Apple's launch of the Vision Pro earlier this year means that it has entered the highly competitive headset market, and it is clear that the Vision Pro will compete with headsets from Meta, PlayStation, HTC and more in the near future.
Recently, the XR market has entered a fierce competition with the launch of its XR-4 headset by Finnish company Varjo. However, it is similar to other headsets on the market, and there are still certain differences in terms of functionality. It is reported that the Varjo**XR-4 VR headset is priced at $3,990 and has very similar features to Apple and Meta's Vision Pro and Quest series. With a 120-degree field of view, dual 20-megapixel cameras, two 4K displays, and a gaze-driven XR autofocus system, it looks like all specs are comparable to the Vision Pro.
However, Varjo's XR-4 headset is aimed directly at businesses, not consumers. According to previous data, dozens of Fortune 100 companies are using VR in a variety of ways, from training astronauts and pilots to reconfiguring production processes to advancing medical research, and it is clear that there are plenty of applications in the commercial field for VR to extend and land.
Contrary to what most VR headsets emphasize, the XR-4 focuses on mixed reality, and in addition to the basic version, there is also a "Focal Edition" version, which has significantly improved pass-through (and significantly higher, at $9,900), as well as a "Secure Edition" that offers what Varjo calls "**level compliance" and "pilot-grade visual fidelity." (This version is not listed**, only a "Contact us for pricing" message is displayed.) For this edition, the examples recommended by Varjo seem to lean toward military pilots and flight training. (The company does describe the XR-4 headset as capable of enabling "efficient and cost-effective training scenarios.") ）
However, given the high level of mixed reality that the XR-4 headset can provide, it can easily make a difference in other environments where security is critical, such as creating a map of the interior of a building that can interact with training with the XR-4 headset.
Unlike other headsets, the secure version of the XR-4 does not require a connection. Since the XR-4 is intended for commercial use, and the highest version is for applications that require extremely high security requirements, the chances of most consumers getting their hands on it are slim. However, it is still crucial for a headset like this to enter the market because it shows the average consumer where VR is ultimately headed, and it shows what VR can do far beyond entertainment.
The XR-4 series is reported to be powered by NVIDIA GPUs and integrated into NVIDIA Omniverse, allowing developers and industrial users to render photorealistic scenes and unlock ray tracing in MR. According to Varjo, these technology combinations far exceed the computing power that can be achieved by mobile chips and provide game-changing solutions for developers.
In addition, the Varjo-ready software ecosystem, comprised of more than 100 third-party PC applications and 3D engines, including Unreal Engine and Unity, integrates the XR-4 Series into training and demanding workflows for simulation, design and engineering, healthcare, and more.
"As we enter a period of rapid expansion in MR adoption, we are proud to move the industry forward by bridging the gap between human vision and computer vision with our new XR-4 family," said Patrick Wyatt, Chief Product Officer at Varjo. Over the past five years, Varjo's customers have proven that true innovation happens when state-of-the-art computing power is combined with the highest immersive XR, and we can't wait to see the applications unlocked by the XR-4 Series' technological breakthroughs." ”
Overall, the "secure version" of the XR-4 is probably the most researchable, as it is designed to work with high-end training software, such as Bohemia's VBS Blue IG, Lockheed Martin's Prepar3D, Unity's Unreal Engine, and OpenXR 10 and flightsafety vital, among others. In August of this year, the company was selected to work with the U.S. military to provide head-mounted displays for the U.S. Army's reconfigurable virtual collective trainer flight program, a portable program for a variety of pilot training.