Comparison of retail head-mounted displays
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virtual reality headset A virtual reality headset (or VR headset) is a head-mounted device that provides virtual reality for the wearer. VR headsets are widely used with VR video games but they are also used in other applications, including simulators and trainers. VR ...
s, which are head-mounted displays used to present virtual reality environments. There are two primary categories of VR devices: * Standalone devices that have all necessary components to provide virtual reality experiences integrated into the headset. Mainstream standalone VR platforms include: ** Oculus Mobile SDK, developed by Oculus VR for its own standalone headsets and the Samsung Gear VR. (The SDK has been deprecated in favor of OpenXR, released in July 2021.) * Tethered headsets that act as a display device to another device, like a PC or a video game console, to provide a virtual reality experience. Mainstream tethered VR platforms include: ** SteamVR, part of the
Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...
service by Valve. The SteamVR platform uses the OpenVR SDK to support headsets from multiple manufacturers, including HTC, Windows Mixed Reality headset manufacturers, and Valve themselves. A list of supported video games can be found here. ** Oculus PC SDK for Oculus Rift and Oculus Rift S. The list of supported games is here. **
Windows Mixed Reality Windows Mixed Reality is a platform introduced as part of the Windows 10 and 11 operating system, which provides augmented reality and virtual reality experiences with compatible head-mounted displays. Its flagship device, Microsoft HoloLens, wa ...
(also referred to as "Windows MR" or "WMR"), developed by Microsoft Corporation for Windows 10 PCs. ** PlayStation VR, developed by Sony Computer Entertainment for use with
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
and
Playstation 5 The PlayStation 5 (PS5) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 4 in April 2019, it was launched on November 12, 2020, in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North Ame ...
( PlayStation VR2) home video game console. **
Open Source Virtual Reality Open Source Virtual Reality (OSVR) is an open-source software project that aims to enable headsets and game controllers from all vendors to be used with any games developed by Razer and Sensics. It is also a virtual reality headset that claims t ...
(also referred to as "OSVR"). The list of supported games is here. Other categories include mobile headsets, which combine a smartphone with a
mount Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...
, and hybrid solutions like the Oculus Quest with the Oculus Link feature that allows the standalone device to also serve as a tethered headset. In addition, VR headsets are categorized by the degrees of freedom they provide: *
3DoF Six degrees of freedom (6DOF) refers to the six mechanical degrees of freedom of movement of a rigid body in three-dimensional space. Specifically, the body is free to change position as forward/backward (surge), up/down (heave), left/right ...
: 3 degrees of freedom, where the viewer may turn around and choose where to look in the VR sphere; * 6DoF: 6 degrees of freedom, where the viewer can move its position inside the VR environment.


Early VR


Tethered VR

* Including price of VR touch peripherals.


Cancelled tethered VR headsets


Standalone VR (mobile device mounts and all-in-ones)

** Not included in the headset.


Cancelled standalone devices


Upcoming devices

The following devices have been announced but were not released yet, therefore provided information is subject to change.


Extensive comparison of popular PC-based devices

The following tables compare general and technical information for a selection of popular retail head-mounted displays. See the individual display's articles for further information. Please note that the following table may be missing some information.


Optics and audio


Tracking


Other information


VR support in game engines


References

{{Mixed reality, state=autocollapse Computing comparisons Comparison