For discerning PC VR enthusiasts willing to invest in a premium experience, Somnium VR1 offers an unparalleled alternative. However does it ship? Recently, I had a firsthand experience and set out to discover.
If you’re interested in learning about the specifications and details of Somnium VR1, refer to my previous article regarding the headset’s preorder availability. These preliminary findings summarize my initial thoughts on the proficiency that these specifications entail.
The Somnium VR1 PC VR headset is poised to finally hit the market in July.
The Somnium VR1 is a tethered PC-based virtual reality headset boasting a 3K resolution and a remarkable feature set, including the widest undistorted field of view among all existing client headsets.
I used to be invited to strive Somnium VR1 by Artur Sychov, the founder & CEO of Somnium Area, and the corporate paid for my flights and keep from the UK to Prague and again. Having had the opportunity to familiarize myself with your work previously would, in fact, have no bearing on my opinions. Nevertheless, I still feel compelled to disclose this information.
As the first opportunity to experience Somnium VR1, my description is aptly titled “first impressions” rather than a detailed, hands-on review because, candidly, I didn’t have an abundance of time to thoroughly explore this virtual reality headset. The Somnium Join event lasted 12 hours, with less than two hours dedicated to demo sessions: one near the beginning and another at the conclusion, coinciding with the serving of lunch. Despite the presence of four demo headsets among 100 eager attendees, each individual participant was only afforded a brief 10- to 20-minute window to exclusively experience the headset’s features.
The rest of the conference schedule focused on presentations by prominent figures in Europe’s Extended Reality (XR) industry, unfortunately marred by the unavailability of VR1 demos during this period. I was not left unimpressed by the thought-provoking discussions from industry experts like Lynx founder Stan Larroque and Ultraleap’s Emily Savage. The attendees, including myself, found ourselves wanting more hands-on experience with the cutting-edge hardware.
While some headsets allow for easy recalibration within 10-20 minutes, the Somnium VR1 offers unparalleled configurability via its accompanying PC software, which empowers users to fine-tune settings that can significantly impact their immersive experience, as we’ll explore in greater detail below.
Somnium VR1: First Impressions
Upon donning the Somnium VR1, a striking feature immediately stands out: its remarkably wide, distortion-free field of vision, unparalleled among client headsets to date – a notable expansion beyond even the Meta Quest 3 and Valve Index.
While the sensation of full immersion was not what initially drew me to the XTAL 3, costing $10,000 and offering an impressive 180° horizontal field of view, I must admit that Somnium VR1 still provides a noticeable leap in immersion at a significantly lower cost. I noticed subtle geometric distortions at the lens peripheries, confined to a narrow margin, unlike the pronounced aberrations often seen in vintage Pimax headsets.
Notwithstanding my initial enthusiasm, I soon encountered a peculiar issue that had not occurred in any of the VR headsets I’d used over the past few years: Upon examining certain areas of the lens, I noticed that my eyes were unable to focus, resulting in an unexplained “cross-eyed” sensation, regardless of the IPD slider setting or adjustments made to match my precise interpupillary distance. Initially, I thought this might be a flaw with one of several demo headsets; however, this theory was quickly dispelled when I replicated the issue in a second headset as well.
While most attendees didn’t experience the issue, XR enthusiast Brad Lynch corroborated that he had also encountered the same problem. As soon as I introduced myself to Sychov, he appeared perplexed at first. He subsequently invited me to join him for an additional demonstration, actively experimenting with various configurable lens distortion matrix settings within Somnium’s PC software. This effectively reduced the intensity of the issue. Although I lacked the time to fine-tune my eye settings, I can still imagine a future where I’ll have ample opportunity to explore and find the perfect configurations.
After focusing correctly, even with my eyes open, or alternatively, if I had occluded one eye beforehand, the picture quality was truly magnificent. While eerily reminiscent of the Varjo Aero, this headset boasts superior contrast, marginally enhanced colors, and a vital increase in luminosity. Considering the extensive use I’ve made of Apple Imagination Professional and Meta Quest headsets lately, I was astounded by just how exceptional Somnium VR1 proved to be.
Despite its substantial weight of 850 grams, the VR1 headset surprised us with its comfortable fit. This design allows for a unique flexibility in adjusting the fit and alignment of the helmet, permitting users to pivot the back padding and position the visor independently to achieve a precise fit around their head. Despite the allure of headsets, true comfort is best evaluated over extended periods, rather than fleeting moments; thus, refrain from making hasty judgments on this basis alone.
The unexpected standout feature of the current lineup was the Somnium VR1’s seamless passthrough technology. While not optimized for depth perception, the passthrough image quality on this headset exceeded that of every other device I’ve tested, including Apple’s Pencil Pro and Varjo’s XR-4. Since it appears to be due to the employment of significantly larger sensors compared to the diminutive ones used in various headsets, this brings about increased light intake and mitigates graininess, coupled with impressively well-calibrated sharpening and denoising algorithms.
One notable aspect of VR1’s passthrough is its ability to selectively mask out specific regions, as demonstrated by Somnium’s software, allowing users to distinguish between real-life components such as the flight simulation cockpit and controls, as well as their own hands and arms, while the surrounding environment remains digitally rendered.
Without a built-in audio solution, Somnium VR1 users are forced to rely on external speakers or headphones, which can be cumbersome and detract from the overall immersive experience. While you might consider adding your personal headphones here, it’s feasible we’ll witness neighbourhood audio add-ons due to VR1 having modular anchor points on both sides and the bottom.
Somnium VR1: Conclusions
Somnium VR1 starts at €1900, but considering the need for foveated rendering via eye tracking, the total cost rises to approximately €2500. If you want to add a high-end cockpit and passthrough functionality, the final price tag becomes an impressive €3500. However, the system’s design inherently lacks compatibility with the essential SteamVR Monitoring base stations.
Given the pricing, this clearly isn’t the next mainstream VR headset, nor even the Valve Index that followed suit. For discerning enthusiasts of flight and racing simulators, this headset may be the ideal choice, catering to those accustomed to investing heavily in their perfect setup. The local DisplayPort picture delivers an expansive field of view with nearly 3K resolution and eye-tracking capabilities, unparalleled by any other provider, regardless of price.
While VR1’s lens expertise seems to vary substantially among users, far exceeding that of most other headsets, the extent to which adjusting configurations can alleviate issues remains uncertain. Considering its performance limitations, that makes the VR1 a challenging recommendation to make. Somnium intends to host a series of neighborhood meetups across Europe and the US, allowing potential customers to experience the headset firsthand. For those who are hesitant, I would recommend attending one of these meetups to discover whether VR1 suits your individual visual needs?
