Lenovo Unveils New ThinkReality VRX Mixed Reality Headset for Businesses
Lenovo has unveiled its ThinkReality VRX headset, a standalone mixed reality headset for business customers. The headset has a color passthrough functionality that will allow for new usage scenarios.
Lenovo hasn’t divulged many details or technical specifications about the headset but revealed that the headset uses pancake lenses and has stereo cameras for passthrough functionality. The battery is also positioned in the rear of the headset. Pancake lenses are increasingly being used in new-generation virtual reality and mixed reality headsets and enable smaller panels that have smaller gaps to the lenses. Pancake lenses permit much smaller and lighter visors in VR headsets. Lenovo has also stated that the headset has a color passthrough mode which makes the ThinkReality VRX Mixed Reality headset suited for mixed reality use cases.
The ThinkReality VRX also runs Lenovo’sVR Android fork and will also feature “a full suite of end-to-end services” that will range from content creation to consulting via cloud deployment and customer support. Among these is the remote education platform ENGAGE.
The Lenovo ThinkReality VRX packs all the features of a standalone virtual reality headset. The ‘X’ in the VRX name stands for the augmented reality mode through color passthrough.
The headset also offers inside-out tracking through four in-built cameras. It supports content streaming, even for the more robust and sophisticated graphics.
The ThinkReality VRX headset has two “high-resolution” color cameras located on the front part that give it more precise tracking functions. These two front cameras also provide augmented reality (AR) functions which capture the actual environment around you and stream it to the headset through video and the feed can be enriched using computer graphics.
The Lenovo ThinkReality VRX also uses pancake lenses, just like the Pico 4 and the Meta Quest Pro (Project Cambria) headsets. Pancake lenses fold rays of light just before they hit the eye and are thus closer to the screen which makes it possible to have narrower form factors in the design of the headset. The image, thus, gets darker which necessitates the use of brighter displays than the brightness level required for classic lenses. The battery in the VRX is also positioned at the back of the strap like in the Pico 4 headset for optimal weight distribution.
The SoC on the headset is an unspecified Qualcomm XR series. The headset could be put into various applications including collaboration, training, and 3D design. Lenovo also talks of the use of security features and cloud software as key elements of its “end-to-end” solution for enterprises.
Apart from the headset’s standalone operation, it also offers an option for streaming from PCs and workstations.
There is also an option for a separate USB-C connection cable. Additionally, the system also supports cloud-based solutions such as Nvidia’s CloudXR.
It comes with a Lenovo software suite for various “end-to-end” services including cloud deployment, consulting, content creation, and customer support. Together with the ThinkReality software platform, this software suite can allow companies to manage, configure and install apps on bigger headset fleets at the same time such as during company-wide deployment of XR infrastructure. The OpenXR SDK and the Snapdragon Spaces AR can also be accessed by developers.
The headset is set to release in a few countries towards the end of this year. At the moment, the Lenovo ThinkReality VRX headset is only available in Early Access from select partners.
The global launch for the headset is set for early 2023. The release will only be in select markets.
This is not Lenovo’s first foray into the VR headset market. The company released the Lenovo and the Windows Mixed Reality headset. The company participated in the design of Facebook’s Rift S headset. There is also the gamer-focused standalone Lenovo VR700 that it launched in China in August 2022.
Source: Lenovo
https://virtualrealitytimes.com/2022/09/30/lenovo-unveils-new-thinkreality-vrx-mixed-reality-headset-for-businesses/https://virtualrealitytimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/The-battery-is-positioned-at-the-back-of-the-headband-for-improved-wearing-comfort-600x382.pnghttps://virtualrealitytimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/The-battery-is-positioned-at-the-back-of-the-headband-for-improved-wearing-comfort-150x90.pngBusinessLenovo has unveiled its ThinkReality VRX headset, a standalone mixed reality headset for business customers. The headset has a color passthrough functionality that will allow for new usage scenarios. Lenovo hasn’t divulged many details or technical specifications about the headset but revealed that the headset uses pancake lenses and has...Rob GrantRob Grant[email protected]AuthorVirtual Reality Times - Metaverse & VR