Somnium VR1 Headset Sept. Update

[Aapje]

@SCG_motoadve

 

The next product is the new game engine, which may power another 10 years of modules. So hopefully, they will bring things up to date so both on the VR and non-VR side, it supports or can support the state of the art as much as reasonably possible.

 

@DBCOOPER011

 

Quad views are fairly young to the scene, having been developed by Varjo and adopted by Pimax. They have been standardized now as a standard extension in OpenXR 1.1, so it is likely that it will become the standard for foveated rendering.

 

Mbucchia has shown that it is relatively simply to support it on any headset.

[DBCOOPER011]

On 6/19/2024 at 12:05 AM, chiliwili69 said:

It is like a Crystal Light but with the option of Eye tracking and better FOV, but without inside-out tracking and a much higher price.

 

Anyone want to try it?

 

 

Prices below. I believe its not returnable unless you live in the EU..

 

 

[Drum]

I'm getting the Classic Edition as I still don't have a use for eye tracking, but for the additional $600 for eye tracking, IMO that's a waste of good money because the best you'll gain is a measly 15 FPS in DCS.  That money would be better spent on a new 5090 which will give you a lot more FPS then that.   🙂

Edited June 21, 2024 by Drum

[DBCOOPER011]

5 hours ago, Drum said:

I'm getting the Classic Edition as I still don't have a use for eye tracking, but for the additional $600 for eye tracking, IMO that's a waste of good money because the best you'll gain is a measly 15 FPS in DCS.  That money would be better spent on a new 5090 which will give you a lot more FPS then that.   🙂

 

Drum, You gain quite a bit more FPS in DCS with quadviews foveated eyetracking then 15 FPS.. I just did a quick test in DCS with quadviews on/off with the same settings. With it on, my GPU frametime was 9.3ms, off it was 18.6ms..

 

 

Using the converter below. This was about a 53 FPS gain using eye tracking..

 

https://fpstoms.com/

 

Edited June 22, 2024 by DBCOOPER011
added info

[firdimigdi]

15 hours ago, Drum said:

the best you'll gain is a measly 15 FPS in DCS

 

It's always best to compare frametimes as it gives you a much better indication of the performance margins/headroom you have. If the 15 fps diff means it hits the HMD's chosen refresh rate then you don't know how much room there is for tweaking or for rendering a more complex scene.

[kissTheSky]

As much as I’d like to have MR a la Varjo XR3, the titan edition might be the sweet spot for my needs. Of course, if there’s no support for hand tracking in clickable cockpits, eve titan edition would be unnecessary for seated sims.

[chiliwili69]

more on this headset from the Prague event:

https://www.roadtovr.com/somnium-vr1-hands-on/

 

The nice thing of this headset is the larger FOV and the display port cable for direct PCVR. And the 2880x2880 displays with 72Hz mode.

The bad thing is the front-heavy (and large rotational inertia).

 

Definetely I will not order it since I already compared the 2880x2880 displays of the Crystal Light with the Quest3, and the pictures were not from another world.

I am sure this headset is superior to the Pimax Light, but not sure if the price justify it. I hope they succed as I wish for every PCVR headset manufacturer.

 

 

But I would love to try this headset and make some through the lens pictures with IL-2

[Panzerlang]

AND on top of the price for the full-fat version you have to purchase light-houses too. Get da fuq outta here! Lol.

[chiliwili69]

It looks like they corrected moct of the past issues...

 

 

[Panzerlang]

9 hours ago, chiliwili69 said:

It looks like they corrected moct of the past issues...

 

 

What baffles me is the lack of inside-out tracking. Just why?

[Aapje]

7 hours ago, Panzerlang said:

What baffles me is the lack of inside-out tracking. Just why?

 

As far as I know, this is in some models.

[chiliwili69]

17 minutes ago, Aapje said:

As far as I know, this is in some models.

 

No, all models need BaseStations for the headset tracking. The handtracking is a different thing.

 

In fact, having a good inside-out tracking technology is not easy (Pimax Crystal Light inside-out tracking is not robust), only Meta (RiftS, Questline) and Sony (PSVR2) have invested in that and they do well.

Somnium could incorporate the XR2 chip which handle the inside-out tracking well, but then it will be even more expensive.

 

It is important to note that you need to add the basestations + controllers to their offer.

[chiliwili69]

another review from uploadvr:

 

https://www.uploadvr.com/somnium-vr1-first-impressions/

[Panzerlang]

3 hours ago, chiliwili69 said:

 

No, all models need BaseStations for the headset tracking. The handtracking is a different thing.

 

In fact, having a good inside-out tracking technology is not easy (Pimax Crystal Light inside-out tracking is not robust), only Meta (RiftS, Questline) and Sony (PSVR2) have invested in that and they do well.

Somnium could incorporate the XR2 chip which handle the inside-out tracking well, but then it will be even more expensive.

 

It is important to note that you need to add the basestations + controllers to their offer.

I had a look for base-stations when I was thinking about the Varjo and couldn't find any.

2 hours ago, chiliwili69 said:

another review from uploadvr:

 

https://www.uploadvr.com/somnium-vr1-first-impressions/

Yeah, good review. It's not shouting "worth 2500 euros" though (and that's the lesser model). Then add base-stations. I don't think their company will last long.

[Dagwoodyt]

These are not really "reviews". I hope the VR1 doesn't prove to be some form of mirage.

[Panzerlang]

I wonder if Somnium are aware of the sold-out base-stations? Given that they were sold out a year ago too and I've no idea if they've been available between then and now.

VALVE INDEX Official Store - The Best VR Experience - Degica Shop – KOMODO Plaza (JP)

In stock here, 200 euros each. I cannot begin to fathom the justification for such a price but hey ho.

Base Station HTC VR - Lighthouse VR - SteamVR 2.0 Base Station (immersive-display.com)

Edited July 24, 2024 by Panzerlang

[c19580]

Those prices are RIDICULOUS!

[Panzerlang]

10 hours ago, c19580 said:

Those prices are RIDICULOUS!

The Somnium or the base-stations?

[c19580]

19 hours ago, Panzerlang said:

The Somnium or the base-stations?

Somnium… I couldn’t imagine justifying $3-4k on a headset when there are sub $1k options that are pretty decent

[Dagwoodyt]

Has anyone here already ordered a VR1? I looked at their web site today and am confused as to whether placing an order requires only a small deposit or requires obligating your credit card for the full purchase amount. Looks also as though they will not be shipping before Nov-Dec of 2024, a terrible time relative to shipping/customs processing. On top of that the applicable terms include what appears to be a requirement that the buyer agree to decline participation in class action complaints. 🤔

[Drum]

All I know is they won't be shipping any to Canada until early next year due to the required Canadian certifications not being finished yet.  That may be a blessing in disguise though.  😉

[Aapje]

What certifications are those? A maple syrup dunking test? Throwing it at a moose? Checking whether the aboot page is spelled correctly?

 

Edited July 30, 2024 by Aapje

[Dagwoodyt]

I don't see any benefit from giving credit card info to Somnium until they are actually shipping.