Enterprise headset maker Vrgineers has developed a portable VR combat flight sim system for training pilots on a wide range of combat aircraft, including planes and helicopters. The entire system fits into a single large case and can be deployed wherever it’s needed.
Image courtesy Vrgineers
Made from entirely commercially available off-the-shelf components, the system unpacks from a single large case with everything necessary get trainees into a simulated flight, including the company’s wide-FoV XTAL 3 headset, a computer that can power it, and a stick and throttle setup that mimics common combat aircraft. The company says that one person can get the system up and running within 30 minutes (you can see the whole process here).
Image courtesy Vrgineers
While Vrgineers is packaging all of the hardware together, partner Razbam Simulations is responsible for the simulated aircraft—including the F-15E Strike Eagle and its bevy of systems—which plugs into Digital Combat Simulator, a popular flight sim among enthusiasts and professionals.
Image courtesy Vrgineers
While the company says the system is designed for affordability, at the time of writing they have not released a specific price, though we’re guessing it will run in the tens of thousands of dollars—which seems like a lot but pales in comparison to many professional VR flight sim systems for pilot training.
This year’s CES in Las Vegas has seen virtual reality (VR) hardware announcements from the likes of Shiftall (a Panasonic subsidiary) and Sony (officially naming PlayStation VR2). One headset that’s gone under the radar is the XTAL 3, the latest high-end incarnation from VRgineers. Aiming squarely at enterprise and military clients, the XTAL 3 comes in two editions starting from just under $9K USD.
XTAL 3 Virtual Reality
VRgineers’ XTAL has always focused its efforts towards wide field of view (FoV) applications, flight simulators in particular. That’s why the company boasts clients including the U.S. Air Force, NASA and BAE Systems among others. Designed in cooperation with Air Force pilots, the XTAL 3 will come in VR and mixed reality (MR) configurations – similar to Varjo’s latest devices – with both offering two 4K resolution displays (3840×2160 per eye), a 75Hz refresh rate at 4K (120Hz at QHD), eye tracking, inside-out tracking, and an Auto IPD adjustment range of 60-76 mm.
After that, the specifications do start to differ due to the XTAL 3 MR’s capabilities. For example, the XTAL 3 VR offers a 180° horizontal and 90° vertical FoV, whilst the MR edition is slightly less at 170° horizontal. With a pair of 4K cameras, the XTAL 3 MR headset does weigh in at 700g, 100g heavier than its VR sibling.
“The central cover of the headset is removable and reconfigurable, making it possible to change the headset from purely virtual to mixed reality, or replace inside-out tracking with ULTRALEAP hand tracking,” says CEO and co-founder Marek Polcak in a statement. “We can assure all our clients that the XTAL 3 will be compatible with all existing and future technologies they might need while maintaining the highest levels of comfort and convenience.”
XTAL 3 Mixed Reality
“Our new one-dot calibration removes the biggest obstacle to the wide adoption of foveated rendering technology. The major bottleneck has always been the time-consuming calibration process necessary before every use of the foveated rendering feature,” Polcak explains. “The XTAL 3 calibration process uses unique one-dot calibration that creates a virtual mathematical model of the user’s face allowing us to calculate precise calibration formulas for eye tracking.”
So how much does all this cost? Well, the XTAL 3 VR starts from $8,900 USD excluding taxes whilst the XTAL 3 MR comes in at a rather more substantial $11,500. Making it quite the purchase if you want the ultimate Microsoft Flight Simulator experience.
VRgineers hasn’t solely been working on the new XTAL 3 either. In December, social VR platform Somnium Space released new details regarding its own standalone headset that’s being built in collaboration with VRgineers. This consumer-grade headset is expected to arrive in Q4 2022.
The XTAL 3 VR and XTAL 3 MR headsets are expected to ship to pre-order customers this April. For further updates from the VRgineers team, keep reading VRFocus.
A couple of months back, Somnium Space, the social virtual reality (VR) metaverse built upon blockchain and cryptosystems made a huge raft of announcements which included the first mention of its own standalone VR headset. Today, as part of its first-ever Somnium Space Connect event, the company dropped further details including the specifications and what it’ll look like.
Being built in collaboration with VRgineers – the makers of the enterprise-grade XTAL headset – the device aims to corner a very specific section of the market, one where users aren’t held to a particular store or platform restrictions. A VR headset that’s open-source and modular, which can be programmed and tailored to your own particular needs if necessary.
“We have seen a trend where many companies, big companies, who were producing VR headsets started to close their ecosystems a kind of creating these silos of closed ecosystems, and we as the metaverse company, we cannot afford to risk that we will be dependant on some or other ecosystems,” Artur Sychov, CEO of Somnium Space explained during the event. “Some companies are doing a great job, some headsets are amazing, but we saw some signals from different various companies either towards blockchain or towards VR apps and other things that we didn’t like. It rang a huge alarm in my head.”
In development since the beginning of 2021, Sychov notes that the ‘Somnium VR Headset’ is still very much a work-in-progress yet the fundamentals do already seem in place. Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 processor – which can be found in other standalone devices like the Meta Quest 2 – it’ll have two 3.2 inch LCD panels with a 2880 x 2880 resolution, 90Hz refresh rate (possibly up to 120Hz), 115-degree field of view, custom VRgineers lenses similar to XTAL and full inside out tracking.
You’ll be able to connect it to a PC for lossless VR gaming or stream content to the device thanks to in-built WiFi 6e. There’s also the welcome addition of a MicroSD card slot for expandable storage although there was no mention of any other storage. As mentioned, what might interest a lot of VR users is the modular structure of the headset. “We really believe in modularity,” says Sychov. “We want to have a headset which will last some time with you, which you can take and do things with, which truly can be your companion and your development partner or your gaming partner.”
For example, the front panel will be removable to swap out for other panels, the side and bottom have smaller panels that can be removed to add items to like 3D printed accessories – Somnium will release all the details required to print your own compatible parts. Making for a really customisable VR headset that could very well see some unusual creations from the community.
Somnium Space hasn’t said what price it’ll be aiming for but it won’t be running any super early pre-orders or funding campaigns. Currently, the goal is to release the first batch of headsets in Q4 2022 with more details to be released in the coming months. When that occurs VRFocus will keep you updated.
The largest Defence, Simulation and Training conference descended on London (DSEI) and immersive technology specialist, Kevin Williams, took the time to traverse the massive convention space and return with observations on VR and AR impact in this sector.
The reality of VR in commercial training, simulation and education is often overlooked or side-lined. The enterprise or commercial aspect of VR has proven a very lucrative part of the technology’s deployment, with many consumer headset manufacturers pivoting from a consumer-centric focus to broadening their investment to include a commercial business focus.
What has been coined by me as the “Serious VR” landscape, comprising commercial applications using more powerful hardware and a focus on a core deliverable (such as training, marketing, or out-of-home entertainment). While the “Casual VR” scene is focused on consumer requirements and a price-sensitive, home gaming approach.
The best example of Serious VR was amassed in London, with the holding of the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) 2021, covering all the ExCel exhibition centre, and even taking up the riverside births for presentations of the latest Naval craft. The show gathering more than 30,000 attendees from the international military services, and operations that support them.
Along with warfighting, the convention gathers security, medical, training and infrastructure elements, and the show floor proved a valuable litmus of the actual penetration of immersive technology into the aspects of the commercial scene. Previous DSEI attendance has seen a growing interest in VR, but this years’ shows a definite re-evaluation of the hype over the reality of the value of the technology.
The first aspect of VR application on observation can be described as “Direct Training”.
One of the largest military providers, BAE Systems, used DSEI to launch their new SPA-TAC platform, a solution for sophisticated training, and mission rehearsal suite of tools, using virtual reality visualisation. These allow multiple user support and are deployed on the latest high-end VR hardware. On the booth, the company presented both the latest VRgineers XTAL professional headset, with its impressive field-of-view. Alongside the HTC Vive Pro series.
Another developer at the defence event was VRAI – a specialist dedicated to combining VR and Artificial Intelligence (AI) towards providing enterprise and public service organisations remote training. The ability to use the latest VR technology to create a mobile training solution in the field driving many of the applications seen. On their booth the company had a flight training solution, employing theHPReverb G2 headset. HP is one of those manufacturers that has seen the opportunity in commercial development support. And alongside this, was a Cleanbox Technology headset sanitizing system offering a much-needed hygienic approach to usage in this environment.
Across the way, on the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) stand was a demonstration of high-level immersion for training UK soldiers, employing the latest Varjo VR-3 professional VR headset. DASA is a government fund that invests in exploitable innovation for a safer future. The usage of VR in this application cutting the time for training, and offering better information retention by new recruits, with the control interfaces mapped to offer realistic weapon interaction.
The latest Varjo headset hardware was also seen on many other booths – the platform focused wholly on high-end commercial VR applications, offering an impressive performance beyond consumer headset specifications. The professional headset is deployed in automotive, aeronautical, CAD design and training. This marks a new phase of development in VR deployment, with the commercial sector at such as scale that it can support its own unique hardware development. On the Inzpire booth, the latest Varjo XR-3 was employed promoting its mixed reality capabilities.
The company had on one of their demonstrations a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) training platform, that was incredibly portable and rugged. Powered by two high-end PC’s the user could wear the VR headset and see the actual binoculars and physical controls, as the MR capability dropped the real-world imagery into the virtual environment through sophisticated tracking. This was a compelling demonstration of the versatility that VR training can bring, and the level of immersion was extremely high compared to consumer applications. Also promoting their portability of training simulation, the company showed a helicopter simulator, using both VR (from an HTC Vive Pro) and conventional screen, able to be broken down into a small case.
Simple to install and operate VR training aids were also on display at the Lockheed Martin booth, showcasing their Armoured Fighting Vehicle (AFV) gunnery simulator. Employing in the VR configuration the Varjo headset and offering a means to be deployed anywhere for training units. Previously, this level of training would have depended on crude flatscreen alternatives, or expensive dedicated simulators, unable to be deployed in the field. VR applications beginning to be seen as a strong middle-ground alternative.
On the British Army stand was developers and solution providers QinetiQ – developing realistic training environments for mission rehearsal, and procedures. The company presented their latest environment for infantry training and army warfighting scenarios in urban conditions. Deploying the latest VR hardware with their setup of Varjo headsets. The level of visual realism and performance from their VR setup far surpassing anything comparable on consumer hardware.
The second aspect of VR application seen in this sector can be described as “Promotion and Visualisation”.
While there were seen some Standalone VR headsets, such as HTC Vive Focus, and an Oculus Quest 2 – these applications were more for promotional means, allowing visitors on booths a glimpse at simple information or applications. In previous years VR headsets on booths were ubiquitous, but now the focus was more on the high-end application, steering away from the casual approach.
Visualisation also saw the appearance of augmented reality (AR) on the show floor. To be more accurate the services have been employing AR in its basic form since the 1980s with the use of helmet-mounted optics supporting IR night vision or even heads-up telemetry displays. The latest AR technology has generated a lot of headlines in defence procurement, with Microsoft awarded a $22b deal to supply Hololens headsets in the evaluation of battlefield support for the US Army.
AR was represented at DSEI with the appearance of the Microsoft Hololens 2, being fielded on another part of the British Army booth, and with the developer of the application, Atos. The company is a world leader in digital transformation, providing cloud-based and information handling solutions. Their infrastructure used the Hololens to allow the user to have tactical awareness of the battlefield and deployment of resources, communicating with other users in real-time. Offering a demonstration of the future strategic planning aids that this technology represents.
Overall, the new trends on display at DSEI 2021 were clearly the explosion in investment into Unmanned Vehicles and Autonomous support – ranging from Naval based helicopter drones, and UAVs – with the first appearance of UAV land vehicles for support and casualty retrieval. Great advances in this sector are expected, and the use of augmented displays to track and direct these vehicles is expected to grow.
As mentioned previously, from the great hype and promise, VR has entered a more pragmatic phase in this industry. Its ubiquity replaced at this point, for a focus on more grounded high-end simulation, using the newly available high-end headsets. A new phase of development is about to take place, ejecting Serious VR into the next level of immersion.
Unless you’re a big global company with plenty of money to burn standing out at the world’s largest technology event, CES can be a little difficult. Even so, that didn’t stop Prague-based VRgineers, the virtual reality (VR) headset manufacturer behind XTAL from trying to make an impression. The company attended the event to showcase its new 8K resolution headset and did so in style, bringing a massive flight-sim rig for guests to test the improved resolution. This also proved to be an opportune moment to chat with CEO and co-founder Marek Polcak about the 8K XTAL.
From the outside the new XTAL 8K looks no different from its 5K sibling, offering that striking crystal design, the wide 180-degree (FoV) as well as the built-in hand-tracking from Ultraleap. It’s only when you put on the headset that the difference becomes clear.
First and foremost VRgineers has designed the XTAL to be an industrial headset, suited to companies and organisations which require high-resolutions and wide FoVs for an unincumbered VR experience. This has led XTAL down the simulator route, flight-sims in particular. Because of this specialism, VRgineers has been working with the likes of the US Airforce and US NAVY to aid in their training programs. During CES 2020 it was announced that Vance Airforce Base in Oklahoma will be the first to receive the 8K version, helping upgrade its training centre.
Hence why VRgineers chose to bring a massive pneumatic rig to the expo, where guests had to climb up and in via a ladder to have a go. The setup featured full flight controls and for that added feel of realism, the XTAL was attached to a flight helmet. It’s the fine detail which sets the 8K headset apart from other VR devices. The landscape outside the cockpit looked nice enough but it was the clarity of all the dials and switches which truly impressed – understandable why the US Airforce was using it.
After a nice flight around Dubai airspace, it was time to talk with Polcak about the XTAL 8K and the work that went into upgrading the headset. Check out the interview below to see what he said and to see the rig in action. The new XTAL is expected to be commercially available in the second half of Q1 2020. For further updates, keep reading VRFocus.
CES 2020 is coming to an end. We’ve been in Las Vegas, NV all week trying out cutting-edge hardware and software demos from companies all over the world trying to push the boundaries of VR and AR technology. As a result, we’ve collected our list of the best and most exciting things we saw for you right here.
Just like we did at E3 2019, we’re giving out two awards: Best of Show and People’s Choice. The Best of Show award winner and its nominees are all selected by UploadVR Editorial staff and the People’s Choice award winner is picked by you, our readers! We looked at our website traffic and social media engagement to determine the four nominees for that award and are using social media polls to pick the winner. This was done across two Facebook polls (Part 1 and Part 2) and a Twitter poll.
And if you want the full rundown on our impressions and all of the top news stories of the week from CES 2020, we chatted about it all live in our VR studio for a special episode of The VR Download this week, embedded above!
UploadVR People’s Choice Award For CES 2020: The Nominees
The votes are in and the winner of our People’s Choice Award for CES 2020 is NVIDIA’s new Variable Rate Supersampling feature. Just released this week for RTX GPUs, it will dynamically apply up to 8x supersampling in the center of the view only, the area you usually look at the most in VR, to improve fidelity. It’s sort of like the inverse of foveated rendering, which downgrades the quality of the areas in your peripheral vision to allow for a sharper center.
At CES 2020 the company that impressed us the most in terms of the technology feeling groundbreaking and truly impactful for the future of the VR/AR landscape, was definitely HaptX. Their haptic feedback gloves worked great and the telepresence robot demo was surprisingly articulated. It will be a long time before this technology is consumer-ready, but the future looks bright for haptics (and HaptX) in VR.
At CES 2020 this week, VRgineers announced a new version of its XTAL high-end headset for enterprise priced at $7,890, including business grade support.
The original XTAL was announced back in summer 2018. For $5,800 it featured dual 1440p OLED panels, 70Hz refresh rate, custom lenses with 180° field of view, eye tracking for automatic IPD, and built in Leap Motion controller-free hand tracking.
This new XTAL ditches OLED for dual 4K LCD displays instead. While VRgineers calls this “8K” (just like Pimax does), it’s important to note that the industry definition of 8K is actually 4 times as many pixels than 4K, not twice. This is because you need to multiply both axis of resolution. Hopefully VR companies stop using misleading terminology for the sake of marketing in future.
For more information read here or watch the interview and demo above.
The virtual reality (VR) industry is still very much a community which wants to see everyone succeed, whether that’s an indie developer or hardware manufacturer. It’s why if you go to a dedicated VR or augmented reality (AR) event everyone is always so friendly and helpful. Earlier in October VRFocus took a trip over to Prague in the Czech Republic to see VRgineers and its XTAL headset. While in the city VRgineers suggested a trip to Hamleys to see DIVR, a location-based entertainment (LBE) startup located in the store’s basement which VRgineers had help setup. Currently DIVR’s only location this was ideal to test its two custom VR videogames, Golem VR and Arachnoid. As it would turn out two very different experiences.
Being located in Hamleys (a famous toy store if you weren’t aware) gives you some impression of DIVR’s scale and ambition – it is located in the lower levels next to all the Lego. The setup is very similar to The VOID where the gameplay flows through several rooms, allowing players to touch walls and other solid surfaces whilst feeling wind on their face or a blast of heat.
Using modified Oculus Rift’s and backpack PC’s, DIVR’s system is very much on par with others VRFocus has tested. It doesn’t feel too cumbersome or heavy and the Ultraleap hand tracking is instantly familiar for those who have previously used it and easy to grasp for those that haven’t.
Like any LBE experience, it tends to be the content which sets each apart. Unlike a VR arcade which may use a distribution platform like Synthesis VR or SpringboardVR, DIVR makes its content in-house. Having originally created Blue Effect VR for home headsets, the two on offer in Prague are most definitely designed for LBE gaming.
Golem VR is the best starting point – not to be confused with Highwire Games’ Golem coming to PlayStation VR – offering a gentle puzzle adventure whilst embracing some of the city’s history. Stepping into a time machine, you’re transported back several hundred years to the Renaissance, tasked with finding Rabbi Low and his new creation, the Golem.
Family-friendly, Golem VR provides a pleasant story-driven experience where challenges range from chasing chickens to finding glyphs which unlock secret doors. Nothing too difficult which means most players should happily plod through, nicely keeping the story flow going. An important factor is that because you have nothing in your hands like you would on a home VR headset, there’s a much greater connection to this virtual world, providing an ideal hook and sense of presence new players should find delightful.
Having gone through Golem VR with one of VRgineers’ team it was then time to step into Arachnoid. This was a different beast entirely and certainly not for the faint of heart – even for those not too bothered by spiders. Alas, Arachnoid was where the chaperone drew the line, so VRFocus had to experience the eight-legged horrors alone.
As you might expect Arachnoid is rather intense. Not straight away mind, there is a nice little build-up before the fanged beasties suddenly come a crawling. For this experience DIVR gives players an actual flashlight to hold, lighting up the dark corners. As the experience is set in an underground facility which can only be accessed through a mine, a bit of extra light is certainly appreciated. But there was the occasional tracking issue which did ruin the immersive qualities at points.
Again this was a puzzle adventure, so there were no guns to speak of. This probably helps to increase the jump factor for a lot of players as they can’t protect themselves – there was plenty of temptation to throw/smash the torch when a spider popped up. And pop up they did, in their droves.
Ever watch the film Arachnophobia (1990)? Remember those latter stages of the film when all the spiders infested the house? Well combine that with a mommy arachnid the size of an SUV and you can imagine the joys that await. Oh and let’s not forget the spitting, suddenly getting a faceful of green vomit. Once up close the spiders weren’t that terrifying, having an animatronic look about them. Far scarier was the spatial sound which was excellent. Hearing something scurry around just out of view made those lonely moments much more intense. However, the spiders tended to distract from the rather mundane puzzles, collect weird goo and transport it to said location or find a set number of keys. The last one was a little more elaborate yet puzzle fans will be underwhelmed.
It was also clear that DIVR controls the experience enabling multiple groups to run through at the same time. Completely understandable from a business perspective to maximise space and time, especially if a group gets stuck. Yet there was a feeling of being rushed even when the challenge was almost complete. Doors suddenly opened just before finding the last piece of the puzzle for example. This may have been due to playing alone rather than in a team.
Arachnoid did have one final ace up its sleeve right at the end, a score. You’re given a completion percentage as there are tapes to find uncovering the story of what happened in the lab alongside how long the experience took to complete. Plus, there are multiple endings depending on how attentive you are to the environment.
Because of this replay factor, VRFocus really does want to give Arachnoid another try, with more people next time. If trying to decide between the both, remember Golem VR is a one play through deal while Arachnoid does offer a little more value for money. Neither quite offer the same excitement as The VOID’s Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire or Zero Latency’s warehouse-scale Sol Raiders but you can’t have everything. If you’re in Prague and fancy some VR, DIVR has created an LBE location that’s worth taking a look at.
When it comes to virtual reality (VR) headsets there are two distinct markets, consumer and enterprise. The two may go hand-in-hand when it comes to particular uses cases, which initiatives like Oculus for Business has tapped into with Oculus Quest and Go. However, there are companies that require way more than these headsets can provide, turning to manufacturers like VRgineers and its XTAL head-mounted display (HMD) for that quality and feature set a consumer device just can’t match. But what do you get when spending £5,000 GBP on a VR headset?
Recently VRFocus was fortunate enough to test VRgineers’ latest model, the XTAL, at its head office in Prague, Czech Republic. The device arrived last year with one of its headline features being the 180-degree field of view (FoV). One of the widest of any commercial-grade HMD, VRFocus was interested in seeing this headset a year after launch to see how it holds up against new competition and to allay early doubts.
VRFocus first encountered XTAL at CES 2019 and in all honesty wasn’t that impressed after the demo. The auto-IPD adjustment (AutoEye) seemed to struggle to find the exact position leading to a slightly uncomfortable experience that wasn’t sharp, as such trying to test the FoV just seemed like a non-starter. Due to this disappointing start, the XTAL had a lot to prove and hopefully, in less rushed surroundings, there was going to be time to properly scrutinise the HMD.
Any VR headset offering wide FoV’s above the fairly industry standard of 110° is going to be big, there’s no way around that with current technology. This does mean XTAL is a beast of a headset and if you thought Oculus Quest was a little front heavy then you’ll find no pleasure with XTAL. Upfront are two Quad HD high-density OLED displays offering a resolution of 5120 x 1440 (2560 x 1440 per eye), built-in Ultraleap hand tracking, and AutoEye which mechanically moves the lenses to automatically adjust for each users requirements. So that’s a fair amount. Additionally, the team wants to add cameras to the front for augmented reality (AR) functionality – which is still being developed so wasn’t available to test.
These means that XTAL doesn’t really suit long durations of use – 10 minutes was enough to start feeling the weight – although the actual comfort and fit from the facial interface and head strap were very good. VRgineers had a little trick up its sleeves when it came to improving this, as well as the immersion. XTAL is designed to provide accurate experiences for simulation purposes, one of which is piloting aircraft. So the team had a headset attached to an actual helmet which improved the overall experience immeasurably.
It was during this pilot demo that XTAL really began to shine. Stepping into a helicopter with full flight controls, the detail of the screens suddenly came to life when peering into view each dial and its readout. Each one was clear and legible, even when leaning in – which is usually the opposite in cheaper headsets. This was further proven in a later demo using a convertible BMW, with the definition of the leather seats and their various crinkles and patterns clearly visible.
Back to the helicopter as this also provided the best test for that 180° FoV. Such a wide FoV presents numerous problems, from image sharpness to chromatic aberration, hence it’s difficult and expensive to fix. From what VRFocus has seen VRgineers has nailed 180° VR. The clarity at the edges looked superb even when trying to find and pick fault, looking out over a wide landscape whilst flying over Dubai. It elicits a very strange feeling, especially when going back to narrower FoV headsets. 180° feels natural as if you can see this digital world properly for the first time. Doing back to 110° almost seems like being put inside a bubble – or just like a horse with blinkers on. If the wide FoV wasn’t up to the task then it would make no difference, however, because it is, means that it does.
When it comes to enterprise needs all of this is further aided Ultraleap’s hand tracking which currently still provides one of the better systems for controller-free interaction. Plus XTAL supports SteamVR! So yes, you can, in fact, buy one for £5k, add some Lighthouse base stations and a couple of HTC Vive controllers to play Beat Saber if you so desire – probably not the best use of XTAL. A better one would be if you have a full HOTAS setup.
There’s no getting around the fact that XTAL is an unwieldy HMD with big cables coming out either side and a price tag to match. But it’s with the resolution and FoV that VRgineers will win customers over, whether that’s car manufacturers looking for detail or training centres looking to provide the best immersive simulations. VRgineers’ ambition is as wide as the headset and there are still hurdles to climb when dealing with form factor. That 180° view is nice though.
The consumer virtual reality (VR) market is a tough industry to be in, for hardware and software companies alike. It’s not easy convincing the public of spending £400+ on a device that straps to their face for immersive entertainment. The same can’t be said for the enterprise sector, as demand seems to be steadily increasing thanks to VR’s range of use cases. It’s why some companies have either moved over or solely focused on business applications as there’s more money to be made. Depending on application companies have a range of head-mounted displays (HMD) to choose from, with only an elite few competing in the upper echelons, one of which is VRgineers’ XTAL headset.
VRgineers’ first product was the VRHero 5K Plus before its successor arrived in 2018, offering improved visuals, greater field of view (FoV), automatic IPD adjustment (AutoEye) and integrated hand tracking thanks to built-in Leap Motion technology. An imposing looking headset thanks to its width – the design allows for a 180-degree FoV – the XTAL is most certainly aiming towards enterprise applications, most notably simulation.
With that in mind, it’s why XTAL boasts a 5K resolution – 5120 x 1440 (2560 x 1440 per eye) – from two Quad HD high-density OLED displays, offering companies plenty resolution to make even the finest detail visible. It’s why car manufacturers like Audi/BMW use XTAL for both design iteration as well as sales applications, allowing customers to look at new models and customise them.
Having first encountered the XTAL HMD during CES 2019, coming away from the very brief demo rather underwhelmed – it does cost over £5,000 – VRFocus recently headed over to the Czech Republic to visit VRgineers’ headquarters. There will be a deeper hands-on article later this week but before that VRFocus interviewed VRgineers’ CEO and co-founder Marek Polčák.
Polčák is certainly passionate about VR having started in the industry by offering immersive tours of Prague. The trouble was that at the time the headsets weren’t up to the challenge, unable to provide the sort of quality Polčák wanted. So he co-founded VRgineers alongside Martin Holecko and Vaclav Bittner in a bid to create a device which could offer the quality he was after.
Today, that has led to XTAL, a headset which mixes both high-end industrial components with consumer tech – it supports SteamVR and Lighthouse tracking. Check out Polčák’s interview below to learn more about VRgineers and what the company is working on for the future. For VRginners updates, keep reading VRFocus.
