Acer AH101-D8EY Windows Mixed Reality Headset Review - Review 2022

Microsoft'south take on virtual reality arrived along with the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. Information technology's called Windows Mixed Reality because it'southward built on a framework kickoff developed for the Microsoft HoloLens, but it'south essentially a VR platform rather than any significant augmented reality or combined AR/VR experience. It works on a variety of new VR headsets from multiple manufacturers, all priced comparably with or lower than the Oculus Rift.

The $399.99 Acer AH101 is the start Windows Mixed Reality headset nosotros've seen in PC Labs. It'southward a capable device that offers a streamlined experience in Microsoft's virtual playground, but that playground is pretty empty compared with the ameliorate established SteamVR and Oculus Rift platforms. And while you can utilise SteamVR software over Windows Mixed Reality, nosotros weren't impressed with the stability or reliability of those games with this headset. There's a lot of potential here, like a position-tracking system that doesn't need external beacons or sensors, and a robust virtual interface, but Microsoft and its partners take to smoothen out a lot of the platform's rough edges for it to keep up with Oculus and HTC/Steam.

Design

The AH101 ($499.00 at Amazon) is sleeky blue-and-black plastic, offer a splash of colour compared with the monochrome Rift, HTC Vive, and Playstation VR. The headset is similar in design to the PS VR, with a large visor in front suspended from a circular padded headband with no T-strap over the scalp. Like the PS VR, you lot simply fit the headband over your head and tighten the wheel on the dorsum until information technology's secure. The visor is mounted on a hinge for adjusting its angle relative to your eyes, and a large space between your face and the lenses lets you lot comfortably vesture glasses with information technology. There are no concrete controls or adjustments, likewise merely tightening the headband and adjusting the angle of the visor.

Two cameras sit on the front of the headset, spaced several inches apart. These enable Windows Mixed Reality'due south spacial processing, tracking the headset's position relative to your reckoner without external tracking devices like you demand with the Rift, Vive, and PS VR. This ways you lot can use the AH101, or any other Windows Mixed Reality headset, without placing cameras or beacons on your desk-bound or around your room, making it far easier to fix and employ.

The AH101 uses a stereo display with a total resolution of 2,880 by ane,440, translating into a 1,440-pixel foursquare for each middle. It uses LCD panels instead of the OLEDs used in the Rift, Vive, and PS VR. While its resolution is college than those 3 headsets (the PS VR is 960 by 1,080 per centre, and the Rift and Vive are each 1,080 by 1,200), its refresh charge per unit is a slightly lower 60-90Hz, compared with 90-120Hz for the PS VR and a apartment 90Hz for the Vive and Rift. The LCD panels as well have less contrast than the OLED displays of the other headsets, so blacks don't expect quite as deep and night.

An xi-foot cable runs from the right border of the visor and terminates in a gear up of USB 3.0 and HDMI connectors. A much shorter cable runs from the same border of the visor to a clip on the right side of the headband, where it provides a iii.5mm headphone jack similar to the HTC Vive headset. The AH101 has no headphones, but you can utilize your own with this port.

Controllers

The included motion controllers are chunky amalgams of the Vive controllers and the Oculus Touch controllers. They're a pair of rounded rectangular plastic wands with oblong control surfaces and open up, cone-shaped light beacons on top. The command surfaces each agree an analog stick similar on the Oculus Touch, and a round, clickable touchpad like on the Vive controllers, with a modest menu push between. A Windows button sits below the control surfaces, on the length of the wands. Ii triggers rest on each underside, where the index and middle fingers comfortably autumn when belongings the controller.

When the controllers are turned on, a serial of LEDs along the open cone mounted over them light upward. These lights help the headset rail the controllers' positions relative to the user. They work in conjunction with internal movement sensors, simply similar the headset itself.

The controllers are functional, but experience a bit cheap compared with the Oculus Touch. The matte black plastic feels slightly lighter and flimsier, and the flat rectangular shape of the wands isn't every bit ergonomic every bit the Impact's curved grips.

Setup

Setting upward a Windows Mixed Reality headset like the AH101 is much quicker and simpler than setting upwards an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive. To start, you lot need to have Windows x with the Autumn Creators Update installed. When Windows is up to engagement, all y'all have to do is plug the headset'southward USB and HDMI connectors into their respective ports on your PC. Once the headset is plugged in, Windows volition automatically install and load the Windows Mixed Reality software and walk you through using it.

You lot don't need to set up exterior sensors to use the AH101 like you do with the Rift and Vive. When you gear up the headset, the Windows Mixed Reality software volition walk y'all through a few simple steps to connect the motion controllers wirelessly and lay out a space for using the headset. Connecting the controllers is simply a matter of holding down the Windows button on each ane until they sync with your PC. Setting up a space for VR involves pointing the headset at your PC, then holding it up and drawing a purlieus around your area with it, similar dragging the movement controller around the room to set up whole-room VR with the HTC Vive.

Windows Mixed Reality

Once the headset is set up, you can load the Windows Mixed Reality portal and showtime using information technology. Windows Mixed Reality uses a business firm-like virtual construction chosen Cliff Firm to provide a loading area and workspace. Information technology'south a simple, multi-room firm with bare walls and open up areas for arranging your most used games and applications.

The interface is identical to that of the HoloLens, with a pop-up Commencement menu that floats in front of your view and provides access to all compatible software, along with the Cortana voice assistant if you have a microphone installed. When y'all select an app or game, yous're directed to place it somewhere in the Cliff House, giving information technology a specific presence for viewing and accessing it.

Nearly applications announced every bit floating windows that can be placed in the air or mounted on a wall with the move controllers. When they're running in the Cliff Business firm, they permit multitasking simply past looking between different walls and windows, merely as if you lot were using multiple figurer monitors to juggle software.

More complex applications and most games appear equally floating iii-dimensional objects that tin can exist activated with a click of the motion controller. Instead of running in the Cliff House, they load their own individual virtual spaces, taking over the view to let yous play without any compages getting in the manner.

If yous want to really bandbox upwards the Cliff House, y'all tin also place three-dimensional Holograms as decorations. These are identical to the Holograms available on the Hololens, a choice of animated and still models that tin be scaled to any size and arranged anywhere in the infinite.

The Windows Mixed Reality launcher is designed for use with Microsoft's ain software store, which is very underwhelming compared with the Oculus Rift store or SteamVR, with currently just over 90 games and apps. You can't utilise Oculus-simply software with the AH101, but you can apply SteamVR. With the Windows Mixed Reality launcher open, launch the SteamVR software you want to use from your desktop to run it on the headset.

Because SteamVR has to run over the adequately circuitous Windows Mixed Reality portal, it'due south less reliable than using it with a Vive or even a Rift. I experienced multiple cases of SteamVR games hanging while loading, placing me in an empty virtual space with just a game logo floating in forepart of me. More than frustratingly, I saw occasional glitches and flickering in some SteamVR games that didn't appear in the Cliff House or Windows Mixed Reality games. The infinite recognition doesn't seem to translate reliably into SteamVR either, resulting in some environments twitching and shifting every bit the headset tries to go a lock on its position. The buoy/sensor-based position tracking of the Rift and Vive both seem more than reliable for SteamVR games than the AH101'southward born cameras.

Performance

I tried out a few different VR experiences, both through the Cliff House and SteamVR. From Microsoft's own Windows Mixed Reality environment, I loaded the Halo: Recruit and Ghostbusters: Now Hiring demos. Halo is a uncomplicated shooting gallery, and Ghostbusters is a brusque run through the famous firehouse to catch Slimer with a ghost trap. Each experience uses both movement controllers to simulate hands, either to handle a pair of guns or a proton wand and ghost trap.

The motion controllers are generally very accurate, and while they don't experience as ergonomic as the Oculus Touch controllers, they are very responsive and fun to use. Graphically, both games expect adequately uncomplicated compared with current-generation non-VR titles, but they are crisp and well-defined, and give a good sense of 3D positioning.

On the SteamVR side, I tried Space Pirate Trainer, Fallout iv VR, and Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality. Space Pirate Trainer is a uncomplicated shooting gallery game similar Halo: Recruit, but with active enemies that fire at you, requiring physical movement to dodge them. Since the environment is very simple, I didn't experience the flickering I got with other SteamVR software, and motion tracking of both the headset and the controllers was reliable and accurate.

Fallout 4 VR was a different story. The game had difficulty tracking my position, and I experienced multiple graphical glitches where the groundwork seemed to twitch and spring. The motion controllers worked well, but the game kept placing my headset uncomfortably close to whatever I was trying to interact with. The non-graphic symbol models like items and furniture as well looked very crude and primitive; it'southward articulate that many graphical assets in this game (originally released ii years ago in non-VR course) weren't designed to be looked at very closely in a VR headset.

Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality worked well at offset. The opening section in Rick's garage loaded, and the motility controls were responsive enough for me to play with the goofy humor of the game's physics objects. Unfortunately, it crashed multiple times when I tried to load another expanse. This seems to be an event of the SteamVR integration with Windows Mixed Reality. If Valve or Microsoft can improve stability on the platform, and fifty-fifty enable software launching from the Cliff House, it volition be much easier to recommend the AH101 and other Windows Mixed Reality headsets for gaming.

A Promising First for Windows Mixed Reality

Every bit the commencement retail Windows Mixed Reality headset nosotros've tested, the Acer AH101 is a functional, polished device for playing with virtual reality in Microsoft'due south VR ecosystem. Unfortunately, that ecosystem is very sparse compared with SteamVR and the Oculus Rift store, and the SteamVR back up for the headset is currently unreliable. The convenient setup and lack of external sensors or beacons makes the AH101 appealing in terms of usability, but that convenience can't make upward for an incomplete-feeling experience.

Until Microsoft strengthens its VR library or incorporates SteamVR software more seamlessly and reliably, the Oculus Rift is a ameliorate PC-based VR feel. Nosotros also similar the Playstation VR for its compelling library and the simple fact that a PlayStation iv is less expensive than a VR-capable PC. We'll be keeping our optics on future Windows Mixed Reality headsets and how the ecosystem improves every bit a whole, simply for now, it feels a few steps behind its competitors.

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Source: https://sea.pcmag.com/consumer-electronics-reviews-ratings-comparisons/18765/acer-ah101-d8ey-windows-mixed-reality-headset-review

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