VR equipment has become more and more popular in recent years. Compared with the original VR glasses, there has been a qualitative leap in the experience, and the gameplay has also increased a lot. You can immerse yourself in more interesting games, watch giant-screen movies, exercise, and more at home without going out. Recently, I also experienced the PICO 4 all-in-one VR headset in advance. Compared with the previous generation products, it also brings a lot of upgrade points in the experience.
PICO 4 specs and features:
- 2.56″ LCD display*2, 1200PPI
- 72Hz/90Hz refresh rate
- Qualcomm XR2 processor
- 8GB LPDDR4X+128GB/256GB UFS 3.0
- 4320*2160 resolution (2160*2160 per eye)
- $358 – Check latest price on AliExpress or Amazon Germany
VR Headset Appearance
Compared with the previous generation, PICO 4 has also changed in appearance. The front panel is black, which looks more concise, and I personally feel that this design is more beautiful. At the same time, the button design on the VR headset has been optimized. There is only one power button on the right side, long press for 2 seconds to turn on, and long press for 5 seconds to turn off.
The volume button is designed above the right strap, and the raised design is convenient for blind operation. The straps on both sides have left/right speakers near the ears. The dual stereo speakers are equipped with sound field reconstruction and sound effect enhancement algorithms, and there is a more immersive spatial audio effect in listening, and the sense of auditory immersion is stronger.
The USB-C interface is located on the right side of the VR headset, with a 20W charger and a USB-C cable. In addition, the remaining power can be judged from the VR headset status indicator. The red light flashes when the battery is less than 20%, the blue light is always on and the battery is working, and the green light is always on and the battery is more than 98%. The built-in 5300mAh battery can run for 2 hours without too many problems.
In addition to being equipped with 4 environment tracking cameras on the front of the VR headset, up and down, left and right, it is also equipped with a color perspective camera in the middle of the front. After wearing the VR headset, you can directly view the surrounding environment through this camera, and the picture is in color (the previous pictures were mostly black and white). What is more commendable is that the viewing angle of the camera is very close to the distance seen by the human eye, just like the distance seen by the human eye, you can walk and take things directly without collision.
The veneer foam inside the VR headset adopts a magnetic suction design, which is attached to the VR headset by means of magnetic suction, and it is more convenient to disassemble. For users who wear glasses, you can take out the glasses bracket in the accessories and attach it to the VR headset by magnetic attraction. After installing the glasses holder, install the veneer foam. The function of the glasses bracket is to adjust the distance, and it can be used directly by wearing myopia glasses.
The nose pads in the accessories are installed on the nose pads of the veneer foam. It is equivalent to a shading cloth, which can improve the problem of light leakage from the bridge of the nose and avoid the disturbance of light from the outside through the bridge of the nose. Improve the immersion of VR from the details.
The straps on the top of the PICO 4 are designed with Velcro, which has more adjustment space for the straps. When wearing, it can be adjusted according to the actual situation, and can be further fixed at the same time. And the top strap can be removed, if you feel uncomfortable when wearing the top strap, you can remove it.
The rear fixing method adopts the strap knob method. It is fixed by rotating and can be operated with one hand, which is relatively more convenient. In addition, PICO 4 continues the scheme of setting the battery compartment in the back of the head. In this way, it can maintain a front-to-back balance with the front head display, and it will not feel too heavy to wear, reducing the weight of the head display on the face, and it is easier to use for a long time. This is also the consistent advantage of PICO VR.
Display
For the VR headsets, clarity is one of the key parameters that directly determines the quality of the experience. In this regard, PICO 4 has obvious advantages. The PICO 4 is equipped with two 2.56-inch displays with a resolution of 4320*2160, reaching a resolution level of 4K+. The key is that the pixel density reaches 1200PPI. You must know that the pixel density of the mobile phone is only above 400PPI, which is 55.6% higher than the PPI of the previous generation PICO Neo 3. The actual picture is very clear, and the clarity has reached a very high level. The screen refresh rate is 90Hz, and the visual perception is relatively smooth. 105° FOV wide viewing angle, the visual perception will be more immersive.
Adjusting the interpupillary distance can improve the problem of dizziness, just like measuring the interpupillary distance with myopia glasses. It is commendable that in the past, when adjusting the pupil distance in VR, it was necessary to remove the VR headset and then adjust it manually, and most of the adjustments had fixed gears. But PICO 4 does not need it, it can be adjusted directly through the controller. And it can be adjusted steplessly, and it can be adjusted freely in the interpupillary distance range of 62mm-72mm, which is more flexible and more convenient to adjust.
In addition, the PICO 4 has a distance sensor in the middle of the two displays. In the power-on state, when wearing the VR headset, the system will automatically wake up. When the VR headset is removed, the system will automatically sleep. If you forget to turn off the VR headset when you take it off, the system will automatically stop running.
The PICO 4 is also smaller in size than the previous generation. It mainly adopts the more advanced Pancake short-focus optical solution, which uses the principle of polarized light and realizes the short-focus folding optical path through multiple re-entry, which can reduce the distance between the screen and the lens. Make the optical module smaller, and the VR headset also becomes smaller.
Controller Appearance
The PICO 4 controller has also been upgraded. First of all, the appearance adopts a new star ring arc column design, which is more compact. The special ring design can distinguish left and right hands when you get it in your hand, and it also reduces the occurrence of bumps when you cross your hands to perform actions. In addition, the laser engraving process is added to the part that holds the controller, which has a certain anti-slip effect. If you are still worried that the controller will be thrown out due to intense exercise, the hand strap in the accessory can come in handy.
The left and right controllers are equipped with 2 joysticks, 2 trigger buttons, and 2 grip buttons. The left controller also has a menu button, a home button, an X button and a Y button. Among them, short press the Home button to turn on, long press for 6 seconds to shut down, short press to exit the application, and long press for 1 second to correct the center of the screen.
In addition to the A/B button, the right controller also adds a screenshot button. You can take a screenshot with one click or long-press to record the screen, which makes it easier to share the content in the VR world.
Vibration is especially important for VR devices, and it is the key to improving tactile realism. This time, PICO 4 has a relatively good vibration configuration, using a 50-500Hz broadband linear motor, which is one of the top motor configurations at present. It provides good feedback vibration in games such as drumming, gun shooting, boxing, etc., and enhances the sense of immersive control from the touch.
At the same time, a large range of IMU gyroscopes and infrared tracking solutions developed by PICO are added to the controller, which can achieve millimeter-level tracking. The 6DoF optical system used by the PICO 4 has a spatial control advantage compared to 3DoF. In addition to turning up/down, left/right, forward/backward, you can also move your body and walk directly in the virtual world. Relying on the 4 wide-angle lenses of the VR headset and algorithmic tracking and positioning, it can bring accurate algorithmic tracking effects.
Use Experience
PICO 4 is also very simple to wear. Wear the VR headset directly on your head, adjust the strap on the top to a suitable position, and then rotate the strap button at the back to find a suitable and comfortable fixed position. If you wear glasses like me, you can magnetically attach the glasses holder to the VR headset and then install the veneer foam.
Press and hold the power button on the right to turn it on, and press the Home button on the left controller to activate the controller. Entering the system interface will provide in-situ fast and custom security boundary modes. The former will automatically generate a safety boundary, and you only need to choose whether to stand or sit, while the latter needs to divide the safety boundary area by yourself.
It is commendable that the controller is used to divide the security boundary by itself, and the shape of the security boundary is not limited. You can draw whatever shape you want, without restrictions on the terrain. For example, some things are stacked on the ground at home, and they can be directly divided out when the safety boundary is divided.
Inside the security perimeter is the picture of the virtual world. When we touch the security boundary, the front color perspective camera will be activated, and we can directly see the real world picture to ensure security. And when the perspective camera is turned on, you can walk freely in the real world just like you don’t have a VR headset. In Settings – Lab – Quick Perspective Mode, double-click on the right side of the VR headset can also quickly open the perspective mode after it is turned on.
PICO 4 adopts the Android system, and the system interface is equivalent to a console + display screen. The console is the main menu area and includes icons such as Recommendations, Store, Events, Friends, File Management, Resource Library, and System Settings. Selecting the corresponding icon will pop up the corresponding real screen.
PICO 4 also uses the Snapdragon XR2 platform, which is a top-notch performance level among current VR devices. And it is the world’s first XR platform that supports 7-channel parallel cameras and has a dedicated processor for computer vision. Compared with the Snapdragon 835 processor, it has 2 times the performance improvement of CPU and GPU, 4 times the video bandwidth improvement, 6 times the resolution improvement and 11 times the AI performance improvement. It is also the first XR platform to achieve a true MR experience by supporting low-latency camera pass-through. This is also the key to PICO 4’s free walking through the color perspective lens, equipped with an 8GB+256GB storage combination.
Since it is powered by an Android system, many Android applications can also be installed in the PICO 4 VR. In addition to watching videos, PICO 4 can actually watch the live broadcast of the anchor in the form of VR. Now TikTok has actually opened the VR live broadcast function. When I wear PICO 4 to watch the live broadcast, I feel like I am at the scene of the anchor, the anchor is right in front of me, and I can see the anchor dancing, performing, etc. up close. You can also like, comment, etc. during the live broadcast.
When it comes to entertainment application experience, the design of the controller should be praised here, which is completely designed according to human hands. The trigger button is the index finger, and the thumb can control the joystick and the XY/AB buttons. The grip button is equivalent to the little finger, ring finger, and middle finger. When grasping, the control is very natural, no learning ability is required, and it is completely instinctive habit to control. But after all, it is not a part of the body, and it still takes a certain amount of time to get used to the manipulation.
Conclusion
The PICO 4 package includes a VR headset, a pair of controllers, a user guide and a power adapter. Also includes glasses holder, nose pads, and controller lanyard.
The newly added color projection camera of PICO 4 all-in-one vr headset provides an MR visual experience combining color reality and virtuality. Safer and a better blend of virtual and reality. In terms of entertainment, more immersive gameplay can be achieved at home through PICO 4. For example, interesting applications such as drumming and table tennis can bring happiness and also achieve the purpose of sports at home.
Of course, VR immersive viewing is also a consistent advantage. Up to 1200PPI, PICO 4 goes one step further in terms of definition, providing a clearer and more delicate picture. And now VR live broadcast has gradually become a major trend, which also increases the social experience of VR devices. An immersive VR experience that integrates sports, entertainment, and social interaction, such PICO 4 is hard not to like.
Check the PICO 4 price:
- Check latest price on AliExpress
- Check latest price on Amazon UK
- Check latest price on Amazon Germany