Think of a world where i viewers they never stopped. Where, after the first viewer PcVR at low resolution, progress has advanced incessantly, with companies throwing their hearts over the obstacle to promise us, and sometimes give us, a product of the future but with its feet on the ground. This world does not exist, but Pimax, since ancient times, has ignored all market research to reach the masses and has focused only on the most demanding niche. This brought us today to Pimax Crystal Light.
The Crystal Light represents the culmination of 10 years of Pimax experience. The company has sought the right compromises without ever sacrificing visual quality and performance, remaining faithful to its mission. The Pimax Crystal it surprised me positively, eliminating the problems that plagued the 5K and 8K models, such as the too advanced FOV and unstable software. I expected little from the Crystal, but it turned out to be a mature headset, suitable for PCVR master race.
Recently, Pimax introduced the Crystal Super and the Crystal Lightthe latter designed to cost less and weigh less.
Instead of listing additional features, it’s easier to say what the Crystal Light. It no longer has the internal processor of the original model, designed for the future stand alone. This processor required a battery, even in wired mode, which was a bad idea. Pimax has improved the product by removing the battery and internal processor. To further reduce the cost to under 1000 dollars, theeye tracking with foveated rendering, a feature never really used in games. Even the motors to regulate theIPD they have been replaced by a simple wheel.
What remains of the project Crystal? The display LCD 2880×2880 per eye, with miniLED option for the local dimmingtracking inside-out, refresh up to 120Hz and direct cable to the PC. We got the four essential features we were looking for.
The field of view of the Crystal Light, around 105 degrees, is among the highest among headsets on sale. Maybe theIndex It offers a few more degrees if you squeeze the lenses tightly against your face but this can cause eye discomfort. Don’t ever do it.
The software of Pimax Crystal is much improved, and I confirm the stability of PiTool also with the Crystal Light. While the basic Crystal may have had problems recognizing the battery, here you just connect two cables (display port and USB) and off you go.
The Crystal Light has the same basic features, with non-essential functions turned off, such as local dimming and theeye tracking.
Pimax introduced the runtime PimaxXRwhich offers a great experience with no obligation to use SteamVR. However, the only obstacle for Pimax to become mainstream is the form factor. While lightweight, the bulky body can be pushy compared to headsets like the Quest or Rift. Once put on, it’s not a big deal, especially for kids sim. However, a 20-30% reduction would have been helpful.
Despite the decline in interest in VR, the Crystal Light offers something unique in its price range. If you are still attached to the Valve Index or to Reverb G2consider it: under 1000 euros, it is an excellent choice.
The Crystal Light focuses on resolution, without introducing new features or innovative controllers. We don’t know what would have happened if the Rift S2 had been marketed. The lack of a visor PCVR reference has pushed many developers towards the Quest 3. It would be great to see the Crystal Light among the top three headsets on Steam, proving that there is still interest in the PCVR and encouraging developers to continue investing in this market. Assetto Corsa 2 it must also be available in VR, and the few VR mods must continue to exist.
From the point of view of performance, what PC do you need? It’s clear that you need the Best PC possible, and focus everything on the video card if you are assembling a new PC. My advice is that, if you have an 800 euro budget, get a used PC without GPU for 200 euros from someone who wants to get rid of an old build, such as an i7 8700K which, although 8 years old, is excellent for VR. Use the rest of the budget entirely on the video card. Of course, in VR it is possible to lower the resolution when you cannot reach 2880×2880, and sometimes, to maintain a framerate of 120Hz, I prefer to play at 2400×2400, a resolution that I find decent.
The viewer on the site starts from 699 euros in the version without local dimming and without headphones deluxe. My advice is to spend as little as possible. Despite with the local dimming the blacks are darker, we are not yet at the level of an OLED, so you might as well spend a little and get a lot. Get a good pair of headphones and save yourself more money. With VAT included, euro conversion and customs, we should be under 1000 euros. The customs for this, specifically, was 40 euros. At the time of writing, however, pre-orders of Light without local dimming have really exceeded expectations by a lot, and given that the production of panels without LD is taking longer than expected, they have put pre-orders on hold. See what to do. Whether to wait or focus on the more expensive version.
Before closing, let’s remember that the only Italian stage of the event will be held on June 22nd Pimax roadshow, where you can try it and see it with your own eyes. Find some info here.
There would be a lot to say about technicalities, such as that the aspheric lenses mounted here can lead to slight visible distortions in some sections and some small chromatic aberration on the brownish edges when looking at very strong whites, but let’s keep it basic. This is the only wired PCVR headset you’ll ever want to buy. True, there are no new games to try, but dusting off 3/4 of the library to see how those games were really supposed to look is worth the expense of this headset. From Crystal Light That’s all for now, we’ll see you in the next article!
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