Rift, Vive, and Virtual Reality

[Kaotik]

There is a bit more information about varjo but unfortunately it's in finnish.

Apparently their technology consists of 2 displays per eye. One display is statically placed with 100 degree fov and another display is dynamically placed based on where you look at and with 35 degree fov. The static display has 1080x1200 resolution and the "bionic" display has 1920x1080 resolution. Price is promised to be less than 10k and production towards end of 2018.

I wonder how the bionic display is implemented, perhaps some kind of projector or is there any other viable solution? I guess they get about 3x resolution or about 9x pixels compared to vive/rift where eye is focusing at.

https://www.io-tech.fi/uutinen/koti...immaiset-vr-lasinsa-tarkalla-bionic-naytolla/

Actually all the info I put in that piece is available straight from Varjo's website (I think, had few other sources open but I don't think I used them in the end).
As it turns out, Verge has seen at least one prototype version of the Varjo VR-glasses, where the Bionic-display is on top of the glasses and it's image is projected on the main display with a mirror
https://www.wired.com/story/varjo-vr-microdisplay/

 

[manux]

Google seems to be investing into displays

“We’ve partnered deeply with one of the leading OLED manufacturers in the world to create a VR-capable OLED display with 10x more pixels than any commercially available VR display today,” Bavor said. At 20 megapixels per eye, this is beyond Michael Abrash’s prediction of 4Kx4K per eye displays by the year 2021.

“I’ve seen these in the lab, and it’s spectacular. It’s not even what we’re going to need in the ‘final display’” he said, referring to the sort of pixel density needed to match the limits of human vision, “but it’s a very large step in the right direction.”

https://www.roadtovr.com/google-developing-vr-display-10x-pixels-todays-headsets/

 

[manux]

Long overdue, finally youtube vr os available for vive (and works also on rift)

app is now available on Steam, officially for the Vive (but also functional with Riftand Windows VR headsets). Google expects YouTube VR to remain in Early Access through 2018 as they continue to develop it based on feedback.

As one of the largest video content libraries on the planet, demand for being able to watch YouTube content in a VR headset has been understandably strong. Google however hung onto YouTube (seemingly in a strategic move) for itself, launching the first official YouTube VR app for the company’s Daydream platform in 2016 (and notably keeping it from competitor Gear VR).

https://www.roadtovr.com/youtube-vr-rift-vive-pc-windows-mr-steam/

 

[manux]

Magic leap kind of revealed their first hw. Assuming there is no lack of money on purchasers part hw will be available some time 2018

Magic Leap’s Lightwear doesn’t offer you a field of view that matches your eyes. Instead, the Magic Leap creations appear in a field of view that is roughly the shape of a rectangle on its side. Because the view is floating in space, I couldn’t measure it, so I did the next best thing: I spent a few minutes holding out first a credit card in front of my face and then my hands to try to be able to describe how big that invisible frame is. The credit card was much too small. I ended up with this: The viewing space is about the size of a VHS tape held in front of you with your arms half extended. It’s much larger than the HoloLens, but it’s still there.

https://www.rollingstone.com/glixel...ing-magic-leaps-mixed-reality-goggles-w514479

 

[manux]

Good information about magic leap one via interview format.

At a high level we decided to minimize weight on your head as much as possible. We wanted to maximize compute power. We ended up with an architecture trying to project the maxed-out CPU and GPU that you could put in your pocket. We have a real time computer vision processor with some AI and machine learning in the headset. We have a distributed computing architecture where one does real time and one does application processing. That was a deliberate design decision, definitely.

https://uploadvr.com/magic-leap-ceo-interview-indoor-augmented-reality-is-the-first-step/

 

[Ike Turner]

Good information about magic leap one via interview format.



https://uploadvr.com/magic-leap-ceo-interview-indoor-augmented-reality-is-the-first-step/

All the info you need about Magic Leap from a guy how actually knows what he is talking about
http://www.kguttag.com/?s=magic+leap

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Yeah, from there...

http://www.kguttag.com/2017/12/20/magic-leap-one-instant-analysis/

With how little information has been released, it looks like what was released was primarily to attempt to drum up more venture capital for the project.

Also interesting (another article on the site) that despite all the hubabaloo from the Magic Leap guy, they are using the same optical displays as HoloLens basically.

Regards,
SB

 

[eastmen]

its interesting that they still aren't' avalible until first half of 2018 which most likely means June. The current hololens is from 2016. So It will be interesting to see what MS does. Do they show off third prototype when magic leap dev kits are avalible to purchase or do they just relese them then also. Going to be really interesting esp since now Oculus is saying no new headset in 2018 to replace the rift.

Thats not to say there aren't some things to like about it. Hololens could certianly benefit from moving the cpu / battery down to your belt

 

[manux]

NextVR is coming out with some real cool videos

Newport Beach-based NextVR will start using its cameras to capture reality in such a way that viewers in VR will be able to move around the scene in any way.

using information from other cameras on its rigs to fill in occluded gaps. As NextVR co-founder David Cole explained it, if the end goal is to have a Holodeck the first step is to free people so they can move around any way they want. The second step is to fill in more and more of those occluded gaps.

https://uploadvr.com/nextvr-6dof/


HTC vive pro was announced. Basically regular vive with higher resolution display

2880 x 1600 resolution OLED display ( 1440 x 1600 per display) makes the new Vive Pro a full 78% higher resolution than the standard Vive headset, which is 2160 x 1200. The original Vive is still going to be sold “through 2018” however, says Vive GM Daniel O’Brien.

https://www.roadtovr.com/ces-2018-first-look-htc-vive-pro/

 

[manux]

Intel is partnering with olympic games to provide vr footage

To capture the Olympic events in VR, Intel’s True VR team set up camera “pods” around eight Olympic venues. Each pod is equipped with six pairs of lenses (or 12 cameras) that capture a stereoscopic view – capturing 180 degrees of action, but also depth, so viewers feel like they’re at the event.

“It’s a full 3D stereoscopic experience with graphics and data that immerses fans,” said Carwana. “They get to experience the intensity and amazement of the events up close and from different angles.”

True VR technology will broadcast marquee events such as alpine skiing (Downhill, Slalom and Super-G), ice hockey, figure skating, snowboarding and “big air” events, speed skating, curling and many of the sliding events.

Viewers can sit back and watch the director’s cut, which will switch between camera angles, based on the judgment and expertise of the broadcast team. Or they can pick and choose angles to track a favorite hockey player or focus on a particularly treacherous portion of the slope.

And, with picture-in-picture available, it’s not necessarily an either-or choice

https://iq.intel.com/gear-up-how-to-watch-the-winter-olympics-in-virtual-reality/

 

[Entropy]

NextVR is coming out with some real cool videos



https://uploadvr.com/nextvr-6dof/


HTC vive pro was announced. Basically regular vive with higher resolution display



https://www.roadtovr.com/ces-2018-first-look-htc-vive-pro/

There are some things still unknown about the ”Pro”. Price the foremost, perhaps.
It seems to be a matured, consolidated product. With the new lighthouses and controllers, it will hopefully take the total package a distinct step up the ladder. However unexciting it appears. Increasing linear resolution by a third, without any foveated rendering is less than hoped for.

 

[manux]

Sounds better than what the specs looked

With the original Vive’s 2,160 × 1,200 resolution it’s relatively easy to see sub-pixels (the little red, green, and blue dots that mix together to make white, and every other color you see). Looking through the lenses of the Vive Pro, not only have the sub-pixels disappeared, it’s challenging to even make out whole pixels[

...

The headset is also more comfortable, easier to use, and supports even better tracking.

it won’t ship with 2.0 base stations (it will be a headset-only offering initially), but it does have the latest sensors which will support the 2.0 base stations when they arrive.

The new sensors work with the 2.0 base stations to improve range; HTC says the Vive Pro will be able to track effectively up to 10 × 10 meter volumes. Up to four 2.0 base stations can also be used in conjunction for greater tracking covering.

https://www.roadtovr.com/ces-2018-vive-pro-hands-on-much-more-than-an-improved-screen/


180 degree 3d cameras complements of google. To me it these look lacking as they don't seem to be capable of 60fps or higher. 30fps on vr videos is pretty horrible. On the other hand, plus points for good effort. Maybe decent 3d consumer camera will eventually happen. I would be perfectly happy with 180 degree solution as long as quality is high.

Delivering high quality 360 video is tough. Most consumer hand-held 360 cameras top out at 4K resolution and are usually monoscopic, two facts that don’t always make for the highest quality VR viewing experience. To remedy this, Google is assembling a number of VR180 cameras which put 4K resolution in a front-facing half-sphere, hypothetically making visual clarity two times higher than contemporary 360 cameras. The cameras’ ability to take locally-stored and streaming stereoscopic video/images is another feature aiming to increase VR immersion, making for a truly VR-first camera solution.

https://www.roadtovr.com/google-announces-vr180-3d-consumer-cameras-coming-lenovo-yi-technologies/

 

[Silent_Buddha]

HTC vive pro was announced. Basically regular vive with higher resolution display



https://www.roadtovr.com/ces-2018-first-look-htc-vive-pro/

I have to say, that is incredibly disappointing. It's a safe upgrade, but a very disappointing one. FOV barely changes, and resolution is only bit higher. It's definitely better than the current Vive, however. A huge plus for including on ear headphones.

I understand that for compatibility with the current Vive, they don't want to change much, but after having tried a Pimax 8K (even with some of its issues), there is no way I can use anything with lower FOV or resolution now.

I recently have gotten to borrow a friend's Rift again, and after having tried a Pimax 8K, the FOV feels extremely confining with the black areas are far more noticeable now than the last time I used a Rift.

As well, after trying to watch VR video on the Rift again, pixel density needs to, at the very least double and space between pixels/sub-pixels needs to shrink.

Granted, the Vive Pro is probably not being marketed as a next gen HMD, but it's still disappointing to me. I definitely won't be considering it for purchase, whereas even with its flaws, I'm seriously considering getting a Pimax 8Kx (so it's not limited to a 2560x1440 input per eye which is that upscaled to 3840x2160 per eye on the 8K).

And that is seriously saying something because up until I got to try it hands on, I wasn't prepared to spend more than 150-200 USD on a HMD headset.

Regards,
SB

 

[Entropy]

I was hoping for this display, introduced to the World back in May.
Oh well.

 

[eloic]

Has any of you tried one of those "treadmill" devices with VR?

 

[MfA]

So a few years and a whole lot more users on I guess I have to eat my words, smooth yaw control without physical rotation does seem plain impossible for a large percentage of users without motion sickness.

Why then did Oculus ignore this and leave wireless and rotating cable couplers to third parties to expensively solve? You see the problem coming in 2014, flush with money ... do bugger all? At least Vive is coming out with it's own wireless solution now.

Though I'd rather just have something I could hang on the ceiling with a rotating coupler and wires to use with a swivel chair (or threadmill). Could have been developed for far less than 0.1% of what was paid for Oculus and mass produced for 10$.

The Swedes and Chinese are fixing the FOV, others are finally getting down to fixing the cable issues. I think it's a bit embarrassing what Oculus has been doing to improve the state of the art and usability. Of course it's hard to be embarrassed when counting so much money

 

[cheapchips]

The Rift was aimed primarily as a plug in and play forward facing seated/standing experience. Wires hanging from the ceiling in a VR dungeon wasn't/isn't mass market.

Vive pushed the acceptance of room scale and pushed Oculus a little more in that direction.

Wireless still doesn't exist as a broad consumer proposition. It's not cheap enough to be baked into a headset. Maybe it is for V2?

I'd say the same for higher res and wider fov hmds. Fine for enthusiasts. Garbage ergonomics and price point for wider adoption.

 

[BRiT]

How much does the wireless aspect add to the cost? What makes it expensive? Is it just economy of scale affecting prices?

 

[MfA]

It's because they all use 60 GHz to get high enough bandwidth (TPCAST 2.0 can also work over 5 GHz, but with significant amounts of compression). There's a lot of expensive engineering with non recouped costs behind that.

But something which you can hang on your ceiling with a rotating slip ring could be made far cheaper.

 

[MfA]

The Rift was aimed primarily as a plug in and play forward facing seated/standing experience. Wires hanging from the ceiling in a VR dungeon wasn't/isn't mass market.

They could have made a motorized swivel chair. Wireless is a hassle, because now you get to strap a battery and a bunch more electronics to your head.