The more VR headset resolutions go up, the more we realize it will take a huge bump in innovation to reach anything close to jagged-free experience. Given that displays are positioned so close to our eyes, image inconsistencies like pixelation or screen door effect tend to show more prominently. The Finish startup Varjo have delivered the promise of their VR-1 headset by providing near human vision clarity. They did it by introducing the unique dual display technology sporting a Varjo Bionic Display with 3000 pixels per inch, along an advanced eye tracking solution.
One way to de-jag an image is to whack up display resolution. Another, less popular technique is to make displays smaller. Varjo have taken this very notion in consideration and devised a VR headset with dual display system with varied pixel density. The central display, that is, where our eyes are pointed, sports pixel density close to natural while the rest of the image remains a standard resolution offering. The Varjo Bionic Display is the first to offer crystal clear image with no jagged lines, grids, or screen door effect, albeit at a premium price of $5,995.
The Varjo Bionic Display in question is a micro-OLED variant with full HD resolution packed into a pocket size display. Its 3000 pixels per inch correspond to 60 pixels per degree which is similar to what human eye can muster. The result is also similar – a central image that is better and clearer than anything on the VR market. The Bionic screen is backed by a more standard 1440×1660 AMOLED display that provides the peripheral image. Given that Varjo VR-1 is a dual display setup, the features of two displays need to match soundly for the overall experience to be seamless. And they do. Color accuracy is the same, and there is nothing but a barely visible halo to let you know there are two displays at play here.
In order for dual display system to work properly at all times, Varjo needed to upgrade the existing eye tracking solution to fit their idea. An aviation app shows a very clear improvement in this area whereby looking at a certain object the display renders information particular to it. To disperse the information is easy as looking away. Everything about Varjo VR-1 dual display technology looks and feels natural with little clunkiness that new solutions are sometimes laden with.
It is safe to say that everyone benefits from having higher-end image quality than what other headsets offer. But it is even safer to say that the price tag of $5,995 will deter many consumers from looking at it, even though VR-1 is a SteamVR game-ready device. It may require a graphic card double the power of current double rendering, but the pay-offs are significant. In its current state however, the Varjo Bionic Display is better suited for enterprises, manufacturing industries in particular. Either way, we are on the very verge of a technological breakthrough, and Varjo is holding the torch at the moment.
