A very honest review by Ben Plays VR:
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Thank you @DrWilken for sharing this review. I think this reivew is honest on Bens part and I really wanted to heart this but it is sad to here he was unable to solve his distortion issue’s. Beside that I think it is overall a positive and a good review.
Sorry for his experience with distortion since I have had virtually none since day one playing games such as SkyrimVR and Fallout4VR with large field of view setting enabled.
I hope Pimax get’s the message though that the current strap is really as bad as everyone has said. I don’t know if I would have continued to use my Pimax 8k if it wasn’t for adding the DAS early on.
Haven’t been on this forum for quite I while I know that the lack of info on the kickstarter stretch goals is a real concern for many myself included and was hoping that the Pimax Day streaming event when it does occur will give details about the promised stretched items and new product releases.
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Wow, awesome review, 100% agree to everything he said. Thanks for posting
EDIT thinking of it, that’s not true. I disagree on SDE, which for me definitely is better on the index, most likely because of the filter. But apart from that, spot on. I REALLY hope Pimax has engineered new lenses for their upcoming headsets, with less distortion problems.
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Thank you @Sjef for sharing your opinion its obvious to me nothing has changed since I last logged on to this forum quite some time ago, you still are the million dollar negative nancy that I remember from before using every chance you get on this forum to speak about how bad your experience has been with the Pimax hmd’s almost always contrary to my own experiences.
Read my Index review, not much negativity about that, I love that headset. But if you want to insult me for agreeing to what this reviewer said, go ahead man, I hope it makes you feel better.
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I really wish i had an Index to compare, since i don’t have unlimited funds however i think it will be awhile.
A billion dollar company like Valve doesn’t really need to be concerned or worried about competion from a small company like Pimax really a baby in comparison althought a baby doing inovative and interesting things. No it doesn’t make me feel better. My opinion is that companies achieving success an inovation in VR is a good thing for VR as a whole. Not dominated by one dictating monopoly.
I’m sorry that he didn’t get his warping resolved.
I wouldn’t put money on it, but my take on the “warping” has been that the user is too close to the lenses. I would love to see him try an 18mm Odyssey face pad.
Next, I have suspicions on the glasses that he’s using. Glasses are usually round for a reason: that rectangular shape may introduce warping. I’d love to see him try his Pimax with his other glasses.
Last, assuming that he really has tried everything, I’d suspect a hardware flaw. Too many of us do not have the warping issues.
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Or too far away. I see distortions, if I use a thicker pad than the one that came with my 8K.
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It has been same for me. I see distortions and it does’nt matter how i position the headset.
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He kept saying he needed PiTools running. I never run PiTools and play steamVR with no issues. Where is this coming from?
The severe distortion might be related to glasses. He should have maybe used contacts to see if it was related to the unit or his setup.
Overall, I agree that it’s just an unrefined product that is aging quickly as others have come out with better well rounded options.
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For me the same,my valve index image looks better then my pimax 5kplus…Less screendoor and better colors
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I would have to say that my experience with the headset is practically identical to the one he described. I haven’t been able to get rid of the distortion no matter what I have tried. Unfortunately, I don’t have the visual awareness to consciously spot issues but I get VR sick so easily it doesn’t matter.
I added the DAS with the 3d printed hinges and it improved the fit (but not entirely). I added weights to the back to counterbalance the headset and remove pressure from my forehead (but it increased overall weight). After I turn my head left/right the whole headset wobbles from the inertia but if I tighten the straps enough to stop that, then I get about 15 minutes of play and a compression headache.
I wouldn’t mind all the tinkering if, at the end of the day, I got a playable experience out of it. Sadly, that is not the case and I only put on the 8K for the occasional short session.
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I agree. Closer the better but when I tried a 18mm it was not good and very distorted. I am now using the default one and love it. I worked with Ben but couldn’t solve it. I think different shaped heads.
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My Index looks same color and SDE as my Pimax 5k+. I even had then running side by side and switching between the two. The Index has 50% less pixels so it ran smoother with lower frame times leading to less dropped frames. The headset felt great when you FIRST put it on. That is the positive. Negatives (for me) was it is so front heavy and such a tiny sweet spot that a drop of a mm started to get soft and I was constantly adjusting the headset. The cotton like fabric felt great but after 20 minutes was hot and made me sweaty (and I am a weirdo who doesn’t sweat). The heat runs hot and the fabric doesn’t breath. The FOV according to Reality of Vision app was 110 degrees horizontal. Though higher vertical. This is with it pressed up to my eyes. They measured diagonally to get the “130”. It was boot good regardless. The controllers main flaw is button layout. I have to use my other hand to press the menu button because my thumb can’t contort that way. So went back to my Pimax 5k+. The distortion I am now convinced that it varies by user. So two things can be true.
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I did that too. The Index has a diffuser filter to combat SDE, which the 5k+ doesn’t have. The result is that the Pimax 5k+ is SLIGHTY sharper but the Index has better SDE while still remaining sharp. I’m really surprised to hear some users experience that otherwise. Are you sure you’re talking about SDE and not pixel pattern? Especially if you A/B the headsets a couple of time I found it quite easy to spot this difference.
Don’t they all do that? HTC, Oculus, Pimax, Valve. They all use diagonal for the FoV.
Agreed, the Valve gets sweaty. It never bothered me much though, the panels don’t get foggy. I do agree the 5k+ is less hot. Then again, I never could use the 5k+ for prolonged time while I had hours long session with the Index, so not sure if that’s a fair comparison.
Here I couldn’t disagree more. The Index has much better colors than the flat, dull, cold colors that the 5k+ has in my opinion. It really makes the difference in some games between fun and no fun (Titan Slayer II for example, looks really boring and dull on the 5k+)
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That could be the case but in Fallout 4 which is where I was doing all the comparisons it is already is pretty muted. Maybe my expectations for the Index was too high or I am comparing it to a pimped out 5k+ but it wasn’t for me but I can see how polished the Index was and how it would appeal to some people. I was just hoping that after over 3 years the big players would have progressed further along. But they are also in the business if making money and it’s easier to just release a profitable product than something groundbreaking.
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Thanks for sharing your experience with the Index. It is nice to here some various points of view on this new hmd. One thing is I’m glad they have entered fully into the VR hardware market. Things will definitely improve in time. I just hope they do everything in there power to help other hmd manufacturer’s like Pimax to succeed as well and not hinder their growth with less than optimal support. At the end of the day Valves profits are going to come from, as in the past, almost entirely on their game and software offferings. I’m not a business insider but have enjoyed using their service for many years and have built up a substantial library of games, as a long time gamer and also lover of art.
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Thats strange.
i let try 3 different people swap between my valve index and the pimax5kplus.
everybody liked the picture more on the index.
Better colors and sharper in the index they said…I have also the same opinion…
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Accurate-ish , you see Pimax? this is why you need to finish releasing your headset in its entirety that means controllers, audio strap etc… before you release more headsets.
This review i feel will scare potential buyers.
Default Foam is more comfortable to me. i tried the Vive foam and i was in pain.
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Ebay did they think of the FOV? It can be measured and the Index is the same as Vive pro.