Pimax announced that Crystal Super, its next high-resolution PC VR headset, is actually going to be a bit slimmer than originally planned, showing off a reduction in the headset’s exterior during a new update video.
Unveiled earlier this year alongside Crystal Light, the Crystal Super variant is a bit of a different beast, including the addition of eye-tracking, automatic interpupillary distance (IPD) adjustment, and the ability to swap between two optional display modules and two optional lenses for varying pixel density and field-of-view (FOV).
While Crystal Super was ostensibly slated to be as big as the others in the Crystal lineup, Pimax announced it’s reduced the exterior size by “nearly 30 percent,” showing off a new, smaller design.
It still seems to be in early stages of development, however the company has shown off non-functional prototypes and renders of the form factor in the video, seen below:
Its display modules boast 3,840 × 3,840 per-eye resolution, letting the user choose a QLED & mini-LED (120Hz) display or a micro-OLED (90Hz) display.
Both versions of Crystal Super however allow you choose between two different lenses: one that provides 50 PPD and a slightly higher FOV of 130° horizontal, and another with 57 PPD and a slightly lower FOV—still to be announced.
Pimax says Crystal Super’s lenses are indeed “30 percent bigger” than those found on Crystal and Crystal Light. The image below is of the 50 PPD lens.
Image courtesy Pimax
The QLED version will be ready first, the company says, noting that it’s the model with the most pre-orders. Additionally, the company says the lens providing 57 PPD and a lower FOV is still in development.
The base model with QLED display is priced at $1,800 with inside-out tracking, while the micro-OLED model is priced at $2,000. A bundle with both display modules is also available for $2,400. Controllers and optional SteamVR tracking faceplate are sold separately.
China-based VR headset creator Pimax has introduced a new payment model following the recent announcement of its Crystal Light PC VR headset, which will let try it out before plonking down the full price of the headset.
The company calls its new scheme the “Trial Payment, Final Payment” model, as outlined in a recent announcement, making it available first in select regions including the US, Canada, EU, UK, Australia, and New Zealand.
The new payment model is slated to go into effect on its website sometime this week. When it does, here’s how the company says it will work:
Image courtesy Pimax
It’s a pretty unique way of getting you to buy a headset, or more specifically, three flavors of its Crystal Light headset: one with controllers ($900), one with SteamVR tracking faceplate ($900), and the headset alone ($800), all of which feature local dimming.
At least for the headsets mentioned above, during the trial period users pay $200 less than the sticker price and receive a 15-day trial with the promise of zero-cost returns. If you’re happy with the headset, you pay the remaining balance, and the company removes additional software locks on the headset to allow you the “full” experience, Pimax says.
It’s unclear for now how the trial version will differ from the “full version” in terms of software locks; we’ve reached out to Pimax to clarify this and will update when/if the company responds. We’ve also asked whether the company intends on extending the program to other headsets beyond those mentioned above, so check back to find out.
Meanwhile, Pimax is in the process of launching a bevy of products. In addition to Crystal Light (now in pre-order) and Crystal Light Super, which were announced last month, the company still has to fulfill previous orders of a number of other products, including Pimax Reality “12K” headset, a 60GHz wireless add-on for streaming PC VR, and its Pimax VR Station for streaming PC VR content to its headsets.
Two and a half years ago, Pimax announced VR Station, a compact, console-like computer for running PC VR content that would be wirelessly streamed to its Reality “12K” and Crystal headsets. And while the “12K” still hasn’t shipped (and the Crystal still doesn’t have its wireless streaming add-on), Pimax insists the VR Station is still in the works.
The VR Station was announced in late 2021, and is said to be a compact PC that’s designed to play PC VR games wirelessly thanks to a high-resolution 60GHz accessory.
In its announcement last week, Pimax offered an update on the 60GHz ‘Airlink’ wireless accessory: it should ship later this year with a $300 price tag. While it can be used with any PC, the Airlink tech is an essential part of the VR Station.
But there was no update about the VR Station itself, so we reached out to ask. Pimax tells Road to VR that VR Station is still in development.
“Currently, the development of the VR Station is progressing smoothly. We are focusing on optimizing software usability, and our collaborating PC case manufacturers are producing a new batch of PC cases. Once delivered, we will assemble some VR Station prototypes,” a spokesperson says. “We believe that we will soon have further updates to share with everyone. For now, we can share that VR Station is a comprehensive solution combining a portable desktop PC with a [wireless transmitter for streaming VR games]. With VR Station, we aim to enhance the PC VR user experience and ultimately achieve a “plug-and-play” experience similar to gaming consoles. In our planning, both software usability and hardware stability are top priorities. Therefore, we are still in contact with several PC manufacturers to explore the possibilities of VR Station.
So there you have it. It’s still not clear when, but Pimax still expects to eventually deliver the VR Station.
When it does launch, it unfortunately won’t be compatible with either of the company’s latest headsets (Crystal Light and Crystal Super), because only the original Crystal headset is compatible with Airlink. But perhaps the Reality “12K” headset—which Pimax also says is still in development—will be ready by the time VR Station launches.
Note: We put the “12K” part of the headset’s name in quotes because Pimax isn’t referring to the same 12K that is often used to describe TVs and monitors. The headset’s total horizontal resolution is near 12K, but this is split across each eye. Additionally, the resolution height is just half the height of what one would expect from a 12K TV. When referring to the headset’s name, we put “12K” in quotes to help our readers understand that it’s being used differently than they might expect.
Pimax Portal, the Nintendo Switch-style handheld that can be used as a VR headset, is experiencing a bit of a road bump, as the company announced the VR portion of the device has been delayed due to a hardware redesign.
Update (July 19th, 2023): As first noted by MIXED, Pimax has delayed its View headset shell, which holds the previously launched handheld Portal device. In a blog post update, the company says the new VR shell takes inspiration from Pimax’s Crystal and ‘8K’ headsets, ostensibly offering better weight distribution and comfort. Those photos comparing the old design to the new redesign can been seen below this update.
“The Portal is an ambitious device and we want to make sure the headset is really great,” Portal’s product manager Snake Lin says. “The first prototype works, but we feel it’s not good enough to mass produce. Its weight isn’t distributed well and the comfort can be improved a bit. Also, we found some components are a bit weak if the user is rough with the device.”
View is coming in two editions: one with a battery pack on the back and one without, which are slated to ship to the 600+ Kickstarter backers sometime in Q3. At some point afterwards the company will open orders to the general public. The original article follows below:
Image courtesy Pimax
Original Article (April 18th, 2023): Over the years, the Shanghai-based company has been known for its wide field-of-view (FOV) PC VR headsets which include large, high-resolution displays and wide FOV optics, making Pimax one of the few to offer such devices directly to consumers. With the announcement of Portal and standalone headset Pimax Crystal, the company seems to be striking out in a new direction from its PC VR roots though.
As a hybrid device, Portal works as both a Nintendo Switch-style handheld (running Android), and a Samsung Gear VR-style headset which uses a dedicated VR shell housing and Switch-style controllers, which snap into their own bespoke housing.
While strapping an Android device into a headset shell is decidedly a throwback concept, Portal managed to attract over $350,000 from backers in the device’s 2022 Kickstarter campaign. Putting Gear VR comparisons aside, the device is being couched as a jack of all trades, as it’s set to offer both 6DOF head and controller tracking for VR gameplay on top of acting as both a handheld console and living room entertainment hub.
In a fresh status update, Pimax says it’s now finalized Portal’s hardware, with mass production set to start. Admittedly, Pimax says it’s currently optimizing the software for Portal, with heat dissipation, power consumption, and controller connection marked as areas in need of improvement. This also includes what it calls “rare” tracking issues and SDK-related game porting issues.
By the end of May, Pimax says it will have “more than 20 VR games” available for the Portal VR mode. Furthermore, Pimax says the QLED version of Portal will support native PC VR via HDMI, while other versions will support streaming PC VR content via WiFi e6 and USB-C.
This comes on the heels of the news last month that Pimax had secured a $30 million series C1 financing round, something the company says will aid in the rollout of both Portal and Crystal headsets.
Users of Pimax’s wide field-of-view (FOV) PC VR headsets have always relied upon third-party stores like Steam for VR content. Now the company is looking to incentivize VR developers to publish their games on the new Pimax Store.
Pimax quietly launched its PC VR content store in September 2022, ostensibly in preparation for the yet-to-release “Reality 12K QLED” headset, and standalones Pimax Cystal and Pimax Portal hybrid.
At the time, the company kicked off its store by advertising a program that would award its top 50 indie developers with cash incentives, along with a “choose your own” approach to revenue split for those top 50, which would let those developers “determine how much you would like to contribute to the store’s success and what proportion you need for your own success.”
Following a $30 million Series C1 funding round announced earlier this month, the Beijing-based VR headset company has upped the ante by announcing a 100% developer revenue split of Pimax Store content.
For contrast, Valve takes a 30% revenue cut from Steam, while Meta takes 30% from the Quest Store, and 47.5% from content published through its online Horizon Worlds platform.
The company also announced it’s earmarked a $100K fund for the stimulation of VR games, and is giving away 1,000 Pimax Portal dev kits, a standalone hybrid headset which can convert between a Nintendo Switch-style handheld and a 6DOF VR headset.
Image courtesy Pimax
“We’re a hardware manufacturer in the first place, which you could argue Steam and Meta aren’t, so this makes it easier for us to accept a lower margin, but we also want to promote the whole VR market, as technology is advancing fast,” said Pimax’s Carol Yuan. “There should also be more high-quality VR content available. Not only do we think that, but also many users online think this is holding back VR.”
Pimax says its app store caters exclusively to the company’s fleet of headsets, making sure that games support higher FOV and displays resolutions. The Pimax Store also bakes in customization settings for hardware, effectively replacing the company’s Pi Tool.
– – — – –
We’ve reached out to Pimax to find out the duration of the revenue split and, provided it has a definite end point, what its default percentage is. We’ll update this article when/if the company responds.
Pimax, the China-based creator known for its wide field of view (FOV) VR headsets, announced it’s secured a $30 million series C1 financing round, something the company says will aid in the rollout of its new portfolio of VR devices.
The series C1 was led by Beijing-based investment firm Tuanmu Capital. This follows the company’s $20 million series B in 2020, bringing the company’s lifetime outside investment to over $69 million.
In a press statement, the company says the funds will be used to accelerate growth of its coming line of VR headsets, Pimax Crystal and Pimax Portal, enhance its position as both a consumer and enterprise-focused company, and increase investment in R&D.
Founded in 2015, Pimax is best known for its first Pimax “8K” headset Kickstarted in 2017, a consumer PC VR headset that included dual 4K panels providing an estimated 200-degree FOV, by far one of the largest in the industry at the time. Even today, many consumer headsets, such as Meta Quest 2 and HTC Vive XR Elite, feature FOVs around 110 degrees.
Pimax Crystal | Photo by Road to VR
The company has since gone on to offer multiple iterations of its wide FOV headset, but also is set to launch both its VR standalone Pimax Crystal and hybrid Portal device, the latter of which can convert between a Nintendo Switch-style gaming handheld and a VR headset.
Both Pimax Crystal and Pimax Portal are expected to release at some point in “early 2023”, with Crystal available for pre-order on the company’s website and Portal still in the fulfillment stage from its successful 2022 Kickstarter, which garnered just over $350,000 from backers.
“Of course, we’re delighted with this new round of funding, as it allows us to boost our production capacity to meet the rapidly growing demand for our new VR products, as well as to improve both our hardware and software further,” said Pimax Founder Robin Weng. “We’ve been innovating VR technology and we will keep on doing that in the future, always pushing the limits of what is possible through technology.”
The Shanghai-based company now boasts over 300 employees in offices spread across offices in San Jose, Stockholm, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Qingdao, and Chengdu.
Pimax announced Pimax Crystal QLED, a $1899 dual-mode VR headset the company claims will have the highest angular resolution on the consumer market.
Crystal will feature dual 2880×2720 LCD panels with Mini LED backlighting and a quantum dot layer. While traditional small LCD panels use a single backlight behind the entire display, Mini LED instead uses thousands of tiny LED elements, delivering contrast levels close to OLED – though with the tradeoff of some blooming. The quantum dot layer should deliver an extremely wide color range, which Pimax claims surpasses even OLED. The maximum refresh rate is 160 Hz.
Crystal’s lenses are made from glass rather than the plastic used in most other headsets, which Pimax says increases brightness and reduces both glare & aberration. The default lenses have a horizontal field of view of 110°, roughly the same as the Valve Index. This is a departure from Pimax’s core brand of ultra wide field of view VR. But Crystal’s unique feature is it will come with a different pair of 120° field of view lenses that can be swapped in, so you can choose between clarity and immersion.
Back in October Pimax announced another standalone headset, Reality 12K QLED, which it said will ship in Q4 2022 for $2399. Reality will also uses QLED panels but promises a much wider 200 degree field of view and onboard body tracking. This begs the question: what kind of buyer is willing to pay $1900 but not $2400 for a significantly wider field of view? Pimax’s response is that Crystal’s focus is on achieving maximum visual clarity, and that it doesn’t require a monster GPU like Reality.
Other than the lenses and displays Crystal and Reality are very similar headsets. Both have four cameras on the front edges for inside-out tracking of the headset and its Touch-like controllers – or your hands freely – as well as internal cameras to track your eyes and face. The eye tracking is said to power automatic lens separation adjustment and dynamic foveated rendering. Both headsets also use the same Snapdragon XR2 processor as Meta’s Quest 2. An extra cooling fan and dynamic foveated rendering mean they should outperform Quest 2, but this may be negated by the higher resolution and wider field of view it needs to render.
Also like Reality, Crystal supports two separate PC VR modes. The standard method sends frames over your home Wi-Fi network similar to Oculus Air Link or Virtual Desktop. The high fidelity mode uses a DisplayPort cable or dedicated WiGig transmitter for a much higher bandwidth connection. The cable is included but the WiGig transmitter will be sold separately.
Pimax sees Crystal as competing with Varjo Aero. As Pimax points out, the $1990 Aero has the same resolution but doesn’t come with tracking, controllers, or audio – and doesn’t have a wireless or standalone mode.
The company will likely struggle to obtain compelling content for its standalone mode store, however. Reality was announced with two standalone games: Ragnarok and Hyperstacks. Crystal is being announced with three more: BRINK Traveler, cyubeVR, and BoomBox. None of these are exactly system sellers and it’s likely these headsets will be primarily used in PC mode, but Pimax is still asking interested developers to reach out.
Pimax claims Crystal QLED will start shipping in Q3 2022, between July and September. We should, however, note Pimax has in the past missed its shipping targets, and the ongoing global supply chain uncertainties have led to delays across the tech industry.
Pimax today announced the Pimax Crystal, a new headset that’s broadly similar to the company’s upcoming Pimax “12K” QLED headset, but with a few features pared back and a reduced price. Though the price is lower at $1,900, it still puts the headset well into the ‘ultra-enthusiast’ category, positioning it as a direct competitor to Varjo’s Aero headset.
Pimax Crystal has many of the same ambitious features: standalone processing with PC compatibility, eye-tracking, ultra-high resolution, support for a WiGig wireless module, high refresh rate, inside-out tracking, and more. What sets it apart from its more expensive sibling is a somewhat lower resolution and a lower field-of-view.
While the $2,400 Pimax “12K” QLED aims for an ultra-high resolution and an ultra-wide 240° diagonal field-of-view, Pimax Crystal lowers both, but claims to maintain a very high 42PPD with a 120° diagonal field-of-view, or 35PPD with a 140° field-of-view—the choice is up to the user, thanks to interchangeable lenses, one of the headset’s unique features.
Image courtesy Pimax
Priced at $1,900, the Pimax Crystal appears to be looking to compete directly with Varjo’s ultra-enthusiast Aero headset, which is priced at $2,000 (but doesn’t include controllers or required tracking base stations). On the other hand, Pimax says the Crystal will include headset-tracked controllers and inside-out tracking out of the box at the $1,900 price point.
An optional $200 SteamVR Tracking faceplate will be offered at launch, and the company says it’s working on a stereo camera faceplate for color passthrough, though price and availability have not been announced.
Here’s a full breakdown of the Pimax Crystal specs:
120° or 140 diagonal (depending on lens configuration)
Processor
Snapdragon XR2
RAM
Unknown
Storage
Unknown
Wireless
Wi-Fi 6E, optional 60GHz add-on
Connectors
Unknown
Battery Life
Unknown (6,000mAh)
Optical Adjustments
IPD (automatic motor driven), eye-relief (12–20mm), diopter (0–7)
IPD Adjustment Range
58–72mm
Connectors
DisplayPort
Cable Length
Unknown
Tracking
Inside-out (no external beacons), optional SteamVR Tracking add-on
On-board cameras
4x head/hand/controller-tracking, 2x eye-tracking
Input
Included headset-tracked controllers, optionally compatible with SteamVR Tracking controllers
Audio
In-headstrap speakers, optional off-ear speakers
Microphone
Unknown
Pass-through view
Optional add-on
Weight
Unknown
While Pimax says it wants to offer a ‘no compromise’ experience for its customers, the Crystal headset reaffirms the company’s affinity for introducing multiple, modular headset models that force customers to choose between an array of overlapping features and capabilities; it’s unclear why the company is planning to launch the Crystal in Q3, just a few months before the “12K” QLED in Q4.
In any case, we’ll certainly be impressed if Pimax manages to deliver everything it’s promising with these ambitious headsets.
Note: We put the “12K” part of the Pimax 12K QLED name in quotes because Pimax isn’t referring to the same 12K that is often used to describe TVs and monitors. The headset’s total horizontal resolution is near 12K, but this is split across each eye. Additionally, the resolution height is just half the height of what one would expect from a 12K TV. When referring to the headset’s name, we put “12K” in quotes to help our readers understand that it’s being used differently than they might expect.
Looking for a hardware upgrade? Then check out our list of new VR headsets 2022!
The VR industry finds itself at a critical point at the start of 2022. After years of perceived turmoil and sluggish sales, the Meta Quest 2 appears to have finally broken through the glass ceiling and is selling well. But, whilst it’s great to see VR developers thriving off of the sales of a headset, there are genuine concerns about the lack of true competition in the market right now.
2022 might provide the antidote to those issues. Sony’s lining up its new PS5 VR headset, Apple’s plans might finally be made public and there’s a whole host of smaller competitors vying for a slice of the pie too. Read on for the rundown of what’s on the way.
New VR Headsets 2022
Meta’s Project Cambria
We know less about Project Cambria than we thought we would at this point in time. Rumors building up to last year’s Connect conference suggested a full reveal of an ‘Oculus Quest Pro’ that could be arriving imminently. Instead, we got a quick glimpse of a new standalone headset that’s separate from the Quest line and will be arriving sometime later this year.
But some of what we heard about Quest Pro remains consistent in Cambria. We know it has color passthrough and face and eye-tracking, for example. It’s also expected to have a more compact form factor and controllers that ditch the tracking rings. But, while Cambria will have access to the Quest library of content, Meta assures it won’t be replacing the $299 headset. Think of this as a higher-end alternative for a lot of enterprise applications and enthusiast VR users, then.
While we wait, you can catch up with everything we know about Project Cambria right here.
PS5 VR/PSVR 2
Meta and Apple’s efforts might mean more for the long-term view of where VR and AR are going, but when it comes to the here and now, Sony’s PSVR follow-up promises to deliver incredible gaming experiences we can’t wait to dive into. Officially, we know PS5 VR (which isn’t yet named PSVR 2) exists. We also know it has all-new controllers. But that’s where all of the announced information ends.
Our own reporting has confirmed eye-tracking and 4K resolution among other features. It all sounds incredibly exciting but, truth be told, it’s the games we’re really interested in here. The increased power of the PS5 suggests we’ll see much more impressive titles than what we got on the original PSVR, and Meta and others are still leagues behind when it comes to securing a compelling gaming software line-up for a platform. We’ll be keeping a close eye on PSVR 2 in 2022.
We’ve been following the rumors surrounding Apple’s supposed mixed reality headset for the better part of a decade now, but 2022 might just be the year we finally get to see something tangible. Public comments have always seen Apple highlight the potential of AR over VR, but reports suggest this first device will be capable of both.
In fact, the latest rumors point to a $1,000 price tag for a kit with 4K OLED microdisplays, high-resolution color cameras and a new Apple chip similar to the power seen in the Mac’s M1 processor. Apple has also been on a hiring spree for AR/VR engineers for years now and has bought up relevant companies like NextVR. But, at the end of the day, all we have is speculation and hope. Will 2022 finally be the year of Apple VR?
Pimax Reality Series
As PC VR becomes an increasingly distant second priority for Meta, and Valve, Microsoft and more remain silent on the future of their own hardware efforts, the PC VR space has few new contenders to turn to in 2022. We do know that long-time headset maker Pimax is going all-in with its Reality series, which promises the highest-end experience going for VR.
So that’s 200Hz HDR LCD panels with near 6K per eye resolution and a 200 degree field of view. It’s also a standalone/PC hybrid that features an XR2 for the former (and will also scale back some of those specs when in standalone). Of course, it costs just as much as you’d think, starting at $2,499. We’ve also had issues with Pimax headsets in the past, but we’re hopeful this device improves across the board.
Though they technically launched last year, the HTC Vive Flow and Varjo Aero are still in their infancy and we’ll be looking forward to new developments for both in 2022. Meanwhile, there are some relatively unknown contenders to look out for, including the recently-announced modular standalone headset from Somnium Space. The DecaGear PC VR headsets is also still in development, though it recently had to hike up its price from $450 to $700 citing tough competition, so our expectations are more reserved there. And what about that rumored Valve standalone headset, supposedly codenamed Deckard? Whilst Valve comments suggest the device could be quite real, the company’s current focus on the already-delayed Steam Deck handheld console suggests it’ll be some time before that’s a priority. As for Xbox VR? We’ll keep our fingers crossed, but persistent executive comments don’t inspire much confidence.
And that’s our list of new VR headsets 2022. What are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments below!
CES finally returns to a physical, if somewhat muted show this week. Here’s what to expect on the VR side.
CES was once one of the key events in the VR calendar, but its impact on the industry has waned over time. Meta has its own events for Quest announcements, Sony saves gaming reveals for other showcases, HTC Vive hasn’t held a press conference in a number of years and, as VR has become less and less of a buzzword, we’ve seen fewer big players flaunt the tech on the show floor.
But the Vegas showcase does remain a fascinating display of VR oddities, underdogs and the occasional juggernaut. Here’s just a few things to expect from CES this year. We’re at the show so we’ll be offering full coverage.
CES 2022 VR: What To Expect
bHaptics’ Quest 2 Gloves
Last week the company behind one of Quest’s most popular haptic vests revealed its own haptic gloves, named TactGlove. They use the headset’s hand-tracking with motors at the tips of your fingers to provide a sense of feedback when touching objects in VR. But will they offer a compelling enough experience to justify a $299 price point? Hopefully we’ll get an answer during the show.
Panasonic’s Lightweight VR Returns
As announced earlier today, Panasonic subsidiary Shiftall seems to be working on the first consumer version of the company’s lightweight SteamVR headset, named MeganeX. It’s a bit of a puzzle, given the light form factor is somewhat negated by being attached to a PC via USB, but if it offers a comfortable, high-fidelity experience then it could be a strong new contender for the PC VR market. We’ll look to bring you more as the week goes on.
A First Look At Pimax Reality?
Pimax is one of the many companies to have pulled out of CES proper, with no presence on the show floor. But, as the company confirmed in an update last week, there will still be some media meetings available. Hopefully, then, we’ll be able to bring you a first look at the recently-announced Pimax Reality series, a hybrid, modular headset that promises to spare no expense.
Sony, LG And Beyond?
Some of the highlights of every CES include the conferences from big tech companies announcing their range of products for the year to come. Usually it’s all about fridges that can tell your car what you need to buy and robots that can take your bags to the airport. But we do occasionally get a glimpse of surprising new VR announcements here and there. With that in mind, we’ll be watching a lot of shows today, January 4th, including LG’s show at 8am PT, Nvidia also at 8am PT, Intel at 10am PT, Qualcomm at 11am PT, Sony at 5pm PT and Samsung at 6:30pm PT. Again, we don’t expect anything to be revealed at these shows, but each of these companies has dabbled with the VR market to some degree in the past, so we’ll keep an eye out.
As for a potential PSVR 2 sighting? Well, Sony does like to announce some PlayStation news at these shows, like the 2013 introduction of PlayStation Now or, in 2020, the PS5 logo, but it’s not likely. We’d settle for confirmation the headset is definitely coming this year, though.
And that’s what’s happening with VR at CES 2022! What are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments below!
