If you're performing tasks such as design work, it's important that you really be able to see the difference in textures of various materials. Boasting what its makers call human-eye resolution, the Varjo VR-2 virtual reality headset is designed with such applications firmly in mind.
Showcased in Vancouver last weekend at the VR/AR Global Summit, the VR-2 features a "Bionic Display" that combines two 1920 x 1080p micro-LEDs and two 1440 x 1600p AMOLEDs (active matrix organic light-emitting diodes). This results in an 87-degree field of view with a resolution of 60 PPD (pixels per degree) in the center of the frame – human 20/20 vision is also 60 PPD, at the center of the eye.
Helping things out are a 10,000:1 infinite contrast ratio designed to deliver "the deepest blacks and individually calibrated colors," along with different refractive-index lenses in each eye that combine to minimize color aberrations and reflections.
![The VR-2 weighs 605 grams, not including the headband](https://assets.newatlas.com/dims4/default/2e40632/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4000x2667+0+0/resize/1440x960!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewatlas-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ffe%2F51%2F7f9b3bcf4f0ab5a3e6e0e3ebc5ba%2Fvarjo-vr-2-front.jpg)
When we tried the headset out at the show, we were certainly quite impressed with its display. Not only are users able to look around within photo-realistic environments, but when they want to get a closer look at an object, they simply lean in closer to it – just like they would in real life. Doing so, for example, it's possible to start by seeing a newspaper from a distance, and then proceed to actually read the fine text printed upon it.
Utilizing the device's eye-tracking capability, it's also possible to select and "click upon" items within the display, simply by lingering one's gaze upon them.
Released in mid-October, the Varjo VR-2 is compatible with Windows 10 desktop computers and laptops, and is priced at US$4,995 (including software and support license). There's also a Leap Motion-equipped VR-2 Pro model which tracks users' hands, allowing them to manipulate virtual objects in the onscreen environment – it sells for $5,995.
Product page: Varjo VR-2