In general, VR is brilliant. But also frustrating. There is no single HMD that covers the basics. When VR burst forth this time (Thanks Luckey), it was clear that computing was taking one of those rare steps forward.
To me it feels like I am alive in a moment such as the revelation of the automobile or the lightbulb in that the possibilities what it offers can be extraordinary, I suddenly found myself in my own imagined future. No longer outside the monitor but inside it, it’s here. I feel it is that profound a moment. Granted, it is the beginning (v2) but for some reason I am spoilt with an imagination that exceeds where we should be with VR in general.
Why do I feel like VR advancement is dragging its heels? My belief that tech manufacturers could fine tune existing processes and bring VR right up to where we are with other advancements. We have 4K tv’s running at 120Hz with HDR and 1000 nits, we have 8K TV’s slowly releasing into market and I bet there are 16k sets sat waiting for the right time to release too. So why is VR so difficult to move forwards. Challenges that have been solved elsewhere in other advancements. Why are industry giants sitting on IP when this could revolutionize how we interact with the world.
There are labs that can focus a beam of light through multiple optics (lenses, prisms, mirrors etc) along miles of interconnecting paths with a 0.0001mm accuracy at the end point (AWE Orion). There are lenses that can focus on a person from space. Yet little of these advancements are making their way to the future of computing which is depending on optical solutions.
Is there not a VR/AR consortium that can bring these industries together for the good of the world? It seems everybody is racing in different directions like Betamax vs VHS all over again, trying to make their product the standard.
All I am saying is I am frustrated that we set the VR bar so low when it should have been higher from the start. We have cobbled together existing tech and come up with toys, toys that give us a glimpse of what can be yet still a long way to go to compete with the monitor.
Anyway, my motto is that failure is learning how not to do something, it is still progress and companies like Pimax I respect as you are the one company openly trying to raise the bar and set a new standard of what the consumers really want, what we expect VR should be today. And thanks to the backers, you are the guys helping bring it together faster.
Humanity could be settled on Mars right now. Majority of People just don’t care and companies are mostly interested in rapid profits and are no longer aiming for « moon shot »
It could be hardware limitation !!
The fact, we are the one who can advance the technology, were company’s fill that gap
On top of that, resources making such a thing … ( cost, demands, software, etc )
And its the market milking their product to the last drop !!
Once its maturing, then the bar will raise, and the technology will see the light where we stand on the future …
I’m sure the manufacturers could bring very advanced HMD right now…but in what cost ??
Yeah, I understand some of the limitations and business aspects but I also feel that certain areas are not as optimum as they could be. Nothing to do with Pimax here, just the VR industry as a whole.
Hardware limitation is an obvious one, no point releasing something only the top 0.5% can use as the return in profit will be tiny and the chance on monetizing cutting edge IP at that end of the scale is costly and high risk (e.g. Magic Leap?). However the hardware to run CV1 and Vive at 90fps was not all cutting edge. They used available panels but had to modify it like crazy to change the image, like trying to fit a cube into a spherical hole. Lots of R&D was needed in lens design to make a square’ish panel match our view from a few inches away.
They worked with what was available on the market rather than asking panel makers to produce wide aspect, curved micro panels, something that matches our landscaped vision. Why not have a panel that does the distortion itself forgoing the need for lenses to distort a rectangle image in the first place? These are just musings, I have no real knowledge on this but it seems we are forcing what’s available to fit what we want rather than stepping back and redesigning display panels specifically for VR. With the potential of VR and the investment the industry is getting you would think this would be an area of high interest. Pimax on the other hand are left with forcing a circle (our eyes) into the square hole (the current panels).
Also, hardware limitations usually applies to increased pixel count for better visuals. It is a brute force approach and one that is not sustainable for VR. GPU power increases are way behind demand. En que foveated rendering…eventually. I would expect this to be the #1 must have tech to keep moving forwards and not stagnating with 1.5 versions of HMD’s coming out. You can thank Apple for that delay (see below).
The milking the market without innovating is part of my frustration. It is what it is for all the points you listed. Valve holding back the knuckles, Oculus walled garden, MS’s Mixed Reality with limited tracking, Apple buying and privatizing major innovators like SMi.
Anyway, I guess I should stop trying to force the future to happen quicker and just be happy that it will all happen, hopefully while I am still alive
Why release the goods when the old stuff sells, LOL.
If the Pimax 8K eats into profits/takes away interest, that is when consumers could sit back with a smile because the competition would heat up something fierce.
I totally agree with you…
I was holding my breath for ( magic leap ) not that VR believer, until i realize we are several years behind … so VR way to go…but not with 110 FOV … etc
PIMAX my hope for 2018…not sure about the big players ( sounds disappointing )
VR/AR industry’s …more of hololens skipping v2 …and meta 2 and … and panasonic HMD… etc (nothing on the horizon to wait for )
Unfortunately, I think the reason we haven’t seen more VR innovation is that it’s mostly a matter of costs. Not many consumers are going to bye a $2000 headset which requires several thousand dollars worth of video cards to actually use.
That’s why I’m glad for Pimax’s kickstarter, otherwise we’d probably have to wait for YEARS for this technology to become available.
exactly this. Why would any major company release a headset too expensive for normal mainstream consumers? they simply wouldn’t profit. And a lot of people still can’t afford the rift ($350)…
The more i see it AR will take over VR
Maybe much more investment on AR ( like apple vision ) …while they are relative to each other ( AR/VR )
Could that mean more advancement on AR/MR hiding behind the door…while nothing much about VR ??
But one could say the technology has to start somewhere even if it is ugly …
But with AR being more along the lines of everyday use. So more like hololens or tge AR sunglasses format. AR will be more mainstream everyday use. But not to be confused with MSMR headset approach with passthrough cameras.
VR will head more into immersive gaming & experiences. Motion sims definitely a plus.
AR Seems to be what many of the big businesses are waiting for. Sales in business software goes from Indy versions for $10 to Pro software for thousands of dollars a year via subscriptions (Adobe, Autodesk, Foundry etc). Apple and Microsoft who are the two main players in Operating System software also belive that AR is the next big thing. So yes, AR is big business if they can improve on things like early Hololens prototypes.
Things in AR are much more challenging than VR, like being able to place a CGI element where your eyes are focussing which could be right in front of you or half way down the street in the real world. They have a long way to go yet.
VR will dominate the entertainment space I think. AR will dominate business software and eventually end up as common as spectacles but that’s years from now.
One more thing…
Its not always about the cost !!
Like phones and TVs …flagship will cost alot and the market still high
What i mean to say, is how good to have such a thing in our life that so cool
Is VR a must ??( with all aspects…fashion-feasibility-limitaion-etc )
…then we can talk about the cost !!
Thats why em MR believer
It is likely that they will merge at some point too. AR that can go fully opaque will be as good as VR.
It is more likely that cloud streamed software will take off at that point so you do not have to have the device plugged in as all your software will be in the cloud. Games, Videos, Software will all be streamed to the wearable as interactive video.
Haha, thanks I am like you, I read a lot and sometimes If I am lucky it sinks in. And your English is fine
Microsoft have for once looked ahead with their naming of “Mixed Reality” as they know that VR and AR will eventually merge, then you have to call it something else so they are hoping on MR which in truth, I think is as good as any.
And yeah, VR research is cross compatible as it has many of the same challenges except the augmented real world overlays.
Foveated rendering will aid both, foveated streaming is even more challenging but people are working on it for example: https://arxiv.org/pdf/1706.04804.pdf
Interaction with the virtual aspects can be applied to both so all these wild and wonderful tracking devices coming out are pushing the bar for both VR and AR although with AR you can see traditional peripherals. But that will be replaced with real-time gesture tracking anyway. RoadToVR run updates on Leap Motion research which i find interesting:
I like their latest article on distance interaction and can see that appearing in all sorts of upcoming titles. Reminds me a bit of the Gravity gun in Half Life I wonder about the new dual cameras on the Vive Pro too, will people be able to do stuff like Leap Motion?
I wonder about the new dual cameras on the Vive Pro too, will people be able to do stuff like Leap Motion?