In a bid to take the virtual reality experience to the next level, a China-based VR company, Pimax, is in the process of making a 8K VR headset, which it claims is the first-of-its-kind in the world. To get things going, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign on September 19 with a goal of raising $200,000. A month into the campaign it has already surpassed that goal with the help of 3,571 backers. So what is this 8K VR headset all about and should you be excited about it? Let’s find out:
The first striking feature about the Pimax 8K VR, a prototype of which was unveiled at the recently concluded Immersed 2017, is that it offers a 200-degree field of view owing to its two adjacent 4K panels. Given that the current lineup of VR headsets offers a field of view of about 100 to 100 degrees, the Primax offering may well be the future of VR.
Hardware and Design
The Pimax 8K headset sports an extremely wide HMD made from super light yet durable plastic material. Given its large size, the feather-light weight actually comes as a surprise and also contributes significantly to the comfort of wearing the device. The headset is also expected to be fitted with a mechanical strap to meet the device’s stretch goal, at least that’s what the Kickstarter version displays.
The design of these headsets remarkably addressed the single biggest flaw that the current VR headsets are riddled with – screen door effect (SDE), which is basically the gaps in subpixel grids of the display panel. The Primax 8K headset is also equipped with an interpupillary distance (IPD) adjustment mechanism and is likely to sport a fully functional adjustment dial to fit the users’ eye spacing.
There is also a USB Type-C port at the bottom of the headset to facilitate its pairing with a range of accessories such as a scent module and a Leap Motion hand tracking module.
Specs
The Pimax headset comes with two 4K displays operating on 75Hz or 90Hz, and it is pleasantly surprising the such a high output resolution does not hamper the frame rate. And a scaler fitted inside the headset is the key behind it. Operating on Brain Warp, which is markedly similar to Asynchronous Timewarp, the Pimax 8K should come around to the same gaming performance as any other VR or Mixed Reality headset in the market today.
The 8K VR headset is priced at $499 and will be ready to ship by January 2018. The company is also launching a range of 5K VR headsets, apart from packaged deals for both the 8K and 5K variants in a price range of $399 to $3,799.
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