

Remember the days before YouTube? If a tyre went down or your boiler blew, most of us were at the mercy of experts. Now, we can do a bit of light research before making the call – and in some cases, get the job done ourselves.

AR "remote assist" is a bit like this. Imagine you're operating a piece of machinery in a factory. Something goes wrong. If you slip on your Magic Leap 2, you can call an expert anywhere in the world. They can see what you see – and walk you through the repair.

This isn't a substitute for solid training, but it does mean that operational failures are remedied more quickly and you can bounce back from downtime in no time.

And speaking of training, the Magic Leap 2 can lend a hand. It can save money, speed up the process without cutting corners and perhaps most importantly make training memorable.

Because, let's face it, most training is boring, box-ticking and brain-numbing. If you're training someone to operate machinery, it can't be. It has to be engaging and memorable or you'll be looking at stoppages somewhere down the line.

Magic Leap 2 gets around this problem by providing highly immersive training. A new worker can don a headset and see specific tasks overlaid on machinery. This way, they're executing tasks in real-time. There's no delay between being told what to do and doing it.

The first Magic Leap headset was used like this in Roscoe, Illinois by a company called PBC Linear. The CEO described how it "bridged the gap" between an existing factory worker and a new employee.

Before, an experienced machinist would have to be on hand for six weeks of training. Now, they have to be there for just one day – and the whole process is shortened to just three.

This has saved the company time and money and even, they claim, has improved employee retention.

This kind of immersive, memorable training isn't unique to manufacturing. It could be used anywhere. It's also being targeted at the defence industry where it'll be used in command control settings.

What next?

Magic Leap is already working on its third incarnation. It will, it says, be 50% lighter and have an even wider field of view.

The Magic Leap 2's 70° visual field could potentially grow beyond 80° – this would allow the wearer to see an object the size of a building, which could be invaluable in the world of construction.

Whatever happens next, the Magic Leap 2 is an enterprise-built solution that offers remote assistance, immersive training and 3D visualisation in a range of sectors.

Want to try this revolutionary device for yourself? You can buy the Magic Leap 2 at Expand Reality's online store right now.