WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:06.879 Everyone knows that outside in tracking is just better for VR gaming. It's 00:00:04.960 --> 00:00:12.880 faster, more accurate, and it's more reliable. Well, here's the thing. Valve 00:00:09.920 --> 00:00:18.800 isn't everyone. And the new Steam Frame took my expectations of a lousy, flaky 00:00:16.480 --> 00:00:26.160 experience in a standalone VR headset with camerabased positional tracking and 00:00:21.680 --> 00:00:28.160 blew them away. They also blew away my 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:30.880 expectations for their new Steam Machine and Steam Controller, but that's a 00:00:29.760 --> 00:00:39.040 separate video. We'll have that linked down below. In two words or less, this thing is impossibly good and maybe more 00:00:35.600 --> 00:00:40.879 importantly, impossibly versatile. They 00:00:39.040 --> 00:00:45.440 managed to make it lighter, more comfortable, and higher fidelity than 00:00:42.719 --> 00:00:49.680 the OG Index for PC VR gaming. They managed to bolt an ARMbased computer to 00:00:47.840 --> 00:00:55.039 it that runs mobile VR games and applications. You can even just 00:00:51.600 --> 00:00:58.399 sideloadad an Android APK. And the whole 00:00:55.039 --> 00:01:00.320 thing runs freaking Steam OS with a new 00:00:58.399 --> 00:01:05.840 element to their Proton compatibility layer called FEX that allows you to play 00:01:02.559 --> 00:01:10.560 desktop VR games. I'm talking x86 00:01:05.840 --> 00:01:13.280 Windows VR games on your ARM Linux VR 00:01:10.560 --> 00:01:16.320 headset. I would mic drop this, but I think I'd [music] get in trouble. The 00:01:14.640 --> 00:01:20.560 last part I wouldn't believe if I didn't experience it for myself. But they did 00:01:18.320 --> 00:01:24.159 all of this with latency that is indistinguishable from the best VR 00:01:22.530 --> 00:01:28.000 [music] experiences that I've had. But is it indistinguishable from the best 00:01:25.759 --> 00:01:33.600 Segway I've ever had? To our sponsor, Jawa. Jawa is your one-stop shop to buy 00:01:31.119 --> 00:01:37.040 and sell used gaming equipment and PC parts. If you're looking to build a new 00:01:35.280 --> 00:01:40.799 computer or upgrade your current one, check them out today using our link in 00:01:38.960 --> 00:01:45.439 the video description. Frame is a fundamental shift for Valve. Rather than 00:01:42.960 --> 00:01:50.000 being an accessory for your gaming PC, it's meant to be a standalone device 00:01:47.439 --> 00:01:57.439 that can also be enjoyed alongside your PC using wireless streaming for VR, 00:01:53.280 --> 00:01:59.759 which sounds horrible, but somehow it's 00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:03.680 not. Let's take a closer look at the hardware, then we can talk about how 00:02:01.759 --> 00:02:08.239 they did it. The headset that I'm holding is actually made up of multiple 00:02:05.360 --> 00:02:14.319 components. The core module contains the actual computer and weighs under 190 g. 00:02:11.440 --> 00:02:19.120 Then next is an audio module that can be detached with three clips under the foam 00:02:16.480 --> 00:02:22.560 gasket. Then there's the head strap and a battery pack that is cleverly 00:02:20.959 --> 00:02:26.080 positioned at the back to help counterbalance the device, improving 00:02:24.160 --> 00:02:30.000 comfort and also to make it a little bit easier to cable manage if you wanted to 00:02:27.760 --> 00:02:35.200 have an external battery pack. The optics are simply [music] put flipping 00:02:32.640 --> 00:02:40.080 incredible. Like other leading headsets, they're using pancake lenses. But unlike 00:02:38.080 --> 00:02:45.040 some other headsets that use pancake lenses, there was very little in the way 00:02:42.800 --> 00:02:49.120 of internal reflections visible in the demo applications that I use today. It 00:02:47.200 --> 00:02:52.720 is possible that with brighter light sources, it could show up a bit more, 00:02:51.360 --> 00:02:56.319 but that's going to be something that I'll have to save for the full review. 00:02:54.400 --> 00:03:02.480 What I can tell you is that under each lens is a 2160x 2160 LCD display that's 00:03:00.319 --> 00:03:09.200 capable of anywhere from 72 hertz presumably for power saving up to 120 Hz 00:03:05.760 --> 00:03:11.760 with a 144 hertz experimental mode just 00:03:09.200 --> 00:03:16.879 like we had on the Valve Index. As for why Valve decided to use LCD rather than 00:03:14.640 --> 00:03:22.000 OLED, it basically came down to the light losses due to the pancake lenses. 00:03:20.159 --> 00:03:25.120 Oh, since I'm pointing at them, on the inside of each lens, maybe you could 00:03:23.680 --> 00:03:29.200 even see them if you went crosseyed enough, is an eye tracker that's [music] 00:03:27.120 --> 00:03:34.239 obviously going to be great for, you know, social VR experiences, but perhaps 00:03:31.760 --> 00:03:39.280 more importantly enables Valve to do what they call fiated streaming, which 00:03:37.920 --> 00:03:42.239 I'm going to have to explain later because it gets a little in the weeds. 00:03:40.959 --> 00:03:46.879 First, let's take a look at the controllers. Valve [gasps] 00:03:44.640 --> 00:03:50.879 fully acknowledges that these are very similar to other designs in the market, 00:03:48.879 --> 00:03:55.760 but they wanted something that was both great for VR and also great for your 00:03:53.760 --> 00:04:00.159 nonVR applications if you just want to use your headset as a giant virtual 00:03:57.599 --> 00:04:05.519 display. And they still managed to add some Valve touches to them, putting 00:04:02.319 --> 00:04:07.760 capacitive sensing on all input surfaces 00:04:05.519 --> 00:04:10.959 and on the grips, so you can still do five finger tracking just like the 00:04:09.439 --> 00:04:15.519 Knuckles controllers from the Valve Index. They have two-stage actuating 00:04:13.360 --> 00:04:19.519 triggers, two-stage actuating grips, which unlocks a ton of control 00:04:17.359 --> 00:04:24.080 customization. They use the same magnetic thumb stick as the new Steam 00:04:21.759 --> 00:04:29.040 controller for better reliability, and a very small dead zone. And they each have 00:04:26.639 --> 00:04:34.160 their own independent gyros that can be rebound for aiming or whatever you want. 00:04:32.960 --> 00:04:38.000 I can't tell if they were being suggestive there given the popularity of 00:04:36.160 --> 00:04:41.360 certain VR applications, but I can't say for sure that they weren't. Both 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:46.479 controllers have an integrated IMU to track positional data and 18 infrared 00:04:44.400 --> 00:04:50.080 LEDs that can be tracked by the four high field of view cameras that are 00:04:47.919 --> 00:04:54.639 integrated into the frames core module. These were strategically positioned so 00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:58.479 that even if you were, say, for example, drawing an arrow from a quiver, it 00:04:56.880 --> 00:05:02.479 should be able to maintain tracking. Now, I didn't get a chance to try that, 00:05:00.320 --> 00:05:06.240 nor did I get to fire up BeatSaber, my favorite application for evaluating 00:05:04.560 --> 00:05:10.240 controller tracking under extreme conditions. But from just shaking them 00:05:08.080 --> 00:05:15.039 around in the menu, they seem to track extremely well. Valve is claiming about 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:18.800 40 hours of battery life off of a single double A. And this battery compartment 00:05:17.120 --> 00:05:22.320 is a perfect transition into the customizability that's on display with 00:05:20.720 --> 00:05:26.240 this headset. They're going to have an optional accessory kit that includes 00:05:24.080 --> 00:05:30.240 knuckle straps for the controller as well as a second head strap with a top 00:05:28.400 --> 00:05:34.240 velcro piece if you like a bit of additional support. I personally liked 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:39.199 it better, but I also didn't feel like it was necessary like it is on the much 00:05:37.120 --> 00:05:43.199 heavier Apple Vision Pro. There's a lot more to customize on the frame itself, 00:05:41.120 --> 00:05:48.479 too. It includes a spacer gasket for folks with long eyelashes and to improve 00:05:46.080 --> 00:05:51.600 compatibility with glasses, but Valve fully acknowledges that not everyone 00:05:50.160 --> 00:05:57.759 will want to use that because it does take away a little bit from their claimed about 110° field of view. So, 00:05:56.160 --> 00:06:01.440 they are working on prescription lenses for the headset itself. We even saw a 00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:05.039 box of them, but there's no specific timeline on that. IPD adjustments are 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:09.919 handled with a little knob on the top that spins a cog on the core module. And 00:06:07.759 --> 00:06:14.319 this is really cool. Right between the goggles at the bottom here is an 00:06:11.440 --> 00:06:21.919 expansion port that allows up to two 2 1/2 GB MIP cameras or a single camera 00:06:18.080 --> 00:06:23.919 with a PCIe Gen 4x1 slot allowing all 00:06:21.919 --> 00:06:28.080 kinds of possibilities for additional accessories like if you wanted color 00:06:26.080 --> 00:06:34.000 cameras for instance. the built-in ones are only monochromatic or if you wanted, 00:06:31.039 --> 00:06:37.600 I don't know, a smell sensor. The sky's is the limit. Since we're on the subject 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:41.680 of the cameras, Valve says that they will work for inside out tracking even 00:06:39.840 --> 00:06:46.000 in pitch darkness thanks to IR [music] emitters that are built into the headset 00:06:43.440 --> 00:06:53.199 itself. And you can expect tracking performance on the order of about 200 to 00:06:49.680 --> 00:06:56.080 250 updates per second, which is about 00:06:53.199 --> 00:06:59.039 on par with the Valve Index. Not something that I expected. Now that I've 00:06:57.759 --> 00:07:02.960 had a chance to gather my thoughts and eat some crappy airport food, let's talk 00:07:01.039 --> 00:07:08.880 about how Valve is delivering a PCVR-like experience wirelessly when big 00:07:06.479 --> 00:07:15.120 names like Apple and Meta have tried and never really succeeded. It starts with 00:07:12.319 --> 00:07:21.199 the least interesting looking part, this 6 GHz Wi-Fi dongle. Valve built the 00:07:18.319 --> 00:07:25.759 headset with two radios and two antennas for Wi-Fi along with a third dedicated 00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:30.080 antenna for your controllers or your Bluetooth peripherals. One of those 00:07:27.680 --> 00:07:34.479 Wi-Fi antennas handles 5 GHz for your game downloads, your multiplayer data, 00:07:31.759 --> 00:07:40.000 your voice chat, etc. The other one connects to a very high-end home router 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:44.400 or more likely Valve's dongle using the 00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:47.840 so far mostly unused 6 GHz band. This is 00:07:44.400 --> 00:07:49.440 a perfect use case for 6 GHz since it 00:07:47.840 --> 00:07:55.199 lacks the wall penetration that you might want for home Wi-Fi, but it excels 00:07:52.319 --> 00:08:00.800 at avoiding 2.4 and 5 GHz channel congestion while pushing huge amounts of 00:07:57.759 --> 00:08:03.120 bandwidth. With that said, while the 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:08.160 theoretical maximum is right up there with wired connections, in the real 00:08:05.199 --> 00:08:15.440 world, it falls well short of that. So, what's the secret? Boiated streaming. 00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:21.039 Seeing this in action blew my flipping mind. Basically, the idea behind it is 00:08:18.639 --> 00:08:27.120 similar to fiated rendering, where the headset tracks your eyes and tells your 00:08:23.840 --> 00:08:29.520 GPU, "Hey, only render the area of focus 00:08:27.120 --> 00:08:32.880 at full fidelity and save your resources on the rest of the scene." It's a 00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:37.519 technique that's been used to great effect on the handful of PSVR2 titles 00:08:35.200 --> 00:08:41.919 that exist, but has been largely untapped on the PC side, largely because 00:08:40.320 --> 00:08:46.000 it depends on game developers to implement it. And also, most headsets 00:08:44.320 --> 00:08:51.920 don't have built-in eye tracking, so why would they bother? Foviated streaming. 00:08:48.399 --> 00:08:55.360 Then, again, same idea. Focus your 00:08:51.920 --> 00:08:58.080 resources wherever the eyes are looking, 00:08:55.360 --> 00:09:03.680 except in this case, it's not the GPU saving on rendering resources. It's the 00:09:00.880 --> 00:09:09.760 video encoding stream saving on bit rate. So you get crystal clear high bit 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:15.440 rate encoding exactly where your eyes are looking and then a little bit blurry 00:09:12.080 --> 00:09:18.240 everywhere else. At least in theory. In 00:09:15.440 --> 00:09:22.560 practice, it reacted so fast that no matter how quickly I tried to move my 00:09:19.760 --> 00:09:26.160 eyes, I wasn't able to catch it. But I also don't feel too bad about that. 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:31.120 Valve put on an incredible demo for me in Halflife Alex where they highlighted 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:36.160 the maximum fidelity window as I was looking around. And even though they say 00:09:33.760 --> 00:09:41.600 it's only about 10% of the total video stream, it ends up being a pretty large 00:09:38.640 --> 00:09:46.160 window. Wild. As for the encoding latency, well, thanks to some clever 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:51.600 parallelization of the encoding, you can expect anywhere from 1 to 2 milliseconds 00:09:48.880 --> 00:09:56.560 of extra latency on a modern GPU and four to five for a slightly older but 00:09:53.760 --> 00:10:00.720 still VR capable one. Not enough to notice or to contribute to significant 00:09:58.720 --> 00:10:05.519 motion sickness. And it keeps getting better. I managed to get almost 50 ft 00:10:03.600 --> 00:10:10.080 away from the dongle without a noticeable difference in the experience. 00:10:07.920 --> 00:10:15.040 Now, granted, this is still line of sight, but it's a lot further than I can 00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:18.560 get with a tether. Now, I did bring up the possibility of more than one of 00:10:16.800 --> 00:10:22.160 these devices causing interference with each other. And Valve said that while 00:10:20.240 --> 00:10:25.760 they have operated multiple headsets concurrently in the same space, they 00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:32.079 haven't explored more demanding use cases like packed VR cafes. Moving on to 00:10:29.200 --> 00:10:37.920 audio, the built-in solution is both incredibly impressive and also a little 00:10:35.200 --> 00:10:42.160 disappointing. I'm impressed by the audio quality. They apparently had to 00:10:40.079 --> 00:10:45.680 use opposing drivers to cancel out the vibrations to make sure that the inside 00:10:43.839 --> 00:10:50.320 out tracking wouldn't get messed up, and they sound fantastic. As for the mic, I 00:10:48.640 --> 00:10:54.000 didn't get a chance to test it, but Valve assured me that the mic should 00:10:52.079 --> 00:10:58.399 carry on the Index's incredible reputation for stellar microphone 00:10:56.000 --> 00:11:02.720 performance. I'm disappointed because I literally had the engineer who worked on 00:11:00.320 --> 00:11:06.640 the Index and this new headset in the room with me. And when I asked her for a 00:11:04.880 --> 00:11:12.880 gaming headset with all this same audio black magic, she just shrugged. So sorry 00:11:09.839 --> 00:11:14.720 y'all, I tried. In all seriousness, the 00:11:12.880 --> 00:11:18.800 speakers don't fire directly into your ears, so there is a bit more sound bleed 00:11:16.720 --> 00:11:23.279 than with the Index, but it doesn't seem like a gamebreaker depending on what 00:11:20.880 --> 00:11:26.959 you're watching and who's around. The last couple of experiences I want to 00:11:24.800 --> 00:11:31.680 talk about are a huge deal whether you plan to use them or not. The first is 00:11:29.279 --> 00:11:36.320 FEX, an open- source project that Valve has been contributing, and this is a 00:11:33.200 --> 00:11:38.560 quote, quite heavily to. It's a 00:11:36.320 --> 00:11:44.880 translation layer that allowed me to experience a completely standard Windows 00:11:41.360 --> 00:11:47.200 x86 game, Hades 2 in this case, running 00:11:44.880 --> 00:11:53.360 directly on the hardware on the frame. I'm talking x86 code designed to run on 00:11:50.079 --> 00:11:58.000 Windows, running on a Snapdragon 8650 00:11:53.360 --> 00:11:59.839 running Linux. Holy freaking mind blown. 00:11:58.000 --> 00:12:05.200 They're planning a compatibility list. I'll uh grade on deck for the future. 00:12:02.640 --> 00:12:11.839 But wait a second. Running on Linux. Yeah, Valve's been busy porting Steam OS 00:12:08.320 --> 00:12:14.720 to ARM. How did they drop so much news 00:12:11.839 --> 00:12:18.880 on one day? The Frame does everything that you know and love about Steam OS, 00:12:16.880 --> 00:12:24.240 like fast suspend and resume and performance overlays, except on your VR 00:12:22.079 --> 00:12:27.920 headset directly. And as I mentioned briefly in the intro, if you blinked, 00:12:26.079 --> 00:12:33.920 you might have missed it, with this new ARM processor comes the ability to 00:12:30.560 --> 00:12:36.399 supposedly run Android APKs by directly 00:12:33.920 --> 00:12:40.720 sideloading them onto the Steam frame. And given how many VR experiences are 00:12:38.480 --> 00:12:45.040 designed to run on mobile devices, this is a colossal win. And with Valve's 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:48.959 commitment to putting micro SD card slots on all their devices, it can't be 00:12:47.360 --> 00:12:52.560 too hard to install. Now, there are still some areas where the frame doesn't 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:57.040 seem to be industryleading. The light seal isn't perfect, especially if you 00:12:54.880 --> 00:13:01.440 compare to the Beyond 2 with its custom 3D printed gasket. The pass through 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:04.320 cameras, they're just monochrome, so don't expect to be wearing your frame 00:13:02.800 --> 00:13:09.440 out and about like people did with the Apple Vision Pro for the first week or 00:13:06.639 --> 00:13:14.320 so. From my very brief, and admittedly not side-by-side experience, it's also 00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:19.360 not the highest clarity nor highest dynamic range display I've ever seen. 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:23.920 And it's not as light or compact as say the big screen Beyond 2. But it's the 00:13:21.920 --> 00:13:30.079 overall package that should have the entire rest of the industry stopping and 00:13:25.600 --> 00:13:33.279 going, "How did Valve, who as of 2021 00:13:30.079 --> 00:13:35.200 supposedly had less than 350 employees, 00:13:33.279 --> 00:13:42.000 manage to outmaneuver monsters like Meta, who spent 17.7 billion on Reality 00:13:38.800 --> 00:13:43.680 Labs just last fiscal year. I would ask 00:13:42.000 --> 00:13:47.760 Gay Ben how it happened, but I'm pretty sure he's busy on his yacht. All I know 00:13:45.839 --> 00:13:51.760 is that I want one. Whether it's for wireless PC gaming, native gaming on the 00:13:50.000 --> 00:13:55.440 road with minimal bulk in my bag, or even just relaxing on the couch watching 00:13:53.600 --> 00:13:59.440 movies on the big screen. Like, what kind of sucker needs a big TV when this 00:13:57.360 --> 00:14:03.440 thing exists? So, with the frame clearly taking the 00:14:01.440 --> 00:14:07.440 place of the Index in Valve's lineup, what happens to all the users of the 00:14:05.279 --> 00:14:11.199 Index and maybe more importantly, the third party ecosystem that exists around 00:14:09.680 --> 00:14:16.399 its base stations and Knuckles controllers? The short answer is the 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:20.160 index is EOL, but the long answer is Valve would love to see other players in 00:14:18.079 --> 00:14:25.279 the VR space approach them about continuing to support or even continuing 00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:27.360 to manufacture these devices. Whether 00:14:25.279 --> 00:14:31.279 that'll happen, I don't know, but at least Valve is open to the conversation, 00:14:29.519 --> 00:14:35.519 just like I'm open to telling you about our sponsor, Grammarly. 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