HoloLens app mixes AR and VR to put a room on the top of Mt. Fuji

We hear many descriptions of future applications around mixed reality -- the intersection of augmented reality and virtual reality -- but we don't see much in the way of real demonstrations of the technology.

Now a new HoloLens experiment from a Japan-based developer shows us what one version of mixed reality actually looks like.

Recorded from the HoloLens' camera, we see a portal to an outside environment floating in the middle of a room, but instead of representing a static 3D element, the HoloLens wearer is able to step through that portal and hover high above Japan's Mt. Fuji.

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Another demo shows the developer punching several portal holes through his room and once again hopping outside, an effect that, when looking back at the portal-ridden room, makes it appear as though the room is merely a floating pod embedded in another reality.

Many developments in VR headsets and AR wearables have been pointing to the merging of AR and VR, but this HoloLens demo, which the developer calls "HoleLenz," is easily the most powerful example of how this might happen that we've seen.

Currently, the app isn't available to the public, but the developer has promised to add the app to the Windows App Store soon.