Pico Interactive

Pico 4 & Pico 4 Pro Standalone VR Headsets Spotted in FCC Filing

July 25, 2022 From roadtovr

Pico Interactive, the VR hardware subsidiary to Chinese tech giant ByteDance, is apparently getting ready to release a new series of standalone VR headsets.

As first reported by Protocol, Pico filed the devices with the FCC late last week, saying in the filing that it intends to launch both a Pico 4 Pro and Pico 4 standalone headsets.

Both headsets are identical in specs “except additional eye tracking & face tracking function for Pico 4 Pro,” the company says in the filing.

As noted by Protocol, Pico appears to have called the new hardware ‘Phoenix’ in the FCC filing, and it’s reported to run on Android Q via a Qualcomm processor. FCC filings are typically vague as to not give away too much information pre-launch, so we’ll just have to wait to see how much of an upgrade it is over its latest.

It’s uncertain whether ‘Pico 4’ is the final naming scheme, or whether it’s a shorthand for Pico Neo 4, although it’s clear the company is looking to bring competition to basically the only real name in consumer VR standalones: Meta. Since its founding in 2015, Pico pretty much only targeted consumers in China and enterprise users in the West. That was before it released it Neo 3 Link in Europe back in May, a device that features near spec parity with Quest 2.

At the time, we surmised Pico was quickly eyeballing North America with its Neo 3 Link in an attempt to earnestly compete with Meta there, although now it’s possible the company is looking to one-up the competition with the new hardware before it makes landfall on Meta’s home turf.

The filing doesn’t reveal to what extent Pico 4 will be able to match Meta’s upcoming Project Cambria, which is a VR headset capable of doing augmented reality tasks thanks to its mixed reality passthrough camera sensors. The price of Cambria is set to be “significantly higher than $800” though, so there may be some wiggle room from a name that’s so far unknown to consumers in the US.

Cambria is said to include both eye and face-tracking, so it will be interesting to see how Pico intends on competing (likely with Pico 4 Pro), whether it be by pushing specs slightly beyond Quest 2 or going for full spec parity with Cambria.

TikTok Parent ByteDance Partners with Qualcomm on XR Hardware and Software

March 4, 2022 From roadtovr

ByteDance, parent company to TikTok and VR headset creators Pico Interactive, announced at MWC 2022 that it’s partnering with Qualcomm, something that could help the chipmaker better diversify as the XR industry continues to expand.

During Qualcomm’s keynote at this year’s MWC, company CEO Cristiano Amon said that Meta brought “significant scale” with the release of its popular standalone VR headset Quest 2, which houses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 processor.

As competition with Meta grows, Qualcomm is no doubt looking to make sure it has plenty of hardware partners moving forward who will integrate those Snapdragon chips into the next generation of XR headsets.

To that effect, Qualcomm says its collaborating with ByteDance on XR hardware, software, developer tools, and technology road maps—specifically targeted at Pico Interactive, which was acquired by ByteDance in August 2021.

ByteDance CEO Rubo Liang said that Pico devices will be powered by Snapdragon Spaces XR too, Qualcomm’s developer platform that allows creators to make 3D applications for smartphone-tethered AR glasses.

Pico is almost entirely dedicated to enterprise VR outside of China, serving up its standalone Pico Neo 3 Pro, which also has Qualcomm’s popular Snapdragon XR2. That may change though as China-based TikTok parent company looks to compete with Meta outside of the world of snackable videos, and better position itself as a so-called ‘metaverse company’.

Pico Launches Neo 3 Pro & Neo 3 Pro Eye, Serving up Strong Competition to Oculus & HTC

October 1, 2021 From roadtovr

Pico Interactive’s next generation headsets—the Pico Neo 3 Pro and 3 Pro Eye—are now shipping to businesses worldwide, and they’re looking to undercut both Oculus and HTC by offering a pretty appealing set of specs at one of the lowest prices we’ve seen targeted at enterprise.

Update (October 1st, 2021): Pico launched Neo 3 Pro and Neo 3 Pro Eye, and it’s set to offer strong competition to Oculus Quest 2 Business Edition ($800) and HTC Vive Focus 3 ($1,300).

The new headsets, respectively priced at $700 and $900, include a battery strap similar to Oculus’ Elite Battery Strap for better comfort and longer battery life.

MRTV’s Sebastian Ang got to go hands-on with Pico Neo 3 Pro, and goes through a full unboxing and his impressions, which seem pretty favorable. If you’re short on time, jump to the 7-minute mark for Ang’s hands-on.

The original article announcing Neo 3 Pro and the Pro Eye variant follows below, including hardware specs.

Original Article (May 10th, 2021): Pico says these follow-up devices are “built for businesses and will be available in the West, including North America and Europe.” The company is also releasing them in China as well.

Pico says both Neo 3 Pro and Neo 3 Pro Eye will be available to enterprise sometime in Q3 2021, and they will be made available for pre-order on the Pico Neo website for $699 and $899 respectively. In China, its consumer Pico Neo 3 is coming in three flavors, priced locally at the US dollar equivalent of $390, $420, and $470.

As the name would suggest, its Neo 3 Pro Eye includes sensors for eye tracking; like in Neo 2 Eye, the eye tracking hardware is being provided by Tobii, the Sweden-based company known for integrating its tech into Vive Pro Eye, HP VR Reverb G2 Omnicept Edition, and more.

“Both 6DoF models were built for the enterprise and are powered by the Snapdragon XR2 Platform,” the company says in a press statement. “The headsets have a single 5.5 [inch] display with 3,664 × 1,920 resolution, a PPI of 773 and up to 90Hz refresh rate. With safety of utmost importance, the headsets also have a replaceable PU sterilizable face cushion that’s hygienic and washable.”

Much like Facebook’s Quest hardware, both Neo 3 headsets include two optically-tracked motion controllers and four head-mounted camera sensors.

The Pico Neo 3 Pro and Neo 3 Pro Eye are also slated to tether to PCs via NVIDIA’s Direct Mode, which lets the DisplayPort supported headsets to provide native 4K@90Hz wired connection for Pico VR Streaming.

Pico says all of its Neo 3 headsets will also support NVIDIA CloudXR too, which lets you wirelessly stream VR content via 5G and WiFi networks.

Pico Interactive Acquired by TikTok Owner ByteDance

August 31, 2021 From vrfocus

After rumours began to appear last week that ByteDance – the owner of social video platform TikTok – was going to acquire Pico Interactive, this week they’ve been proved correct. Outlet’s including CNBC have confirmed that ByteDance has decided to delve into the world of virtual reality (VR) by purchasing the Chinese hardware manufacturer.

Pico Interactive is one of the worlds largest makers of VR headsets, with its current lineup of products including the Neo 3 Pro and the Neo 3 Eye, both sold as consumer products in China but as enterprise-only devices across the rest of the world. Thus avoiding direct competition with Facebook’s Oculus Quest platform.

Details regarding how much ByteDance paid haven’t been officially revealed but rumours suggest it’s in the region of ¥5 billion (~$775 million). That makes it quite a sizable investment in the VR market although ByteDance has yet to confirm how it might leverage this investment in relation to its other products.

In a statement provided to CNBC ByteDance said that Pico’s: “comprehensive suite of software and hardware technologies, as well as the talent and deep expertise of the team, will support both our entry to the VR space and long-term investment in this emerging field.”

While Pico has avoided competing with Oculus, under ByteDance that might change as the company looks to diversify its current business model. Earlier this year the company acquired mobile developer Moonton for a reported $4 billion, best known for its multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) Mobile Legends.

Pico Interactive’s latest Neo 3 headsets are its flagship standalone devices, featuring Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 processor, inside-out tracking, and 6DoF controllers, with the Neo 3 Eye also featuring built-in eye tracking. Both are currently available for pre-order with a launch expected in Q3 2021.

As further details regarding ByteDance’s future plans for Pico arise, VRFocus will let you know.