Qualcomm is launching an accelerator program for VR
headset manufacturers, releasing a new headset reference design, and
partnering with hand tracking company Leap Motion. The company is
looking to kickstart production of headsets with features not found in
the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, including an all-in-one wireless design
that removes the need for wires or external tracking devices. This
continues a mission it first announced last year, but with updated
hardware and a goal of making it easier to build off Qualcomm’s work.
The virtual reality development kit,
as Qualcomm calls it, is a self-contained design built on the company’s
Snapdragon 835 chip. It has a 2560 x 1440 screen (equivalent to the
Gear VR), 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of flash memory. There are also cameras
both inside and outside the headset. On the inside, they enable eye
tracking, a sometimes-gimmicky feature that can also make it easier to push
high-quality graphics inside a headset. On the outside, they allow for
inside-out (or “six degree of freedom”) tracking, which means people can
experience moving around in VR without needing a specially assembled
“VR room.” The deal
with Leap Motion, probably the most advanced independent hand tracking
company, also puts an exciting new interface on the table.
Qualcomm isn’t planning on selling this reference design
to consumers; instead, manufacturers are supposed to create their own
products based on it. Qualcomm was already touting partnerships when it
released its first version of the headset. The accelerator program,
though, is meant to streamline the process. It creates a standard for
hardware, including a set of pre-approved components. The accelerator
program is open today, while the headset will start shipping in the
second quarter of 2017 for an unannounced price.
We tried one of Qualcomm’s
VR reference designs, seen above, at CES earlier this year. While the
idea is exciting, we were underwhelmed with the results, particularly
the inside-out tracking. But Qualcomm is in a good position to push VR
forward this year, if it can present hardware that’s attractive enough
to inspire other manufacturers.
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