Pimax Portal: features, specs, release date, price - Inverse

Do you retrieve the Nintendo Labo? It seems similar Chinese VR hardware shaper Pimax does.

The recently announced Pimax Portal, a Switch-like Android handheld with accessories that tin crook it into a afloat blown standalone VR headset, just launched its Kickstarter campaign connected Tuesday. The instrumentality shares similarities with the cardboard Labo accessories Nintendo made for the Switch, specifically the Viewfinder-esque VR Kit that fto you slot the Switch’s surface into a assortment of antithetic headsets.

Pimax’s mentation is acold much ambitious, and people comes with each of the uncertainty crowdfunding implies. Ahead of its planned 2023 launch, here’s what we cognize astir the Pimax Portal.

Pimax Portal features

The Pimax Portal, astatine its astir basal level, is an Android handheld with removable controllers and either a 5.5-inch LCD oregon QLED surface successful the wide signifier of the Nintendo Switch. Pimax says the instrumentality volition beryllium powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2, the aforesaid spot successful Meta’s Quest 2, diagnostic 32 carnal buttons (not counting bundle options), and has 5 cameras connected the backmost of the instrumentality for tracking and augmented world features.

And that’s conscionable for mobile gaming. Pimax describes the Portal arsenic a “metaverse amusement system,” truthful the existent instrumentality is each the different ways you tin usage the device. If you slot the Portal into Pimax’s Portal View headset, it tin relation arsenic a standalone VR instrumentality with interchangeable lenses and controller lodging that looks a spot similar the Quest 2’s controllers. The institution plans connected selling a Pro mentation of the headset with an further built-in 6,000 mAh battery.

Connected to the Portal Dock, the handheld tin enactment arsenic a accepted location console, oregon successful Pimax’s vision, a fittingness tracking instrumentality successful the aforesaid vein arsenic the Peloton Guide. Pimax besides plans connected selling a larger Pimax XL 8.8-inch surface you tin dock the Portal into, and a Mini Station “portable off-board processor” for playing much graphically aggravated games connected the handheld.

Pimax Portal Tech Specs

Here’s a breakdown of what Pimax is readying to see successful the Portal:

• CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2
• GPU: Qualcomm Adreno 650
• Memory: 8GB of RAM / 128GB of retention OR 8GB of RAM / 256GB of storage
• Display: 5.5-inch, 3,840 x 2,160 resolution, 144Hz LCD oregon QLED display
• Tracking: 6DoF (six degrees of freedom) tracking via 4 backmost cameras
• Battery: 4,000mAh

Pimax Portal Price and Release Date

Pimax plans to commencement shipping the Portal and its accompanying accessories successful January 2023. Current prices listed connected the company’s Kickstarter are “early bird” truthful they’ll apt spell up aft the instrumentality authoritative release. Here’s the existent terms breakdown:

• Starting astatine $299 for the Pimax Portal (LCD)
• Starting astatine $449 for the Pimax Portal (LCD) and Portal View headset
• Starting astatine $549 for the Pimax Portal (QLED)
• Starting astatine $599 for the Pimax Portal (QLED) and Portal View Pro headset

Will the Pimax Portal beryllium immoderate good?

The Pimax Portal sits astatine the buzzy intersection of handheld gaming and virtual reality, but I person to impulse superior caution: there’s a batch of unknowns with this device.

Pimax has sold PC VR headsets earlier — and adjacent precocious introduced different standalone VR headset, the Pimax Crystal, earlier this twelvemonth — but the Portal is acold much complicated. The handheld itself is “ready for wide production” according to Pimax, but there’s nary telling however galore of the assorted accessories volition really vessel with the instrumentality successful January.

What’s wide astir the Portal is that Pimax is onto something. The Nintendo Switch is powered by (aging) mobile hardware and galore of the astir fashionable standalone VR headsets are fundamentally similar souped up Android smartphones connected the inside. The impulse to harvester the 2 devices seems similar a bully one. But similar immoderate portion of caller hardware, the marque oregon interruption volition beryllium whether oregon not there’s immoderate bundle to tally connected it, and it’s not wide Pimax has the power of a institution similar Meta to pull developers.