In Virtual Reality and Mixed Reality News
May 27, 2020 – Pico Interactive, a developer of virtual reality (VR) and enterprise solutions, has today announced the availability of headsets from its ‘Pico Neo’ line – the Neo 2 and Neo 2 Eye (pictured above), both of which deliver key VR solutions to the enterprise.
Pico states that both models were built with business in mind, featuring 4K resolution, enterprise functionality, six degrees of freedom (6DoF) and spatial stereo speakers. The headsets also feature the comfort and hygienic design of an all-PU facial interface, counterbalanced design for easy and extended wear, and have plenty of room for prescription glasses, according to the company. Using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform with Boundless XR, the Neo 2 allows content streaming from a VR Ready PC and select existing PC VR platforms.
“We believe the Neo 2 line is helping us achieve our goal to deliver the best standalone VR hardware with AAA enterprise service and options for business,” said Henry Zhou, CEO of Pico Interactive. “Our hardware is quickly becoming the preferred devices for leading companies in medical, training, marketing and location-based entertainment verticals. We’ve partnered with some great companies to not only help professionals in their day-to-day across a variety of industries but also in times of crisis.”
In partnership with Tobii – a provider of eye-tracking solutions – the Neo 2 Eye model can help to improve enterprise operations and applications. The Neo 2 Eye adds eye tracking functionality to the base Neo 2 model, allowing businesses to gain a deeper understanding of customer behavior, enhance training efficiency, improve productivity and potentially increase safety at work. The Neo 2 Eye also includes dynamic foveated rendering powered by Tobii Spotlight Technology, reducing shading load in some applications by up to 72%, according to the company. This allows for a variety of benefits including increased framerate by up to 66%, and improved graphics and battery performance.
“Over the last two years, we have seen Tobii eye tracking become a foundational technology that makes XR devices better and improves the user experience,” said Anand Srivatsa, Division CEO of Tobii Tech. “It is fantastic to partner closely with Pico on the extraordinary Neo 2 Eye and to enable enterprise and professional users to unlock greater operational efficiency, provide powerful user insights, enhancing training, simulation and product development capabilities.”
In addition to Tobii, Pico is also partnering with other companies across the enterprise to provide a more immersive and engaging work environment. This includes Mozilla, which recently announced that it is bringing its Firefox Reality browser to all Pico headsets. Firefox Reality is a browser built and designed for mixed reality to deliver an immersive browsing experience that provides users with the ease of use, control and privacy.
“Partnering with Pico allows Mozilla to share our Firefox Reality browser, which is built and designed specifically for mixed reality (including WebXR support), to deliver an immersive browsing experience,” said Andre Vrignaud, Mozilla’s Head Of Mixed Reality Platform Strategy. “Our browser provides Pico’s business customers with the ease of use, control and privacy that is expected from Firefox.”
The Neo 2 is now available for purchase for USD $699 and the Neo 2 Eye for USD $899. More information on both headsets is available here. As Pico focuses on enterprise, its headsets are sold direct to companies via a dedicated sales team spread across the globe, including offices in San Francisco, US, and Barcelona, Spain.
For more information on Pico Interactive, visit the company’s website.
Full product specifications are as follows:
Display
Resolution – 4K resolution
Optics
FOV – 101°, Fresnel
IPD – Adaptive, 55mm~71mm
Myopia – No adjustment, wearing glasses
Platform
Qualcomm – Snapdragon 845 6GB + 128GB, Micro SD up to 256GB
System/SDK – Android 8.1 / Pico XR SDK / Qualcomm XR SDK
Bluetooth/WiFi – Bluetooth 5.0 / 802.11a/b/g/n/ac 2X2 Mimo Dual Antenna
Camera
Environment Cam x 2 – Stereoscopic monochrome / 1280*800@120Hz Fisheye FOV:150°
Eye Tracking Cam x 2 – Both eyes, Monochrome (Neo 2 Eye only)
Sensor
IMU 9 Axis, Proximity Sensor
Audio
Integrated Spatial stereo speaker, Dual Mic EC/NR, 3.5mm jack
Weight
< 340 grams (without headband)
Image credit: Pico Interactive
About the author
Sam Sprigg
Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.
