Comparison Chart of FOV (Field of View) of VR Headsets
The human eye perceives its surroundings with incredible clarity, depth, and a wide field of view. To put in perspective with technicality, the human eye can perceive a field of view of up to 180 degrees without even moving the eyeballs. Even more, the eyes can see up to a 270-degree field of view, given that the eyes are fully rotated. These amazing facts about the human eye are one of the key things that VR headsets are taking into consideration. By creating a wide field of view, VR headsets can offer great immersion and depth of view to every content it renders to the user.
Although many VR headsets offer a wide field of view, the human eye has such great abilities to detect imperfections in vision. A visual phenomena called tunnel vision occurs while wearing such headsets. Because the human eye has a great perception of its field of view, VR headsets cannot fully envelop the eyes’ view field. Basically, even a VR headset with a 180-degree field of view will create some perceptible differences in rendering a virtual environment compared to the physical world. The tunnel vision effect is also called the “snorkel mask effect”, since it is very much similar to what we experience when we use snorkeling masks in water.
VR headsets boast of field of view specifications varying from one to the next. For the sake of comparison, the StarVR headset has the highest FOV value of any VR headset, with an extra wide viewing angle of up to 210 degrees – even surpassing that of the VR Union Claire which also offers a wide field of view of 170 degrees. By offering up to 210 degrees, StarVR extends the viewing experience beyond the human eye’s peripheral vision. The entire VR experience greatly depends on the field of view, though other specifications must also be met. Here’s a table showing VR headsets currently in development, with their corresponding field of view values:
Top VR Headsets,Field Of View (degrees)
StarVR/IMAX,210
Oculus Rift,110
HTC Vive,110
LG/Valve,110
Samsung Gear VR,101
PlayStation VR,100
Google Cardboard,90
Microsoft HoloLens,90-110
Other VR Headsets,Field Of View (degrees)
VR Union Claire,170
Wearality Sky,150
GameFace Labs VR,140
ImmersiON-VRelia BlueSky PRO,123
Dlodlo VR Glasses,110
Visus VR,110
Cmoar,105
Vrvana Totem,105
Sensics, 100
FOVE,100
Dior Eyes,100
AirVR (iPad mini),100
Homido,100
Pinch VR,100
Razer OSVR,100
Zeiss One VR,100
AirVR (iPhone),90
Durovis Dive 5,90
Impression Pi,90
Viewbox,90
Avegant Glyph,45
Field of view values for VR headsets are essential to what one should expect in a VR experience. Generally speaking, a higher value can nearly eliminate the so-called snorkel mask effect. Other factors that affect the tunnel vision phenomena include the structure of the VR headset itself, and the shape of the lens or screen. Some VR headsets use Fresnel lens technology, such as the Pinch VR and the Wearality Sky, which keeps the form factor thin while also offering a wide field of view. So if you are thinking about getting a VR headset soon, keep in mind that field of view values are key to getting a terrific virtual reality experience, and is a good deciding factor in choosing a VR headset that suits you well.
For more information on VR headsets and Field of View, please visit the following websites:
https://virtualrealitytimes.com/2015/03/19/list-of-all-virtual-reality-headsets-under-development/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head-mounted_display
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_of_view
Agree that eye tracking (I use https://cooltool.com/ ) is a great thing. Human eye has million of unrevealed possibilities. I believe that tomorrow`s technologies will change our life in a big way.
please add the 210 degree https://vrwiki.wikispaces.com/InfinitEye+V2 and http://www.starvr.com/ to update your list
Yes thanks, this has been re-envisioned as StarVR and we’re planning to add i to this list at the top in a day or two. I’m personally very excited about it, and disappointed by the Oculus Rift’s mediocre FOV (Field of View) —Geoff
that’s because the rift won’t cost over 1500$ compared to the starvr
Nice one! Only negative is the low resolution.
please add the 100 degree xingear http://www.imcardboard.com/xingear/xg-vr-headset-for-smartphones-only-reserve-yours-now.html
OK we added it, thanks for the note.
Xingear not for sale anymore. It seems they received many complains for their low quality.
We should expect a lot of this… there are far too many headset makers out there and most will disappear within two years. When people try the really high end systems they will not want to go back to cardboard.
please add Freefly VR supposably 120 FOV.
Could you please update your list with vertical FOV ? starvr is 210°H/130°V.
Thanks for keeping this list. I believe however that it should be split in two for practical purposes: headsets with built-in screens on one hand, and headsets (shells) for smartphones on the other.
I am somewhat confused:
– My $1 cardboard (Google copy) has a great FOV, allows me to watch videos without glasses (I am myopic with -10dpt, so my own focal length is just 100mm).
– Then I bought a Ritech RIEM III, hoping for better quality and results. The FOV is ridiculously small, tunnel vision – plus I MUST use glasses to see the screen clear.
Why would a manufacturer use high focal length lenses in the first place? Focal length is not really a function of cost for these cheap plastic lenses anyways.
If a paper box with 10 cent plastic lenses can get it right – why can’t these huge VR thingies?? A comfy foam cushion and rubber straps are useless, if the optical design is plain wrong.
I have given up using the disappointing Ritech crap and enjoy the view in my $1 cardboard box. $13 down the tube. should have bought 13 Cardboards instead..
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This is a very good point. The poor FOV of ALL the leading VR headsets is the most disappointing aspect of most VR headsets. Palmer Luckey recently mentioned that they plan to improve this in the Oculus Rift 2. There are several ways to do it, already used by other headsets that haven’t received a lot of attention. Until the FOV is 180 degrees or more, the immersion will feel pretty limited unless the game you’re playing happens to be something in which you expect to be wearing goggles or a helmet, such as a snowboarding or astronaut game.
Totally agree. I bought Google Cardboard for quite cheap and thought I’d upgrade to a VR Box brand headset with the foam padding, better headstrap, stronger case. While it has all of those things, the field of view is way smaller than Google’s Cardboard. I just don’t get it. It’s like looking through a Viewmaster, where you can see the sides etc.
It’s 90 degree FOV. If you like that then try the StarVR, 210 degrees. 🙂
Great chart! You should complete it with a full overview like on this dutch website – just translate it no?
http://vrgear.be/smartphone-vr-brillen-vergelijken/
Virtual Reality is made all the time. NO GOGGLES NECESSARY. It’s all a money game. I’ll simply watch videos and save my money until everybody gets tired of the game and they sponge every dime out of everyone tryingThen VR will be on video.
Virtual Reality is made all the time. NO GOGGLES NECESSARY. It’s a money game. I’ll simply watch videos and save my money until everybody gets tired of the game and the corporations sponge every dime out of everyone trying to ‘buy the perfect cell phone’! Lols! Then VR will be on video. I gave up my cell a year ago. What a con job! (It’s called The Grape Nuts Syndrome. People keep buying them after the upgrades. But they still suck!)
how we can measure the FOV on the VR headset?
Sit cross legged on floor, Look forward, place 2 rulers in tge real world at the extreme edges of your periphery vision, pointing away to infinity/horizon, then take HMD off and calculate the angle between the 2 rulers!.
These are FOV numbers given by the manufacturer. Here is a list of FOV’s that are actually measured: http://www.sitesinvr.com/viewer/viewer-benchmark.htm
Doesn’t even include the StarVR!
How can one measure the FOV of a headset that is not sold yet?
The 2 newest Gear VR HMDs both have 100 degree FOV not 96
100 degrees sound like a round up number– less accurate.
Well, I service them (and source optical quality glass replacement lenses) the 2016 and 2017 Gear VR gavd MUCH Wider Lenses, it’s not a round up, it’s an upgrade.. I have cut tge plastic away at edges of my Gear VR (see methods on YouTube) and increased the FOV another 5 degrees on each eye! (People have noticed the display area on full screen devices like the Note 4-7 devices and S8, go beeyond the plastic barriers in the Gear,.. It made all the difference actually! So i’m actually at 110° now on my 2016 Gear VR.
Brilliant man. And absurd that Gear VR chops off 10 percent of the view? That makes a big difference.
How much does the StarVR cost?
The pimax 8k is going to be 200 deg fov and theoretically released in December.