Industry context
Whether developing products, services, or platforms, the VR industry is expanding rapidly and drawing resources from many areas. That expansion helps VR become more accepted by the public, but unchecked, rapid growth also exposes gaps: low-quality and hastily produced devices have appeared in the market.
One way to manage that growth is to set constraints so development stays within defined boundaries. Those constraints can come from regulation or public scrutiny, but the most direct and transparent tool is a rigorous, fair, and objective industry evaluation standard.
In early November, Digi-Capital proposed a set of evaluation criteria focused on the core VR hardware—the headset—covering mobility, field of view, immersion, usability, flexibility, wearability, and affordability. While these criteria addressed user-facing experience, they largely overlooked the hardware implementation capabilities that enable such experiences at scale. In practice, technologies such as HDI PCBs play a critical role in determining whether compact VR headsets can reliably integrate displays, sensors, processors, and wireless modules without compromising performance or comfort.
More recently, Futuremark announced a VR benchmark called VRMark scheduled for release in June 2016 to provide a more scientific reference for VR evaluation. Prior to that, Futuremark added VR rendering metrics to a new 3DMark build on Steam; that VR build currently does not support multi-GPU and does not produce a final score.
Whether Futuremark's standard will be broadly accepted remains uncertain, but as the VR field develops, more related standards are likely to appear.
What should enthusiasts look for in a VR headset?
Based on recent hands-on reviews of two well-known VR headsets in China, here are four essential aspects to consider.
1. Appearance
A good VR headset should meet basic aesthetic expectations. While Google Cardboard gained popularity due to its pioneer status and marketing, consumers still expect devices associated with advanced internet technology to have an acceptable appearance.
2. Ease of use
Ease of use must be apparent from the initial setup. If putting the device on or preparing it for use is cumbersome or requires assistance, users will form a negative impression immediately. In an era that values plug-and-play simplicity, straightforward and intuitive operation is a significant advantage.
3. Comfort
Comfort is critical. Motion sickness is a well-known issue and may not be fully avoidable, but manufacturers should prioritize the headset's physical comfort: reduce weight, improve fit to facial anatomy, and ensure that claims of "ergonomic" design translate into real, perceptible comfort for users.
4. Real-world performance
Evaluating runtime performance is challenging because VR experience depends on both hardware and software. Mobile VR headsets that rely on smartphones will show greater variability than PC-tethered systems. Nonetheless, core factors that determine a headset's appeal include accurate positional tracking, quality audiovisual rendering, a wide field of view, and high resolution—these elements drive immersion and user acceptance.
