ionVR is a smartphone based VR headset that augments the standard Google cardboard experience with custom optics and electronics to drastically reduce latency. We go hands on at CES to see if it actually works.

VR smartphone adapters in my experience deliver, putting it politely, a mixed bag in terms of experience. The variance in IMU quality for motion tracking and the power of the phone used to drive the experience mean the end result can be sub par at best.

The team at ionVR know this but loved the openness that the Cardboard platform, built on Android, gives you. So they set out to design a headset to resolve the issues inherent in the smartphone hardware by building custom electronics and a software abstraction layer that, with an additional few lines of code in the original cardboard application, can greatly enhance the experience.

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If this sounds like I’m speaking in technical generalities it’s because I am. The reason for this is that ionVR is being very tightlipped when it comes to precisely how the “magic” aka Motionsync as they put it is implemented. So, without any technical details to mine, I was left with one question: does it work?

Based on a very limited test case, it seems it actually might.

Using Gear VR as a mental benchmark, being one of the few ‘active’ VR headsets with onboard electronics used to augment the mobile phone hardware, ionVR in terms of latency comes surprisingly close in the limited test I tried. That test was a monoscopic 360 video, played on a modified media player.

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As the movie started, I did my usual checks; slow, deliberate head movements followed by more staccato, quicker motions – trying to gauge that telltale lag found in most cardboard implementations. With the exception of occasional judder, the response time (the old ‘motion to photons’ metric) was extremely low – at least by my perception. Whilst there didn’t seem to be any sort of low persistence of vision in place (this wasn’t super silky smooth as in GearVR), the experience was extremely comfortable and reasonably lag free.

If I had to guess, the ionVR hardware includes much higher quality sensors for rotational head motion tracking, scanning at a far higher frequency. The aforementioned required code may simply pipe sensor information from the ionVR IMUs into the applications input data stream, presenting more accurate information. This is purely ignorant guesswork from a non-coder of course, but it seems plausible to me. Then again, in ionVR’s promotional material, they make a big thing about the optics being key to the “magic” as they call it. So, I’ll quit guessing whilst I’m ahead for now.
ionVR-CES2015-00008The team claim that the system will work its magic on both Android and IOS based systems, an impressive claim and one I’m unable to corroborate as my demo was with Android only.

Elsewhere, ionVR tries to tackle other issues inherent with smartphone adapter headsets, namely there are so many different phones out there in theory capable of rendering VR imagery, in al different shapes and sizes. ionVR’s solution is to make the phone harness pluggable, so as hardware evolves over time, you can simply purchase and snap-in a new holder and away you go – that’s the theory at least.

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The ionVR team hinted that we’re likely to hear more details about ionVR as CES kicks off proper later in the week. Right now, you can pre-order the headset (no phone included) for a cool $229, an indication just how much additional components are onboard versus your common or garden cardboard case. It’s a steep price for sure, especially considering GearVR’s $99 asking price for it’s consumer edition. However, to compare the two directly would be unfair. Whereas GearVR is tightly bound to a single manucfaturer’s line of smartphones, ionVR claims to move with your phone upgrades, no matter which flavour you opt for.

We need more time with more combinations of hardware to verify this of course, but the team certainly seem confident in their claims. We’ll keep an eye on ionVR as it evolves and report back what we find.

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Based in the UK, Paul has been immersed in interactive entertainment for the best part of 27 years and has followed advances in gaming with a passionate fervour. His obsession with graphical fidelity over the years has had him branded a ‘graphics whore’ (which he views as the highest compliment) more than once and he holds a particular candle for the dream of the ultimate immersive gaming experience. Having followed and been disappointed by the original VR explosion of the 90s, he then founded RiftVR.com to follow the new and exciting prospect of the rebirth of VR in products like the Oculus Rift. Paul joined forces with Ben to help build the new Road to VR in preparation for what he sees as VR’s coming of age over the next few years.
  • DonGateley

    This really tempts me. My experience with Gear VR, it’s awful mandatory user app and it’s truculent, walled garden of content has left a real sour taste in my mouth. Whoever first offers an open app and content solution that is adequate gets my next investment. This just might be it. Screw Zuckerberg. Sorry about that Palmer but you put your eggs in the wrong basket.

    • IanTH

      What do you mean it’s “walled garden of content”? I’m not sure exactly how else you expect to purchase items for a very specific piece of hardware that runs on a very specific number of handsets. And how many other storefronts you think would jump in to serve this – as of the moment, anyway – rather niche audience.

      If you are referring to the fact that you can’t use Cardboard apps with the headset because Oculus home takes over as soon as you plug it in, you can do so if you wish. You can get Package Disabler and easily just turn the Oculus VR app on and off with a tap of the screen, thus keeping it from running when you plug it in via USB – effectively enabling all your Cardboard content. Also you can install Gear VR APKs like any other app, as is evidence by going to the mobile VR jam page where all the submissions from last year are and installing the demos most of the submissions still have attached to them.

      I will tell you though that, in my experience, the Cardboard apps feel pretty awful after playing things on the Gear VR itself. The only Cardboard app I felt ran nearly as smoothly was CaaaaAAAaaarrrdboard!!! (or however it is spelled). I’m curious, what vision do you have or would you prefer for the Gear VR?

      • DonGateley

        I’m pretty sure I need not explain what a walled garden of content is. The wall will come down when developers can develop to the hardware and distribute it however they want to and when users can obtain it and run it without a nanny app blocking, er, supporting it. This remains possible via the Oculus developer app signing channel and side loading but possible is hardly the same as convenient and with OcuBooks new “Concepts” channel to replace it that door will be soon closed.

        • Linked Devices

          It’s not really a walled garden at all, it’s more like a compatibility standard. I’m suspecting you’re thinking it’s similar to Apple but it’s not. There are no strict guidelines or requirements at all to get an app onto the Oculus store. It just has to be compatible with the Oculus SDK–and for good reason.

          If any app wasn’t compatible e. g. standard cardboard apps, then it wouldn’t be compatible with the Gear VR either.

          The only alternative to this is the lame, stomach turning Google cardboard experience that enough people are confusing with the Gear VR anyhow. It is literally impossible to allow incompatible apps to work with the Gear VR. It is however possible to get everyone to accidentally defeat the entire purpose of the device by reducing it to a pointlessly over engineered cardboard viewer and confusing the hell out of everyone even more.

          I don’t know why you seem so peeved about it, the system works really well without any real drawbacks. If you don’t mind the Google cardboard experience then stick with it. The rest of us are moving on to better things and don’t want incompatible crap cluttering our way.

          • DonGateley

            No, there is a completely subjective gate in the process for which no rules are available or given. If they don’t want it they don’t allow it and you don’t know why. That’s what I called a walled garden.

      • Linked Devices

        Totally true. I can’t even play cardboard apps anymore without getting sick instantly. In retrospect it really explains why my cardboard viewer was gathering dust and I’m going through 2 or 3 charges a day on my phone on the Gear VR.

        I don’t see too many people all that interested in what Google cardboard has to offer at all after having access to the Gear VR and the Oculus store.