This Saturday, September 1st, the demonstrations for Pimax 8K and 5K sponsors in Berlin that will last until tomorrow, although first a few could access a try Tokyo.
The biggest novelty has been the appearance by total surprise of the model Pimax 5K+, a somewhat more expensive 5K update, but with 9% more Pixels per Inch (PPI) and therefore greater image sharpness. Both versions are LCD.
Sponsors who choose the 5K standard will receive the 5K+ instead with no price increase, while those who choose the 8K model will be able to change to the 5K + and have the $ 100 price difference as accessories.
It has also been possible to choose demonstrations more demanding than the past and an exclusive Oculus.
The youtubers Thomas Poersch (VooDooDE), Marcin Lammi (SweViver) and Sebastian Ang (MixedRealityTV) were present in the tests. Here are some live videos from Marcin.
In this first video, Marcin Lammi (SweViver) gives us a general tour of the various demonstration areas. Apparently they did not work the gamepad, so they have replaced it with keyboard and mouse. The sponsors interviewed say that the 5K+ is fantastic, with acceptable blacks; in zone 3 someone tried The Lab (not foreseen) in an 8K; people also found “perfect” the hand tracking. In zone 4, Skyrim in a 5K+, but the sponsor was still preparing.
Demos have taken place in five zones:
0: with HTC Vive: Experiences to choose from.
1: with Pimax 8K: Demonstration of the hand tracking module.
2: with Pimax 5K+: Arizona Sunshine + common demos .
3: with Pimax 8K: Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice + common demos.
4: with Pimax 5K+: Lucky’s Tale + common demos .
Common demos: Elite Dangerous, Onward, Pavlov VR, Skyrim VR, Assetto Corsa, Big Screen.
One Sponsor finished testing Elite Dangerous and Asseto Corsa in the 5K+, after testing Skyrim in the 8K. He says that there is less SDE in the 8K, but that the colors seemed better in the 5K. He has only noticed a little distortion, but the image has seen it quite sharp even at the edges. “I could read on the sides.” They also comment that there is very little black area to the left or right.
A user sponsor of the Pimax 8K forum:
“There are still some distortions on the edges, unfortunately.”
“I don’t like blacks at all. The blacks in the 5K demos are gray, when in the demo of the hand tracking (8K) the black was fine.”
The FOV seems correct, even the smallest; he does not see big differences.
“It’s comfortable and it’s fine for me. It is difficult to choose between this headset and others with perfect colors and blacks” SweViver tells him that they work on a color and gray adjustment, but that it is not ready yet.
Tracking looks good
“I hardly see the SDE. Maybe in the distant areas. It is difficult to see the difference between the two types of panels”
The same sponsor, playing IL2 Sturmovik (not expected) in an 8K:
He complains about not being able to use the remote.
He uses the full FOV and shows with his hands as far as he can see.
He says he has a hard time distinguishing the lateral distortions in this game.
“The sweet spot is large, minimum 100º, but the color of the herb is paler, it does not look really green.”
SweViver tells him that he is not very green on the monitor either.
“I can read the controls, but the resolution (in this demo) is not very impressive, I would have to have more resolution.”
They tell him that it may be because of the game itself.
When asked if you can wear glasses well:
“My glasses fit well into the headset. Do not touch the lenses”
Another sponsor playing Elite Dangerous with the 5K+:
“It looks sharp. The FOV looks good, I don’t have that feeling of diving glasses. I’ve been testing the performance and there’s some rear projection. The lateral distortion is more noticeable when moving the head, blurring the edges, but hey.”
“Is it annoying?”SweViver asks and the sponsor replies” I don’t think so, for the few minutes I’ve been using it”. The Screen Door Effect (SDE) can only find it if you specifically search for it.
The traking is correct.
The level of blacks and colors looks pretty good.
“You can read all the signs and texts.”
Apparently it was his first experience and he hadn’t tried the 8K.
The demos are using nVidia GTX1080 Ti graphics cards and Lighthouse 1.0 drivers and base stations. plus a Leap Motion-based hand tracking module.
Both Pimax 8K and 5K+ will start shipping to sponsors at the end of September, with the goal that all sponsors receive their devices before Christmas (90% chance)
Sebastian Ang interviews the CEO of Pimax., the summary information is in the article
For non-sponsors, pre-purchase will begin in October and would be shipped after the last sponsor has received their HMD. Probably in early 2019
The drivers can be tested at the end of the year. The first developer version will be released in the first quarter of 2019 and will reach sponsors in the second quarter of 2019.
SweViver has shared a list with 45 videos that cover the event.
