Difference between revisions of "Pimax 8K"

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[http://www.pimaxvr.com pimaxvr]
 
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[https://vrworld.com/2017/01/30/pimax-8k-vr-headset/ vrworld]
 
[https://vrworld.com/2017/01/30/pimax-8k-vr-headset/ vrworld]
[http://http://vrstation.id/en/news/index/405/Pimax--First-8K-VR-Headset-with-200-Degree-FOV vrstation]
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[http://vrstation.id/en/news/index/405/Pimax--First-8K-VR-Headset-with-200-Degree-FOV vrstation]

Revision as of 02:13, 5 July 2017

Pimax 8k-8k resolution, 200-degree FOV HMD

Pimax 8K HMD – the prototype of the world’s first 8k resolution virtual reality headset was launched at CES 2017 in Las Vegas. The latest VR headset from Pimax comes with two 4k (3840 x 2160 pixels) displays (one for each eye), 200-degree Field of View (FOV), and Fresnel lenses. Each unit of Pimax 8K headset is tentatively priced at $799. Kickstarter campaign for the 8K headset will be launched in the third-quarter of 2017.

Hardware

The prototype of Pimax 8K looks a lot like the StarVR HMD with a mounting mechanism similar to the PlayStation VR. The headset looks bulky, but it’s difficult to say if Pimax 8K is really heavy, as, not many have tried it for an extended time period to comment on its weight. Like the StarVR HMD, the Pimax 8K too has its display placed with a slight Dutch Tilt. The prototype headset comes fitted with Fresnel lenses. People who tested the 8K headset were surprised by the absence of the problematic ‘God Ray’ artifact what often plagues devices with Fresnel lenses. The new Pimax HMD looks quite different from its predecessor. That’s because the Pimax 8K is fitted with a magnetometer, light sensor, motion sensor, distance sensor, and gyroscope. These additions are sure to improve the head tracking capabilities of the virtual reality headset.

Pimax 8K HMD – Features

Resolution

The 8K, 3840 x 2160 pixels per eye resolution is, without a doubt, the best feature of the new Pimax VR headset. Wearing the headset, the users will have a tough time discerning pixels on the screen. Pimax 8K boasts of having a higher resolution than that of HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. The 8K HMD is much sharper and more transparent than other virtual reality headsets that are currently available. The truly next generation 8K virtual reality headset ensures the users don’t experience any aliasing or screen door effect. The aliasing and screen door effects are common problems seen in other HMDs. The extremely high-resolution display in Pimax 8K makes sure the virtual objects don’t appear jagged at the edges and no distinguishing lines appear between pixels. At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2017 in Las Vegas, the Pimax 8K HMD was demonstrated using the on-rails game Showdown created by Epic Games. The on-rails shooting game was run using the NVIDIA GTX 1070 card.

Field of View (FOV)

Equally impressive is the ultra-wide Field of View. The Pimax 8K is designed with 200-degree FOV, which is better than the 100-degree FOV in Vive and Rift. Peripheral awareness gets a big boost with higher FOV, but it doesn’t add much to the actual immersive experience.

Motion to Photon Latency

The Pimax 8K HMD comes with a motion-to- photon latency of 18ms, which is ideal to avoid nausea and motion sickness. The motion-to- photon (MTP) latency is the time taken by the headset to reflect the user’s movement on the screen. For example, a user, wearing a virtual reality headset, moves his/her head to the right. If the movement to the right is reflected on the display 25ms after the action, then the MTP latency of the VR HMD is 25ms. Low MTP latency (ideally, less than 20ms) is necessary to avoid nausea and motion sickness. MTP needs to be low to give the user the feeling he/she is present in the virtual world.

The Brain Wrap Technique

Taking a leaf out of Oculus’ book Pimax has added the Brain Wrap technique to the 8K VR headset. Brain Wrap is a fairly simple and interesting concept used to deliver the 4K quality picture to each eye. The GPU takes the orders from the drivers and renders frames in a sequential manner. The GPU first renders a picture of 4K resolution to just one eye. This is followed by another rendering of the picture of the same resolution to the other eye. The whole cycle is repeated again and again. As the Pimax 8K headset renders frames at very high speeds (up to 240 times a second), the high-speed sequencing fools the brain into believing that the eyes (both right and left) see the same picture. The same brain-wrap technique is used by the active shutter 3D glasses.

The Brain Wrap technique comes with its own set of special requirements or challenges. Ordinary processors do not generate enough power to push the frames in the Pimax 8K headset. The virtual reality headset will need a powerful PC with either one NVIDIA GTX 1080 or two NVIDIA GTX 1070 graphics cards. According to a group who tried the Pimax 8K VR headset, both AMD Radeon R9 390X and Intel Core i5 6600K were not good enough to power the 8K HMD smoothly. They had to use NVIDIA Quadro M6000 12GB to run Pimax 8K smoothly.

Equally challenging is the task of performing, what they call, ‘very accurate synchronous fine tuning’. It’s a very delicate task that might result in a motion artifact known as ghosting.

Accessories

Along with the new 8K VR HMD, Pimax has also introduced special accessories specific to the 8k headset. The special accessory package includes two gaming controllers, two position devices, and a stand.

Cost

The Pimax 8K will cost around $799. People who already own a Pimax 4K will have to shell out twice the price to buy the Pimax 8K headset. But, the new HMD is totally worth the price. The Pimax 8K is the sole member of the 8K resolution and 200-degree FOV group. It boasts of specifications and features that are far better than its nearest price competitor HTC Vive.

How to Get Pimax 8K HMD

Pimax has announced that the Kickstarter campaign for the 8K VR headset will commence in the third-quarter of 2017. People who back the campaign will receive the 8K headsets sometime around Christmas.

References

roadtovr pimaxvr vrworld vrstation