Elijah Fernandez
9 Oct 2022
Pico 4 is a brand-new standalone VR headset looking to compete in the consumer market with Quest 2.
With next a sleek new design, new technology and a great price, there is a lot to like about this device.
This will likely give us a peek as to what the Quest 3 may have in stall for us in the next generation of VR headsets.
TLDR;
Pico 4 is a standalone headset looking to compete in the consumer market with Quest 2
Release date: October 18th in Japan, Korea, and Europe, no plans to release in Australia or US yet
Improved comfort with lightweight and balanced design
16-megapixel RGB passthrough camera for mixed reality
4K display with Pancake lenses
New controller design with more realistic haptics
High-Fidelity spacial audio
The next generation of consumer standalone headsets is here with specs, pricing, and content that are clear to be Quest 2 competition. The Pico 4 is set to release on October 18th. The headset will launch in Japan, Korea and Europe to begin with, there are no plans for an Australian or US launch as of yet.
Pico has been making headsets for enterprise since 2016. This year they are taking their first serious steps into the consumer market outside of China. Starting with the Pico Neo 3 Link, a standalone headset capable of tethering to a PC. And now with the standalone Pico 4, they are setting up some serious competition to Meta.
The headset looks similar to the rumoured Apple VR headset with the glossy screen on the front. It has inside-out tracking and an RGB camera in the centre. For comfort, the headset has a light sweat-resistant facial insert, a strap for head support, a PU leather cushion for the back of the head, and an adjustable dial to tighten around the head similar to the Meta Quest 2 elite strap.
The Pico 4 has 2.5 - 3 hours of battery life per charge (5,300 mAh). The headset supports 20 W fast charging. The battery is located in the back of the headset which is excellent for weight distribution. This will aid significantly in user comfort, making it easy to play for a longer period without the weight of the headset creating neck pain. The headset comes in at a weight of 290 grams which is about the weight of a soda can.
The Pico 4 has a 4K Super-Vision Display that offers a resolution of 2160x2160 per eye. It runs up to 90Hz with an FOV of 105 degrees. A major difference between the Pico 4 and the Meta Quest 2 is that the Pico 4 uses pancake lenses. These allow the lenses to be closer to the display, making the headset smaller compared to fresnel lenses and reducing glare and god rays. Inside the headset settings, there is an option for granular IPD adjustments between 62 - 72mm.
Passthrough mode is improved with a 16-megapixel RGB camera with allows coloured passthrough instead of the traditional black and white. The 360-degree surrounding stereo speakers support 3D spacial sound. Dual microphones support noise up to 30dB reduction and echo cancellation up to 50dB.
The controllers, while familiar in button layout, have a new design optimised for ergonomics and strength with an arced column that curves around the hand. This allows hands to get close without the controllers bumping. Powering these controllers are two replaceable AA batteries. The controllers have 6 degrees of freedom along with a HyperSense motor allowing for more realistic haptic feedback of vibration from 50Hz - 500Hz. Hand tracking is also supported.
Powering the Pico 4 is the Qualcomm snapdragon XR2 chipset along with 8GB of RAM. Inside the headset runs android and the Pico OS operating system. There is no display port connection on this device for native PCVR. The Pico Neo 3 Link is Pico’s solution for those who want to use PCVR. Wi-Fi 6 is supported for fast network connectivity.
The Pico 4 start at €430 for the 128GB model and €500 for the 256GB model. Meta raised the price of Quest 2 headsets by 33% a few months ago and these prices are very comparable. To see a recap from Pico’s announcement event see the video below.