Lenovo Explorer

Ane of the biggest downsides to the current generation of VR headsets is the unwieldy nature of the hardware. If you want room-calibration tracking, you're looking at having to place two or iii sensors around an area, each with long wires abaft to your PC. Windows Mixed Reality solves this problem by fusing augmented reality with virtual reality, building tracking right into the headset. We got a chance to see information technology in action at IFA through Lenovo'south new $349 Explorer Headset.

Headset and Controllers

Using a pair of outward facing fish-eye cameras, the Explorer headset is able to track motion in an expanse of roughly xi.5 by 11.5 feet. It warns y'all when you're budgeted the edges of your play area. This spares you from the complicated setup and configuration of sensors involved with headsets like the HTC Vive.

Lenovo Explorer

In terms of hardware, the Explorer requires a uniform Windows 10 laptop or PC, a VR-gear up graphics card, around 8GB of RAM, and at least an i5 CPU. Connecting the headset to your machine is washed via USB and HDMI cable. A 3.5mm jack on the Explorer itself lets you use headphones of your option for sound.

A pair of move controllers remind me of the the Oculus Touch on controls that come with the Oculus Rift. I had to use them wired in my demo, simply Lenovo says they volition be able to work wirelessly but fine by the time of release.

Lenovo Explorer

The Feel

Thanks to a flexible, cushioned band that tightens or loosens by twisting a knob at the back, the headset can be worn past only near anyone. It's more than intuitive than all the velcro straps required for the Rift and Vive. Putting the Explorer on, I establish information technology to take a comfortable fit that works amend around my glasses than the Oculus Rift. It's also noticeably lighter than the Rift and Vibe, and I can hands see myself using it for hours without strain.

I played two games, Superhot VR and Space Pirate Trainer. Superhot is a cinematic activeness game where y'all're under attacked by faceless enemies who approach you in ho-hum-motion, giving yous a chance to fight them off. The best way to think of this is that you're the main character of your own film. In the constrained space of the demo area, I used the motion controllers to execute a serial of punches that took out enemies in glorious fashion. Infinite Priate Trainer is your standard arcade shooter where you mow down row after row of enemies.

The surface area guardian that would have warned me about walls wasn't set up during my demo, but under normal circumstances the headset will let you know when you're approaching a real-life obstruction.

Availability

While I just had a short period to try the Lenovo Explorer headset, information technology definitely seems like a step in the right direction for both augmented and virtual reality. Information technology's lighter, slightly more than affordable, and easier to use than the big-name VR headsets out there now, not to mention Microsoft's AR-based HoloLens. And at that place'due south no need for sensors that create a tangle of wires around your house.

The Lenovo Explorer will be available in October for $349 on its own, or $449 in a package with the move controllers. Check back and then for a full review.