Thursday, June 22, 2017

Next-gen Samsung Gear VR to come with 2,000 ppi OLED screen: Report

in samsung published on 3:21 PM 1 comment posted by Unknown

One of the drawbacks of the current VR headsets is that they are not independent of a secondary device. Even as the VR is becoming increasingly popular among masses, the technology companies are working to deliver a VR headset that is truly standalone. Google’s DayDream platform is believed to pave way for such affordable standalone VR headsets. In the meanwhile, Samsung, which has a pretty decent lineup of Gear VR headsets, is working on its own version of standalone virtual reality device.

According to a South Korean website, Naver, Samsung’s next-generation VR headset will come with a high-resolution display. The website says it will be an OLED display panel with a whopping pixel density of 2,000ppi. If the report is true, Samsung’s next-generation VR headset will be offering the highest resolution than any of the known VR headsets in the market right now. Along with a stunning high resolution, the device will consist of a Fine Metal Mask (FMM), which essentially is a layer on top of the OLED panel and comes with very tiny holes to collect the RGB pixels in particular areas.

An OLED panel will ensure users a richer experience with deeper colors. Also, the high pixel density is expected to give a closer to real-life experience to users. While the report confirms it will be a standalone VR headset, which means you don’t need to insert your phone into the device, but doesn’t really elaborate how it would function or content will be displayed.

That being said, it’s not the first time we have heard that Samsung is building its own standalone VR headset. Back in May, the company had stated that it is working on “wireless and dedicated VR devices, not necessarily working with” the mobile phones. The future Samsung VR headsets will also support hand and gesture tracking, as well as positional tracking.

Samsung’s dominance in the mobile space can help the company push its new VR headsets, something which could further propel the VR adoption among people. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg last year had also highlighted this strength of Samsung. It is notable that Facebook is also working extensively in the segment with its Oculus unit.

Meanwhile, another major push to the segment is expected to come from Google, which is credited for making the VR mainstream with affordable VR platforms like Cardboard. At its recently held Google I/O 2017 developer conference, the company showcased a standalone VR headset reference design.

Based on a ‘WorldSense’ technology, the platform uses the reference design from Qualcomm, further empowering OEMs to build standalone VR headsets. Google has also partnered with Lenovo and HTC for building standalone VR devices, which are expected to be released “in coming months.” As far as Samsung’s new VR headsets go, they are expected to be unveiled at the MWC 2017 later this year.