Here at OSAlert we like to look at new, innovative products that push boundaries and create new markets. In the past year there were only 3-4 companies wordlwide that released video glasses (goggles) to accompany the exploding market of PMPs. MicroOptical is one of these pioneers and they kindly sent us in their MyVu video glasses to take them for a spin.The MyVu look a bit like high-tech sunglasses. On the inside part there are two 4:3 QVGA screens, mirrors and “windows” that allow you to see in front of you. Its shape is thin and this allows the user to be able to view above and below the actual device and because of this, it is possible to use the MyVu and at the same time walk in the park freely without fearing that you will stumble on a tree; although we won’t recommend wearing it while walking to a busy street.
The box came with 3 different “nose” fitters, so you can attach the one that fits your nose best securing the glasses on your head. On the box we also found 3 AAA batteries (which delivered about 5.5 hours of video playback), the battery compartment and video-in accompanied device, and a case that fits both the battery pack and the iPod Video.
The way the MyVu works is this: The battery compartment connects to the video glasses while it also has an 3.5mm AV-IN jack that accepts several cables that attach on the other side on the A/V-OUT of the PMP, portable DVD player, camera, or other compatible AV device (including living room DVD players). By pressing the MyVu’s power button for 2 seconds it turns on the dual screens and it’s ready to watch.
All this in theory of course, because by using the included 3.5mm-to-3.5mm A/V cable we had zero success with any of the PMPs and digicams we tried. Apparently MicroOptical does not use the same wire ordering on the 3.5mm jack (for audio left/right, ground and video) like most devices expect it to and so they are simply not compatible. The iPod Video works though with this cable, and this will please some people, but some other PMPs just won’t work. There is no way to know if your PMP will work or not without having both devices at hand to test first. I believe that MicroOptical should include all three kinds of 3.5mm AV jacks (in terms of wiring) in its box in order to eliminate compatibility problems.
We would not have been able to continue our review if MicroOptical was not kind enough to send us afterwards a standard AV cable: 3.5mm-to-Male_RCA. At last, a standard cable that it’s guaranteed to work! Hold off your horses though, as this cable is not available for purchase anywhere (and even if you find it, you won’t know if the 3.5mm wiring is the exact one that the MyVu expects). We spent over an hour at RadioShack and Frys last weekend to find this cable and we were unsuccessful, so we firmly believe that MicroOptical should put this second cable on all the retail boxes along with the adapter we had to purchase seperately in order to make the MyVu to work with our PMPs: a female-to-female 3-way RCA cable (we bought ours at Radioshack for $7, they call it the “triple phono plug coupler“). After we had this setup done, we were able to connect all of our PMPs to the MyVu and everything worked like a charm! Sure, the RCA AV cables are long and create miles of wiring, but it’s just more compatible than the 3.5mm-to-3.5mm solution.
The MyVu also has attached in it a pair of in-ear earbuds. Their sound quality is good for movies but crude for concerts where sound quality really matters. There is also a “zzzzzzz” buzz coming from the A/V cables at all times, similar to the buzz some CRT TVs do when they display ultra white colors. There is no 3.5mm output jack to use your own headphones.
Regarding picture quality, it feels like you are watching on a CRT. Even if the actual technology used is LCD, the internal mirror-like system makes the picture a bit fuzzy, like when you are watching a CRT. All things fair though, movies are very watchable and even subtitles are readable. MicroOptical claims that the MyVu simulates a 27″ TV from 2 meters away but I actually own a 27″ Sharp TV and I was able to compare side by side from 2 meters away. The MyVu is more like a 22″ or 23″ TV rather than a 27″ one. Still, better than a 2.5″ or 3.5″ screen that most PMPs have, although the difference is not big because PMPs are kept closer to the eyes than TVs are. The MyVu can display 60fps and 24bit color. It autodetects and autoadjusts to NTSC and PAL signals.
Regarding comfortability, I felt the part of my nose that kept the MyVu secure itching all the time. The device is not as comfortable as prescription glasses, although if you get used to them you will probably not notice the problem anymore and the fact that you can easily adjust them is a big plus. I personally need glasses for astigmatism but I was able to watch movies without ever feeling that I need to wear my glasses. Other eye conditions might not be the same though and so a prescription lens is sold as a snap-on add-on.
In conclusion, this is a product that could have been better if the product was tested with more devices and was offering more cables in the default packaging. Despite this though, I would like to congratulate MicroOptical for taking the big bold step to bring to the market a fresh, innovative and ultra-cool product. When the whole planet goes abuzz for an iPod Video with just a 2.5″ screen, MicroOptical takes that and brings it to the next level! I am sure that not only this kind of product will catch on, but we might even see Apple delivering something like this in the future. MicroOptical is here first though with this first-generation video glasses technology, offering it for the price of $250.
Let’s also note that they recently released a version of the MyVu that it’s made specifically for the iPod Video.
Overall Rating: 6.5/10
Since it had so many troubles with other PMPs I guess connecting it to a computer would be non-trivial. But that is how I would like to use it, if the quality is good enough.
Well, you will need a cable that takes your VGA signal and has an RCA-out. Not sure if you will find such a cable easily. And then you need a cable for audio, from your sound card to the two-way out RCA. It’s probably easier to find such output cables for a TV-card rather than a graphics card.
Additionally, don’t forget that you are watching the signal from two meters away (6.5ft), you can’t really use a computer from that far away. The video glasses are made specifically for movie watching…
Edited 2006-09-29 15:51
Looks more like the signal is 6.5 millimeters away to me.
Yes and no. The actual screens are as close, but the they simulate a screen at 2 meters away. The portrayed image is simply too small to use it as a compuer monitor.
It only supports 320×240 resolution. Nothing new or innovative about these goggles at all. Just a re-packaged set of goggles that we’ve seen before……
Most goggles on the market are QVGA. There is only 1 or 2 such consumer products that come in VGA and they are considerably more expensive as they have to cram VGA resolutions in a 1″ LCD. I don’t see why you think that you need more than QVGA. I could not see any pixels or anything while watching a video. You are standing far away from the virtual screen that it’s not possible to make pixels out.
Edited 2006-09-29 15:54
And what about watching an entire movie, with more than two hours, does the eyes become tired or its like watching a TV?
My eyes felt ok after a movie. Only the part of my nose that was holding the device was itching.
Will it work with the tv-out cable on my GP2X?
Well, depends if your GP2X has standard RCA cables, or it has a 3.5mm output that its wiring is compatible to the one myvu expects. With the RCA cables you will probably have no problem, but with the 3.5mm-to-3.5mm cable you only have a 30% chance that it will work. So, depends on the cables you use.
Is that you?
Funny.
That really, really was.
so now we have workable HMD’s, when can we get a usable interface for on the go typing?
or maybe one have that with frogpad, or something like that glove someone buildt…
Personal video displays are cool, but this one is very blah, blah. The article says it costs $250, but if you get it online at http://myvu.com/buy.html it costs $300 or $400 bucks depending on which version you buy. Why not spend an extra $150 and get this one: http://www.3dvisor.com/ instead?
I bought the Z800 and let me tell you, it’s sweet. For one thing it has dual 800×600 displays rather than a sad 320×240. It takes a VGA signal. Not only that, but you can play games in true stereoscopic 3D! And it has built-in head tracking that lets you look around in your environment.
It’s true that these two products serve different niches, but I’d much rather have the Z800 for the value.
And just in case you’re wondering, I am in no way affiliated with eMagin or the Z800. I just really like the product.
>Why not spend an extra $150 and get this one: http://www.3dvisor.com/ instead
Because these are made for PC and PC gaming. They are usb powered. You can’t take them out in the park with you. The Video Goggles instead are made for portability and PMPs, and they have size and battery limitations.
They are not the same product or for the same product, apart from their similarity of putting “stuff” on the front of your eyes. This is like comparing a HiFi system with big headphones and an iPod with earbuds.
To show you that MicroOptical have created this product with that specific market in mind, check this product: http://www.microoptical.net/Products/vga.html#SV6 which is similar to the one you describe, with 800×600 displays. They are just made for a different purpose.
I understand your point (and in fact addressed it in my post) that my comparison wasn’t exactly apples to apples. The intent of my post was more to show that the value of the MyVu was not, in my opinion, good.
That said, the SV-6 which you mentioned looks like an even worse value, if that is possible. For one thing, it is only a monocular display. Second, the display is only 640×480 native – 800×600 images must be scaled. Third, it does not have head tracking capability. Finally, the price is a whopping $1995 as listed on http://www.tekgear.com/index.cfm?pageID=90&prodid=395§ion=83 (MicroOptical does not list their price).
I don’t think the MyVu and the Z800 are as different as you suggest. A common use for the Z800 is watching DVD movies on a laptop during plane trips, especially since they use far less power than a laptop’s LCD monitor. Yes, I know it’s not quite as portable and doesn’t use batteries.
At any rate, to each his or her own. This is all just my opinion
I bought an eyetop centra a few years back to play with the possibility of using it as a computer display. the resolution was horribly low and it ended up being to stressfull for my eye when reading text, but this is a perfect use for it! just bought an ipod video and dusting off the eyetop. very cool concept.
Edited 2006-09-30 05:08
Thanks for the review! Are there any adjustments for the distance between different people’s eyes? Seems like this would be critical to prevent double vision and eyestrain.