The Holoconnects Holobox and Proto’s hologram-display line are both hologram-category products, but they aim at different market segments. The Holobox is a life size transparent-LCD unit with strong enterprise B2B deployment (hospitality, telehealth, education, events). Proto’s line runs from a 21.5-inch tabletop to an 86-inch life-size unit, with entertainment and retail-activation signals. Here’s where each one fits.
The short answer
Same category, different market fit. Both offer a life-size 86-inch display (the Holobox; Proto’s Luma), so the choice is less about size than about market and integrations. The Holobox is optimised for enterprise walk-up presence, a hospitality receptionist, a remote doctor, a UN trainer, with a touchscreen, an AI Hologram and PMS integration. Proto emphasises entertainment, celebrity appearances, and retail activation. Match the vendor to your category.
This page is intentionally non-disparaging: Proto is a legitimate vendor with real deployments. The goal here is to help you decide which category matches your use case, not to argue that one is “better” in the abstract.
Physical scale
Holobox. Life size 86-inch transparent-LCD unit; approximately 2m tall. A compact Holobox Mini (22-inch tabletop) covers smaller-footprint deployments.
Proto. Range spans the 21.5-inch Proto M2 tabletop up to the 86-inch Epic and Luma — the Luma is a direct life-size peer to the 86-inch Holobox.
Winner: Depends. Pick by physical scale first. For a life size hologram of a person, the Holobox matches human proportion out of the box.
Display technology class
Holobox. Transparent LCD in front of a custom-engineered light box. Viewers can see through the display when off; content reads as three-dimensional when playing.
Proto. Display-based: content on a screen with engineered shadows and reflections for depth (source: protohologram.com; CNN). Same broad category as the Holobox's transparent-LCD approach, with a different visual signature.
Winner: Depends. Different technology classes, different visual signatures. Evaluate against the visual outcome you need.
Target market
Holobox. Enterprise B2B, hospitality reception, telehealth consult, executive keynote, retail flagship. Deployments at UN ITC-ILO, CIC Hospitality (rollout planned for 30 hotels), Aiden by Best Western, Crescent Regional Hospital, BMW × Urban Media, and more.
Proto. Marketing signals emphasise entertainment, celebrity appearances, retail activation, and content-industry partnerships.
Winner: Depends. Both are legitimate market positions. Pick by which category your customer sits in.
Live remote presence
Holobox. Two way live mode: a real presenter at one Holobox appears life size at a destination Holobox for real time conversation. This is a core capability of the Holoconnects platform.
Proto. Live modes documented on proto.com. Evaluate against latency and interaction requirements.
Winner: Depends. Both platforms support live modes. Test against your specific two way interaction latency requirement.
Content pipeline
Holobox. Holoconnects Recording Station captures content in the format the Holobox renders. Live streaming is a separate mode. Content updates are managed remotely.
Proto. Documented on proto.com; pipeline varies by unit and content type.
Winner: Depends. Whichever platform you pick, budget for the content pipeline, not just the hardware.
Sector deployments (public examples)
Holobox. Hospitality (CIC Hospitality, Aiden by Best Western), telehealth (Crescent Regional Hospital), education (ITC-ILO Turin), events (BMW × Urban Media, Smart Mission UAE), retail activation, corporate lobbies.
Proto. Retail activation, entertainment appearances, brand campaigns, some enterprise partnerships. Case studies available on proto.com.
Winner: Depends. The right question is: which platform has deployments closest to your intended use case? Look for named deployments in your sector.
Pricing tier
Holobox. Holobox from €25,000; Holobox Mini from €4,500; Hologrid retail wall from €45,000. Rental terms available for event-specific deployments.
Proto. Full-size Epic and Luma from $29,000 to $65,000 (source: protohologram.com); the M2 tabletop is a separate, lower tier.
Winner: Depends. Neither platform is a commodity. Get a quote from both if your use case has direct fit at both vendors.
Sector-vertical support depth
Holobox. Holoconnects has published sector deep-pages for hospitality, telehealth, retail, education, and events, each with named deployments, HowTo schemas, and comparison tables. Integrated with the Holoconnects support and content pipeline.
Proto. Content and support surface accessible via proto.com.
Winner: Depends. For enterprise B2B evaluation, sector depth on the vendor site indicates commitment to that sector. Evaluate both.
How to decide
- Is your use case enterprise B2B walk up interaction? Hospitality reception, telehealth consult, UN training, executive keynote → Holobox has direct deployment references.
- Is your use case entertainment / marketing activation? Celebrity appearance, retail brand moment, content-industry installation → evaluate Proto’s deployment references first.
- Are you unsure? Request quotes from both. Both platforms will scope your use case against their deployment history.
Where the Holobox has direct deployment fit
- CIC Hospitality, a rollout planned for 30 hotels. Multi location enterprise B2B rollout.
- ITC-ILO Turin, UN training centre. Multilingual live remote presence.
- BMW × Urban MediaBelux press event + dealer showroom redeployment.
Further reading
- What is a hologram?, the three types (interference, stage illusion, transparent-LCD) explained.
- How does a Holobox work?the transparent-LCD + light-box technical explanation.
- ARHT Media alternative, the Canadian telepresence vendor that ceased operations in 2024.
- Holobox vs LED wall, the LED-panel comparison.
Want a scoped comparison for your use case?
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