no i get you, but i mean in terms of talking about meetups etc taking away from dev time, i just meant that impact could be negated by having by having backer meetings overlap with other necessary meetings like press stuff.
I think based on berlin they should absolutely start showing it off at public events though under more controlled circumstances than berlin. you don’t want people screwing with the piplay settings at vr days like they were in berlin and causing potential confusion.
I think if they can nail down the software to the point that you are loading profiles for games ala natural motion they will be in a solid position to sell full sets to consumers. But while they are selling solo headsets to enthusiasts i think they can get away with there they are now. They also need to throw a racing wheel and a hotas in their travel bags.
We don’t know that they are not getting an m2 yet. It may simply be the case that at that point there were no m2’s for them. Others may know more than this, but this is all i know.
Remember , mrtv got his headsets in a lidl bag, as they were the demo units from the event. surely they would have given him boxed units if there were units lying around if just for the sake of presentation. And before berlin, mrtv didnt even know he was getting a headset, and people were accusing pimax of only giving a m2 to their single most positive tester. remember that?
As to the entire second half of your post. i’m not a lawyer but, is probably a really good reason for anyone under NDA to ignore the rest of that sentence. When you are making that post, you are suggesting to other people to take a massive risk with massive consequences, and you should be more responsible than to suggest that for other people, or goad them into that situation.
They are adults, if they want to take that risk, they can. Otherwise, if they are refused an M2 they can pass their tests and concerns onto mrtv, sweviver and voodoo, who can check for those concerns on the m2 and include it in their reviews. If they are shown those concerns, and fail to address them in testing, and then the issues come to light in the backer units, it would be quite bad for their channels. So it would be in their own interest to report on them.
On 31st July they said “we are assembling the 2nd batch of ~230 M2” so they should have some spares for the other testers. I was suprised they didn’t have any boxed ones for the meet-up though.
Or maybe they are just using the three people with what they would consider the biggest reach out of the gate (so the word gets out quicker) and perhaps the other testers will be able to publish reviews post the 16th? Or maybe they are rewarding those testers for taking part in the meetup with the exclusive reviews ahead of everyone else? That’s how it looks to me, plus we don’t know what these reviewers are going to say. We can expect a glowing review based on the general sentiment from the meetup but who knows what could be said in the longer term. I assume the three testers aren’t under any obligation to post positive reviews only or will be vetted before going live. MRTV could drop a massive clanger for all we know and suggest to not bother with Pimax and get a Star VR.
I guess the problem now is because those three testers are heavily invested in Pimax thanks to their invitation to the event and their help at the event, their objectivity and bias may well have changed or be partially compromised (this might even be a subconscious thing - but I only speculate here). Therefore it is important to have a wide range of opinions. However, you can argue the first reviews might be the most important, but heck, such is the Internet, the most negative reviews always get the most eyes-on. So if the Pimax M2 is truly a dud and is reported as such by less invested reviewers then those reviews will take center stage over any glowing ones regardless of when they are published.
Either way, these pre-retail reviews are really only there to serve backers rather than mainstream media/audiences. Plus we have the testimonials from all the backers at the meet as another layer. I don’t think there is an issue with what is going to be said in the reviews or Pimax are gagging any potential negativity. Without knowing what the terms of the NDA were it’s hard to say whether some testers are being treated unfairly or not. Maybe there were no guarantees that all testers would get a final version to test and then be allowed to post reviews online? IDK.
The way I see it, our three musketeers will get the chance to review the units before anyone else. Why, is anyone’s guess but it isn’t a secret that several of the other testers didn’t do much. And in fact were mostly just in it for the reviews.
In any case, once the first headsets are sent out, anyone could review it. Will only be a few weeks between that.
Mrtv actually quite bluntly dropped some negative commentary in one of those berlin videos. if neoskynet has concerns he wants address im pretty sure mrtv would be the safest pair of hands. remember that in his first reaction video after getting his m1 he utterly failed to contain his displeasure at it.
In terms of panel usage. high quality rig mounted comparative photography of the lenses would in theory allow one to literally count the panel usage by horizontal pixels. i’m not saying that’s why i have been calling for it for a while but i would sure like to see that photography.
Well let’s play for a moment. If the 8K or 5K+ are as good as the 4K but with a wider FOV and none of the ghosting, comfort and focus problems then is that a reason to be pleased?
Well there are 2 ways to look at it. Sure, if you compare to gen 1, it’s most likely a nice product. But if you compare it to the Pimax 4k in terms of SDE/clarity etc, then you surely must agree that there’s something wrong with the Pimax 8k. This is the whole point the Spanish testers have been making.
How could I possibly disagree. But seeing as most folks haven’t tried the 4K, they won’t know will they. I think there has been one 4K user who tried the M2. Can’t recall where I saw his thoughts but I believe they were not negative.
They wont know agreed. But in 2019 new panel tech will come out and I think the Pimax product will get obsolete very fast. Of course Pimax can also come up with a new product next year. We’ll see.
You may be right in terms of comparing it with the 4k. In my mind though the big question is whether or not users coming from the Vive, Rift or WMR would be impressed and happy with either the 5k or 8k. Simple fact is that very few people have used the 4k. It may be true that that 8k is not using the panels to fullest potential but the question still remains as to how much that is going to matter to the majority of people and whether they would really want to wait the amount of time it would take to further investigate it and maybe change something to improve panel usage. The many impressions from Berlin indicate that the headset is very good just as it is. That doesn’t mean that it couldn’t be better, but at some point you just have to go with what you have.
given how rapidly and quietly they swapped out panels to create the 5k plus they actually seem really light on their feet in this regard. Additionally the fact that the coweling, as well as the entire lens frames being removable goes it would seem the core hardware shell is pretty flexible.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we see a mail back in oled upgrade option a year down the line. better lenses etc.
but equally seems it will be easy for tem to launch upgraded models based on the 8k form factor and hardware platform.
The only thing is Pimax seem to be budded up with one LED manufacturer. Not sure if they have the business skills to get in with a company like Samsung
just to let you know: I will review the devices as I always do: fair and unbiased. Of course it was nice to see the Berlin event be such a success. But I also understand that all these backers had their very first glimpse at the devices, coming from 1st gen devices. That jump can be really impressive.
However, I have been looking at the device for like 3 months and I know exactly where the strenghts and weaknesses are. I had already told the Pimax team not to celebrate too early but to keep on working on the flaws.
I will be doing some Pimax videos prior to the 16. September that are not reviews to answer some questions for the people who could not attend the meeting, but the real meat will be the review on 16th.
