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naddr1qq…xjqgI’m coming from the Index, and before that, the Vive. I will be comparing many of the features for the BSB2e to the Index since it is my point of reference. Overall, I was underwhelmed by the BSB2, but it will be my daily driver as it does have some amazing features to it. Don’t let the negative points in this review deter you if you’re interested in the device. I’m just trying to be real about it.
This device, though I have some complaints, has really made me a fanboy of the company. I hope they do well. You can see how much care they put into making it what it is. I look forward to seeing some more hardware from them in the generations to come.
Optics and processing
I remember going from oLED on the Vive to LCD on the Index was a major downgrade in color quality, but the Index had so many other great spec upgrades to it that it was acceptable. I was excited to get back to oLED while having a huge bump to resolution with the BSB. In this regard, the BSB2e does not disappoint.
Compared to the Index, the FOV is lacking on the BSB. While the FOV spec is greater on paper compared to the Index, I was able to get my eyes very close to the Index lenses and experienced an amazing vertical FOV and overall edge-to-edge clarity.
Compared to the Index, BSB2 has pretty bad chromatic distortion as your eyes reach the limit of FOV. I think this exaggerates the FOV limits making them seem smaller than they actually are. This is made worse by the fact that the binocular overlap is not great and distortion can be seen there as well. The pancake lenses also eat a lot of light, though brightness isn’t much of a concern after your eyes adjust.
This headset can get warm. The comfort afforded by the custom face gasket is offset somewhat by the heat of this set. You can configure the fan and brightness to fine tune this, but too fast a fan is noisy and too low of brightness is noticeable. I find that 90hz mode (lower processing resolution), 75% brightness, and 80% fan is about right and not too warm.
100% brightness or more is not a great experience due to pixel ghosting. IMO, it should have been considered part of the overdrive range. However, your eyes adjust to the darkness provided by the completely sealed face gasket and a lower brightness looks fine.
Weight and size
Wow, this thing is light! I suppose that's one of the main selling points for this device. I think it’s supposed to be 107g. I never owned the first model, and I understand this one is supposed to be even lighter. It greatly helps when quickly turning your head. No more shaky view. I don’t know that the weight makes the headset less noticeable, but it is comfortable.
It’s also very small. This is actually a negative in my opinion. I know that the size helps keep it light, but it causes some tracking occlusion. I have long hair right now and it was falling over the headset and causing me to lose tracking. Also, even with very well placed lighthouses, my head will interfere with tracking. I should probably get a third lighthouse to help with this problem.
Face gasket
It’s comfortable but has some downsides. I know it’s custom molded and sits comfortably, but with the shape of my face, the top of the gasket sits on my eyebrows, so sometimes when I move my eyebrows (closing one eye to aim), the gasket moves with it and shifts my lenses out of the sweet spot. The gasket is too sticky. It is very nice that it blocks all light, though.
Eye tracking
I wasn’t able to test this, yet. The official software is in beta and I don’t have a key for it. I also have never used eye tracking on other stuff, so I don’t have any third party software configured. I also don’t log into VRC much. I will wait for the official software to be complete. I got this option mostly for the promise of what foveated rendering could do.
What I can say is that the cameras are very tiny and don’t interfere with normal play in any way.
Sound
I have the audio strap. Index is the gold standard for VR audio IMO. While the speakers on this sound fine, they feel cheaply made and delicate. These speakers sit on your ears. I wish it had a snap-out feature like the Vive audio strap. It’s annoying to have to position them in and around hair and then find a place for them to go when taking the headset on and off. The audio strap is a nice peripheral to have but not worth the price.
My next headset
I plan to use this headset for a while, but my wishlist for the next iteration of BSB would be something just slightly bigger and heavier that sported a taller field of view, better binocular overlap, and with some better lenses that don’t consume so much light and which avoid the chromatic distortion.
Jack D on Nostr: I've been happy with my bsb2e. I wrote a review of it, but I think I need to update ...
I've been happy with my bsb2e. I wrote a review of it, but I think I need to update it. Some of the negatives have faded for me. My biggest wish is that Valve makes their wireless open and Bigscreen makes a wireless adapter to use it.