One of the reasons why many people like Meta Quest is due to the fact that you have complete freedom of movement, which is possible due to the fact that the circuitry is inside the unit and does not require a PC or console. . The problem? Very limited graphics and technical ability. On the other hand, the visual experience with the PSVR 2 makes the jaw drop to the ground at a visual and immersive level, but of course, with a cable in the middle that greatly limits our movements.
Why aren’t there wireless VR glasses for PS5?
The magic of Virtual Reality is telepresence and this is achieved by ensuring that the time from when we perform an action with the controls until it is seen on the screen is so low that it seems to our brain that it happens immediately. Obviously, behind everything there is a complex process that goes from the interpretation of our actions with the game controller until the image projected by the screen reaches our retina.
Obviously, if we have the system that generates the frame separated from the VR unit, as is the case with the PSVR 2, we must assume that additional latency is added for the transfer of information wirelessly, apart from the fact that it would be necessary a wireless module under a 60 GHz wireless connection for image transfer, both in the PS5 and in the glasses themselves, which will also need a battery to operate independently.
Therefore, wireless VR glasses for PS5 would mean an additional expense, but we would also have an associated problem and that is that the simple transfer of the video signal through the air and not by cable would cause a problem of increased latency, which that could completely break the immersion and therefore destroy the final experience. On PS5 and despite the power of the console, in order to be able to play the games quickly enough, visual cuts have had to be made so that the frame is generated much earlier.
A more powerful console is needed than the current PS5
So for wireless VR glasses on PlayStation we will have to wait for SONY to launch more powerful hardware that is a variant of the current console. We have to start from the fact that the whole process lasts less than 18 milliseconds, including the input lag created by the transmission of the frame to the screen. Since we can’t reduce it, then the only solution is obviously that each frame in the game is generated in less time and this is achieved with a much more powerful CPU and GPU as long as we don’t have to lower the image quality.
Although there are standards for transmitting at 4K and 120 Hz, as is the case with DisplayLink XR, a standard that came out a few years ago, the times in the case of the PS5 HMD unit are measured to the millimeter. That is to say, counting every millisecond in order to obtain the best possible result and at the moment there is no non-wired solution that has the same performance as a wired one.
Let’s not forget that a console does not improve its hardware over time and the platform will be maintained for several years with it. However, this does not justify the existence of a possible PS5 Pro, since at the moment virtual reality is a niche that cannot sustain a system by itself.
