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Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

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Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#281

Post by fire »

Oh hell yeah! I can't afford it, but I would love to be able to read text and just generally program within VR itself ( review units wink wink ).

I saw mention of Nix - what does steam / proton compatibility look like there?

Is there more info available on the compute unit's load profile during typical usage? Any idea whether it would be able to handle running a windows VM with hwaccel at the same time? With a Xe gpu it won't be playing games, but if the performance isn't vomit-inducing it could be a really interesting cross platform development... platform!

Have y'all seen VR-OS[1] or talked to Matthaeus[2] about bringing some of its user experience over? Your projects look like a match made in heaven to my eyes.

I see the founder's edition is listed as using a "LED Matrix Display" - what does the standard edition use? Is this OLED vs MiniLED?

Is hand tracking camera based? How intensive is that on the system? Did other solutions like LIDAR or mini radar[3] present issues?

I'm so freaking excited to see how this comes along, and I hope y'all last for a very, very long time.

1: https://youtube.com/c/MatthaeusKrenn

2: https://twitter.com/matthaeus

3: https://www.infineon.com/cms/en/product/sensor/radar-sensors...

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#283

Post by riskable »

kanetw wrote: post #201
riskable wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't use these headsets outdoors because the sun will destroy the screens (powerful magnifying lens aiming right at the screen). In fact, you have to be careful indoors as well. These devices need a simple shutter that covers the displays automatically when it's not pressed against your face. This would solve the problem.

You shouldn't take it off outdoors with the lenses pointing at the sun, no. Ambient light will be fine. Also don't stare at the sun with the cameras. Although if you do, they'll be replaceable.

The natural motion for removing any VR headset is to lift it off your face and then hold it via the head strap which points the display directly upwards. Also, when placing the headset down for charging it's also natural to hang it up on a hook of some sort (via the head strap) which also has the side effect of pointing the lenses upwards. If someone does this near a window the sun can destroy it in no time.

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#285

Post by kanetw »

riskable wrote: post #283
kanetw wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You shouldn't take it off outdoors with the lenses pointing at the sun, no. Ambient light will be fine. Also don't stare at the sun with the cameras. Although if you do, they'll be replaceable.

The natural motion for removing any VR headset is to lift it off your face and then hold it via the head strap which points the display directly upwards. Also, when placing the headset down for charging it's also natural to hang it up on a hook of some sort (via the head strap) which also has the side effect of pointing the lenses upwards. If someone does this near a window the sun can destroy it in no time.

Huh. That's not how I take them off, but I'm also mindful about optics damage.

Some kind of shutter is a bit hard to do due to space constraints, but I'll see what can be done.

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#286

Post by kanetw »

LoveMortuus wrote: post #284

Did anyone have to find battery life? I keep looking but t can't find it... It could be because I'm on mobile. Kinda strange, since this is quite an important part. If you find battery life, please tell me!

Battery life isn't in the specs yet because it's TBD. We're targeting 3 hours, but that's not a final number and might change if we notice that it's too heavy or we still have usable mass budget etc.

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#287

Post by kanetw »

JeremyNT wrote: post #282

I find the device intriguing, indeed, but I'm not terribly interested in a custom distro. Based on the fact that your existing code is open-source, is it safe to assume I can just bring my own Linux distribution?

Correct, although you'll need to make sure the login/boot process works without an external display.

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#288

Post by kanetw »

fire wrote: post #281

Oh hell yeah! I can't afford it, but I would love to be able to read text and just generally program within VR itself ( review units wink wink ). I saw mention of Nix - what does steam / proton compatibility look like there? Is there more info available on the compute unit's load profile during typical usage? Any idea whether it would be able to handle running a windows VM with hwaccel at the same time? With a Xe gpu…

The hand tracking is Ultraleap's assuming they actually deliver the Linux software at some point in the next few months. We're considering backups like using mmWave RADAR. It shouldn't be too intensive (at least not noticeable so far), but I'll double check.

The LED matrix display is for the outside. In both the founders' and regular, the internal display are Sharp 2448x2448 LCDs.

The regular edition will have a LED matrix display only if we sell enough units, basically.

I think I heard about VR-OS but haven't looked deeper; focused on the HW right now.

Steam works on Nix afaik (although George is the main Nix user); a Windows VM... should work?

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#289

Post by riskable »

nsb1 wrote: post #265
nonplus wrote: post #56

I see a lot of comments on the pricing of this hardware. It's going to be more expensive (for the end user) to build a headset (and FOSS window manager) than a product like the quest. Meta has a suite of products bringing in capitol by selling user PII. Valve has a distribution platform to offset costs. If you want to see a product that is open end to end and is not part of an ecosystem selling your information, then…

I don't have a problem with the price - I have a problem with being sure what I'd be getting for that money. If it was guaranteed to live up to the claims that are being made then it's in the ballpark of a good laptop, which I have no problem dropping all sorts of money on. This device has several potential problems though, that can render it completely unusable rather than a laptop that mostly works fine except for…

As someone who's used a Quest 2 for hours and hours with a heavy 3rd party head strap, over-the-ear headphones, and a battery pack strapped to my head I wouldn't worry about the weight too much. Even playing intense games where I had to move my head a lot it was never my neck/back that hurt--it was always my arms, haha.

That's really going to be the new RSI waiting to happen: Moving your hands in the air constantly. Try this: Pretend you're scrolling a really long web page a little bit at a time by holding your hand in the air (in front of your face) and doing a pinch with your fingers like you're grabbing something, lifting it up, then dropping it again. Do this motion very slowly (like you're reading) for like 10 minutes straight, over and over again. Now do the same thing, pretending you're looking up at a VR "window" or down at one. How do you think your arms will do after existing in this VR environment for hours at a time? :D

As long as we can scroll/navigate with the keyboard everything should be good though

Re: Show HN: Simula One – Portable Linux VR Computer

#290

Post by LoveMortuus »

kanetw wrote: post #286
LoveMortuus wrote: post #284

Did anyone have to find battery life? I keep looking but t can't find it... It could be because I'm on mobile. Kinda strange, since this is quite an important part. If you find battery life, please tell me!

Battery life isn't in the specs yet because it's TBD. We're targeting 3 hours, but that's not a final number and might change if we notice that it's too heavy or we still have usable mass budget etc.

Three hours seems very low, but I guess it count be doable if the charge time is one hour or less. That way I could see it like, it forces you to stretch your legs. Damn... I'm guessing swappable batteries aren't on the roadmap. But the tech looks really cool, especially because MAYBE it could be used while laying in the bed.

Best of luck! I hope you'll be profitable and continue to develop the tech!

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