The competition in the virtual reality (VR) headset space looks like it’ll be hotting up over the course of 2017, with new details emerging that Lenovo’s Windows Holographic head-mounted display (HMD) looks set to arrive this August at a highly competitive price.
Via Twitter, Ross McDougall, a Lenovo Insider, has detailed several unreleased specs as well as when the device is likely to launch. In an interview with Twice earlier this month, Lenovo’s VP of Consumer Business in North America, Mike Abary, said the headset would be available during the back-to-school period. McDougall has listed August 2017 as the release date, which would be about right.
Lenovo took its new HMD to CES 2017, demoing the device to attendees as well as releasing several specs. The headset boasts a pair 1,440 x 1,440 OLED panels which remains unchanged, but may have gained some weight, initially it was around the 350 gram mark, McDougall puts it at 380 grams.
With it’s pair of front-facing VGA cameras the Lenovo headset will include 6 degrees of inside-out tracking. In terms of content there will be support for certain Microsoft HoloLens apps, 20,000 Windows 10 2D apps, and a Lenovo Entertainment Hub will also be included.
While it’s been expected that consumers wouldn’t need a high-powered PC to run the new device, no minimum specs have been revealed until now. McDougall simply wrote: “Intel i5 & HD620 (RS3)” which gives a slightly better idea of what you’ll need. For those who’ve already purchased an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive and are interested in seeing what Lenovo’s product can offer, their rigs will likely fit the requirements.
And it’s not just Lenovo that’s producing these headsets. Microsoft has partnered with several manufacturers, including HP, Dell, Asus and Acer, all of whom will be releasing VR/MR headsets in the near future.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Lenovo and its upcoming HMD, reporting back with any further updates.