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  • vladx - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    As long as resolution per eye is still so poor, I have no interest in VR.
  • zepi - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    Snapdragon 835 supports 4K resolution to both internal and external display. Assuming those can be drawn from two separate framebuffers, it should be possible to output 2160x2400 as stereo. Is vive / oculus resolution quadrupled.
  • vladx - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    I'll wait for when 7680x2160 arrives, which is basically 4k per eye.
  • Yojimbo - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    I believe vladx is referring to the rendering resolutions. Try rendering a game in 4K resolution on a Snapdragon 835... If they want to render something at 90 fps per eye they will need a pretty low resolution and/or low visual fidelity. I guess the HMD is not for gaming, but I wonder what it is for, then. I think all VR applications need more realism than what the Vive and Oculus provide - more accurate particle, acoustic, and lighting simulation - not less. Surely this is mainly a technology demonstration and not a useful product.
  • vladx - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    Would a 2x835 setup work for 7680x2160 without latency being an issue? I don't need FPS games to enjoy VR so maybe less intensive games and applications should be fine.
  • Qwertilot - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    Not games no. Stuff like Google earth virtual tourism etc though...... Being totally self contained is even a big plus for that, esp if combining with a year Millie such like.

    Education too I suppose.
  • jjj - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    Google mentioned working with Qualcomm, HTC and Lenovo in their extra boring I/O keynote.

    Your point about battery is a bit odd, it's an indoors only device and not much of a point for large batteries, in fact less would be better - that's true for the next decade. Removable battery would be good though.
    Qualcomm does mean an excessive focus on 4G and this device doesn't even need 4G so it will cost some 10% more than it should. HTC means poor choices, very high price and no long term support (LOL).
  • webdoctors - Wednesday, May 17, 2017 - link

    How can this do proper VR? My GTX660 is no where near powerful enough for VR, I think only think right now are 1070+ cards. Its pure magic to be able to put that into a headset formfactor.

    Whats daydream VR? Is that the waterdown version of VR, like how someone says 3D FPS and you think crysis but when you launch the program Doom 1 shows up? Is augmented reality substantially less power hungry?
  • mode_13h - Thursday, May 18, 2017 - link

    Daydream VR is a Google standard for mobile VR, including both APIs for apps and hardware specs. I think Snapdragon 810 was the first that could support it. Yes, the graphics are pretty basic.

    It also doesn't require positional tracking, but the new HMDs will support that.
  • xunknownx - Thursday, May 18, 2017 - link

    pretty sure this will be no different from having VR on your phone.
    except instead of inserting your phone into the headset, everything is already built into the headset.
  • admnor - Friday, May 19, 2017 - link

    That's a pretty big difference. It means all the phoney bits of the phone can be removed, and what's left can be optimized for VR instead of being general-purpose. For example, very-high-resolution screens are not optimal for phones because they kill battery life, but on a VR headset that's less of a concern. It also means OEMs can opt for two smaller screens instead of splitting a large one, which in turn can make rendering more straightforward with a separate GPU-per-screen, perhaps. We're far more likely to see a dedicated VR headset with a pair of 2160x2160 screens and a Tegra Xavier SoC than we are to see a phone being shipped with equivalent specs on the off-chance you want to bung it in a face-holster.

    And, finally, the various parts, including all the -ometers, can be spread out around the device, making cooling easier and improving the weight and balance.
  • Diji1 - Tuesday, May 23, 2017 - link

    Incorrect, the SoC in this headset is designed specifically to power VR devices meaning the experience will be far better
  • edzieba - Thursday, May 18, 2017 - link

    As of today at least, SteamVR tracking (rebrand for Lighthouse) requires all tracking data funnel through the SteamVR runtime. As that does not run on ARM phones (or any other platform that does not run steam) it is unlikely this HMD will use existing Lighthouse setups for position tracking, unless they also require you to have a nearby PC running to stream data back and forth with.
  • Matt Humrick - Thursday, May 18, 2017 - link

    The WorldSense motion tracking is built into the HMD. It does not require external sensors.

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