The long wait is over, the next generation OCULUS RIFT DK2 is here and it’s a giant leap over what has come before. The second iteration of Oculus VR’s VR Headset, the Development Kit 2 represents the culmination of many months of cutting-edge research and progress since the company released its DK1 to Kickstarter backers back in March 2013.
The DK2’s enhancements include a higher resolution panel, up from 1280×800 to 1920×1080 (1080p) and moved to a pentile matrix, OLED panel for display duties. This means higher levels of resolvable detail and a much reduced screen door effect. The panel features low persistence of vision, a technology pioneered by Valve that aims to cut motion artefacts by only displaying the latest, most correct display information relative to the user’s movements – as users of the DK1 will attest, its LCD panel was heavily prone to smearing, things are now much improved with the DK2.
Other inherent advantages of OLED are a potentially infinite range of contrast – as every element of an OLED panel individually emits light, no backlight is required (as is the case with LCD panels) which means that when OLEDs are not lit, the panel is completely dark. This means that black should appear black (dependant on lighting conditions), and therfore perceived contrast levels are boosted hugely. Colours too should appear more vibrant.
The other major advance is that, unlike DK1, the DK2 uses an optical, camera based tracking system which together with the onboard IMU provides the ability to track not just rotational movement but translational movement too, using onboard IR LEDs which sit behind an IR transparent shell on the front and sides of the DK2.
In real terms, this means that (within the cameral’s field of view) the system knows where your head is in 3D space . You can now move your head up and down, downwards and backwards relative to the camera and a DK2 compatible application can adjust your view appropriately, allowing you to lean in and out of a scene or lean left and right.
Anyway, enough of the theory – what’s it like in practice?
Inside the Box and Unit Build and Comfort Impressions
The DK2 takes a different approach to the DK1 in terms of connectivity. Whereas with the DK1, the Headset itself held only the display, lenses and IMU – the DK2 integrates the guts of the DL1 breakout box, into the headset itself. This means that you have a single, integrated cable running from the headset, splitting into USB (for tracking data) and HDMI (for video). It’s a refreshingly uncluttered approach and means there’s less chance of cable tangle.
No comments:
Post a Comment