PSVR 2 display has fewer subpixels per pixel than the PSVR

Is the PSVR 2's resolution leap smaller than expected? An analysis shows that the pixels offer fewer subpixels than in the predecessor.

[ApocalypseShadow]

I've seen this make the rounds. What's the point?

Sony went with compromises to get to their price. It has higher resolution, HDR, headset haptics, eye tracking and foveated rendering, no breakout box, lighter, one thin USB C cable, better 3D sound, etc. Also comes with new haptic controllers and inside out tracking. With the setup being only $50 more than the PSVR complete setup.

Are we really nitpicking over nothing?

[jonny897]

I don't want all that, I want more subpixels

[Knushwood Butt]

I want sub sub pixels.

[crazyCoconuts]

Need more terapixels

[_SilverHawk_]

This sucks so much. I'm selling my psvr2 and getting a Nintendo virtual boy

[Babadook7]

“Are we really nitpicking over nothing?“

Yup.

“I want more subpixels”

I want clarity. 4K with pentile beats the competition in that regard.

[cbuc1125]

Then don't buy it. Simple.

[fr0sty]

You know you've built a good headset when the review gush about how clear and colorful the image is, moreso than any other headset they've tried, and the haters have to break out the microsocopes to generate talking points.

[Kerppamaister]

I hear subpixels are so hot right now

[fr0sty]

People don't realize that pretty much all video they've ever seen on TV, blu-ray, youtube, etc. all follows a similar technique, but it happens in software. This is an over-simplified explanation of it (I'd have to go into a lot of detail to explain it all), but YUV compression works in much the same way... the human brain does not perceive detail in color, we see detail in black and white. So, to take advantage of this limitation, YUV compression... which all video you have ever seen shot by a camera uses unless it is true RAW (not even talking blackmagic RAW or ProRes RAW, as both use YUV compression as well). YUV compression samples some of the primary colors at lower resolution than the black and white (luminance) data. So, for instance, you might get blue at full resolution, but green might be half, and red might be quarter (commonly called 4:2:0). All "delivery" video formats (the stuff you actually watch) is 4:2:0. Pro-codecs for editing and capture sometimes use 4:2:2, and 4:4:4 is typically only used for motion graphics or green screen use, where having that extra color resolution counts when you need a clean background removal or composite.

The above ignores the translation to the YUV color space, which further compresses the video by mapping it to a color space that can be described using only X and Y coordinates, vs. separate bit data for the red, green and blue primary colors. If you'd like to learn more, look up YUV compression on youtube.

So, this is doing something very similar, but at a hardware level. One of the sub-pixels (the red, green, and blue mini-pixels that make up 1 full OLED or LCD pixel) is shared across pixels... so in effect, it's like getting 4:4:2 (when describing YUV sampling resolution, the 4 means full res, 2 means half res, and 0 means quarter resolution).

If 4:2:0 is good enough for all TV, youtube (and all other streaming services), Blu-Ray, 4K Blu-Ray, etc. and we still don't notice the difference... and 4:2:2 is good enough for professional color grading and image capture, 4:4:2 is going to be a step above even that... and again, this isn't even using the further-compressed YUV color space, it's still uncompressed RGB where each primary color gets its own 10 bits of data to describe the color it needs to be. in other words, good luck noticing it, even if you try. These folks had to break out the microscopes to do it, after all.

All a bunch of FUD over nothing.

Source: 28 years in the video production industry producing everything from SVHS tapes back in the 90s to 4K HDR today.

[peppeaccardo]

As an early adopter of everything VR (PSVR, PSVR2, Meta, Meta 2, Pico 4) I have to say that PSVR2 is a huge step forward in the VR gaming space. With a few but not huge drawsbacks.
Pros: Light Weight, Confortable, Excellent display colors, great controllers, haptic feedback.
Cons: Cable, small sweet focus spot (needs adjustments to get the focus right),
As for the games I only got exclusives as I can play everything else on my 4090 with pico 4 (way better and powerfull).
GT7 is nice in VR but if compared with Automobilista 2 or Assetto Corsa Competizione feels a bit behind. Lot of options but the visuals are a bit blurry
Call of the mountain is mainly a climbing simulator with a story and some fighting. Excellent showcase for the psvr 2 but FAA does some weird stuff
Village VR, excellent and so I went back to finish RE VII to start this, but first 10 minutes gave me heart attach

For the subpixel I do not see the problem, people will try to play things down on convenience.
Cheers

[KillBill]

When the replies start coming in with explanations on what the eye can actually see then you know people are just talking bull. lol

[fr0sty]

When people ignore decades of experience and scientific research in favor of their own bias, you know they are full of bull, lol. None of you even knew you were seeing a similar effect in every video you've ever watched on TV, your phone, your game consoles, or your computer... that is enough to prove the point right there.

[VariantAEC]

@Fr0sty
"People don't realize that pretty much all video they've ever seen on TV, blu-ray, youtube, etc. all follows a similar technique, but it happens in software."
It's true that most people don't understand color models. I'll say I'm no expert myself.

"All "delivery" video formats (the stuff you actually watch) is 4:2:0. Pro-codecs for editing and capture sometimes use 4:2:2, and 4:4:4 is typically only used for motion graphics or green screen use, where having that extra color resolution counts when you need a clean background removal or composite."
Also mostly true.

"So, this [PSVR2] is doing something very similar, but at a hardware level."
No. If you look at the sub-pixel structure of an imaging device like your camera's CMOS image sensor you will see a similar arrangement of subpixels, it's called a Bayer Array and like the Pentile Array used to make up the PSVR2's displays the number of subpixels is actually HIGHER than in typical linear RGB pixel structures. I don't think anyone would say that Samsung Galaxy phone screens are blurry, but guess what? Nearly every SuperAMOLED panel from Samsung uses this pixel array format. Yeah your phone screen if it's provided by Samsung (the screen not the phone) will have this Diamond Pentile Pixel Array.

Now I know Bayer and Pentile arrays are considered unrelated due to their application, but if we ignore perception and look at the arrays similarities we see the same pixel structure! You can see a typical Bayer filter for an inage sensor allows for each pixel to have one red, one blue and two green sub pixels. If we look at the common modern SuperAMOLED mobile displays used by Samsung phones and indeed in the PSVR2 you see the same thing. A square pixel with a single red, a single blue and two green subpixels. The only difference is that the Diamond Pentile Pixel Array is rotated 45 degrees.
Compared to a conventional LCD sqare pixel which typical arranges three rectangular subpixels from left to right with one red, one green and one blue subpixel in each pixel.

And what's the difference between a square and a diamond? It's rotation.
Seriously these are still square pixels still capable of providing the same colors but the subpixel array is rotated a bit. Now obviously the complexity of the display controller and wiring is different due to the orientation of the pixels and I assume that there is a power savings from the Dimond Pixel Pentile Array structure, but ultimately having less obviously square pixels will allow for more organic looking images with even less risk of running into the screendoor effect (which was also considered low on the PSVR 1 though it was still noticeable).

In the end Dimond Pixel Pentile Array screens have a definitive resolution and are still clearly capable of producing extremely sharp images, the article is still trash.

But I replied because ultimately you're also mostly wrong. There's no HW "4:4:2" color model magic happening here not even in a sort-of-kind-of conceptual sense. These are standard pixels with a "strange" subpixel layout that most people are ridiculously familiar with already without even realizing it.

[crazyCoconuts]

It's just data, would you rather not know it?

[Bathyj]

Yep.
I don't know what sub pixels are and I don't care.

Just like I never knew what Mura was a month ago and now I'm apparently supposed to be upset by it.

[crazyCoconuts]

Pretty sure no one asked you to get upset over it.

[VenomUK]

I don't know how to count whether it has less subpixels than the original, but what I can say is the visuals of PS VR2 are better.

[jznrpg]

It’s better in every way than the first . Of course they could have made it even better than it is but it would have to be at a higher price. Not enough console players want to pay 600/700/800$ like some of those PC headsets that aren’t even as good as PSVR2 in most ways They did a great job making it the price it is with 2 awesome controllers .

[Evan_Beezy]

Believe it or not displays in VR are pretty important. Perceived resolution of pentile is objectively worse than standard RGB, it’s done for increase of OLED panel life. …News that’s unfortunate, but oh well …

[VariantAEC]

But you don't notice when your phone or OLED PC monitor uses the exact same pixel array configuration...
Weird.

[Evan_Beezy]

I can’t respond to the guy below me so I’ll do it here I definitely can notice it’s just less so because phone resolution is so high these days but it’s probably more pronounced in VR

[porkChop]

It's not exactly "nothing". Switching to PenTile brings advantages and disadvantages. The article is just explaining that in comparison to RGB stripe. They aren't necessarily saying Sony made the wrong decision, they're just informing people of the pros and cons and why the change would have been made.

[ApocalypseShadow]

How many of the over 100 million Switch owners cared about the pixels? As someone said above, if you have to pull out a microscope, that's nitpicking. Most gamers don't care about being informed. The information is being used to bring the headset down a peg.

It's a compromise Sony made. Nothing more when the overall quality is higher across the board. Should we also care about the forehead foam and the amount used in comparison to the first?

[porkChop]

It doesn't bring the headset down a peg. It's not that serious, man. A journalist's job is to report news and state the facts/truth. You're acting like they've just talked a bunch of shit about the PSVR2, which they haven't.

Is the subpixel density lower? Yes. Is that technically bad? At a *lower* resolution it could be due to screen door effect. Is it a big deal for PSVR2? No, because the change to a PenTile matrix has clear advantages like for example improved contrast which is definitely a big benefit for gaming.

[VariantAEC]

Color depth, contrast and total brightness all improved on PSVR2.
So this journalist is still wrong.

[porkChop]

@Variant
Dude. Read the article ffs. You guys are all commenting so negatively saying the author is wrong but you haven't even read what they actually said.

"The OLED display of the Playstation VR 2 still has advantages. It is far ahead in terms of black value, vivid colors, and HDR effect. In Gran Turismo 7, for example, I intuitively have to squint when the reflection of the low sun blinds me."

[VariantAEC]

@porkChop
The isssue isn't about the other things it's a out the primary lie that PenTile displays use less subpixels.
Samsung invented the PenTile pixel array and the modern Diamond Pixel and subpixel configuration. If you look at most modern OLED phone screens like basically any Samsung phone made since 2015 and Apple phones they all use this configuration and each pixel has four subpixels not two not the conventional three four. One red, one blue and two green subpixels.

Imagine a normal pixel with one red green and blue subpixel element each, break that green subpixel up into two pieces, resize all the subpixels into equal sized squares with the following arrangement from left to right top to bottom, red, green, green, blue.

Now that you have a square with four subpixels you will rotate that square pixel clockwise 45 degrees so now the red square is at the top and the blue square is at the bottom with the two green squares between.
Now will will resize all the subpixel elements. The blue subpixel will remain very large the red subpixel will shrink 50% and the green subpixels will shrink by nearly 70% each being transformed into tiny rectangles.
For the most modern SuperAMOLED displays keep the same surface area for the subpixels, but change the subpixel shapes from squares and rectangles into circles.
What you're seeing in PSVR2 is likely using Samsung's latest display technology and it produces the sharpest images.

That's what I mean by the article being trash.

[Einhander1971]

As usual nitpicking in the games industry is a given. Like you said the specs are amazing. Some are never happy no matter what. I think a lot need to get a new hobby. Just enjoy gaming and stop the bloody criticism.

[VariantAEC]

No compromise on pixel configuration, Germans apparently forgot how to count and these days cannot see either.
The Diamond Pixel array is every bit as sharp as standard pixels.

Most displays we use today are using this configuration and standard CRTs which many are now using to reduce resolution without seeing significant drops in image quality are comprised of much larger square pixels staggered like brick wall turned 90°. It's ridiculous that people are talking about reductions in sharpness and what have you when the same people are switching to worse flatscreen tech.

The whole thing that some might bring up about how VR uses optics to zoom in on the screen are also not really right either. If that was the case you would see the displays subpixels. The reality is the optics make the screen look far away so much so that if you wear corrective lenses you need to keep wearing them in VR (unless the focus can be adjusted and PSVR/2 don't allow for that).

[Evan_Beezy]

How can it be nothing when you’re saying that you can see screen door effect you’re basically saying you can see the pixels

[Anunnaki]

As they point out in the article using rgb stripe leads to a more pronounced screen door effect which is probably why they moved away from it.

[Evan_Beezy]

Naw traditional RGB is better

[Evan_Beezy]

Lots of disagrees SMH what’s the point of being a nerd if you’re going to be stupid

[VariantAEC]

PSVR didn't suffer from the screen door effect in the same way other VR headsets were said to (though I can't compare them because I only ever used the original PSVR). I noticed it in some cases playing AC7 on PS4, but ironically it was more noticeable in darker scenes.

So having the standard sqare wasn't an issue and rotating that sqare 45 degrees won't make a massive difference, but increasing the resolution will and that did happen. Samsung supposedly made the Pentile Array and due to people feeling pentile subpixel structure misrepresents the actual resolution of the display. So Samsung rearranged the subpixels now each pixel is still square as I mentioned but they're rotated 45 degrees with two green subpixels per pixel.

Each pixel contains one red, one blue and green subpixels and as we all learned in Germany primary schools, 4 is a much smaller number than 3!

[Deathdeliverer]

Don’t know about all this. What I do know as an owner of both, in USE the PSVR2 is head, shoulders, knees, & toes better in every way including image quality. The closest you get to “screen door” is GT7. Everything else I’ve played has been crisp as crystal clear. The ONLY thing I wish is that the screen had a wider margin for it to stay a pristine image. Some games seem more forgiving than others, but luckily that headband works so well. Get it where it needs to be and lock in. Tight. Which is still comfortable so there’s that.

[Knushwood Butt]

What is screen door? I play a lot of GT7 in VR. To me, the only drawback is that I have to move my head everywhere to get a clear look at things. If I just move my eyes, it misses the focal sweet spot and I get a blurred image. If I want to look in the rear view mirror, I need to move my head to do so.

[abstractel]

That's not how foveated rendering works. It tracks your pupils in real-time and renders the game at the highest resolution where you are looking, not where your head is turned. I think the in-game resolution of the rearview mirror is just a bit lower to keep up performance.

[Knushwood Butt]

^

Sure, but I don't think foveated rendering is enabled in GT7. Has this been confirmed? Basically, if I move my eyes anywhere that isn't looking directly forward through the 'sweet spot', then I get a blurred image.

[Deathdeliverer]

It is in GT7. Go and readjust your settings for the VR. Go to each category but especially the ones for the eye tracking and that shows how the mask is on your face.

[Knushwood Butt]

^

I will, but I think that contradicts the whole necessity of having to get a clear view of text when first putting the headset on. If foveated rendering just means you get a clear and crisp image wherever your eyes are looking, then in theory I should never see a blurred image, yet I do.

[Deathdeliverer]

Well what I’m seeing is if it’s losing tracking of one of your eyes. When you go to the setting that shows your eyes in the eye tracking setup it shows how much of your eyes the camera can see. My wife needs the eye width setting a lot closer than I do. When looking at that screen you can actually see it “losing your eyes” because it’s not straight or your full eye isn’t visible. I’ve never had the Fov rendering not work for me. I’ve never seen anything blurry like it couldn’t keep up with my eyes. Anyway, try that and once you’ve fixed it you should never have that issue again. It can’t work if your eyes aren’t properly set though.

[Knushwood Butt]

The lens separation setting. Sure, I'll re-calibrate that. Thanks.

[Knushwood Butt]

@ Deathdeliverer

I adjusted the distance between the lenses and as you say, the original setting was too close and the headset wasn't seeing one of my eyes properly. I increased the spacing and completed the calibration. I do remember making an on the fly adjustment a few days ago which must have messed up the spacing.

I re-did eye tracking while I was at it.

Anyway, GT7 was a lot better but I still think eye tracking and foveated rendering are two different things.

[boing1]

@Knushwood Butt

Yes, eye tracking and foveated rendering are two seperate things but there would be no foveated rendering without eye tracking. Yes, GT7 uses foveated rendering, and quite aggressivly I must say. It should not be visible in the headset, though. When you're doing the eye tracking calibration, is everything working correctly? Is it following your eyes? I have a bit of lazy eyelid on my right eye so I have to be pretty concious about keeping it fully open when I'm playing on mine.

[Deathdeliverer]

@Boing

Thanks for saving me the time, can’t have foveated rendering without Eye tracking. That’s why people with one eye cannot use it. A lazy eye, as you’ve pointed out, could cause issues.

@Knush

Glad it worked out.

[Knushwood Butt]

Thanks. The eye tracking test worked fine last time I tried it.

Next time I'll spend some time just sat in the car to see what I get when only moving my eyes.

[darkrider]

Omg. The subpixels!!! What about the sub sub pixels.... Sony bring the ultra giga pixels now. Must have ultra instinct pixels

[jznrpg]

It’s night and day better than PSVR1

[Jin_Sakai]

The one thing I wish they used were Pancake lens instead of Fresnel. Likely too expensive to make the cut though.

[crazyCoconuts]

I noticed that immediately with the god rays I read some discussion that pancake also is less "efficient" and might sacrifice the brightness needed by HDR. I think that's a reasonable choice given thirst tradeoffs.

[Jin_Sakai]

They do require much more brightness. Hopefully this issue is overcome in the near future.

[TeamIcoFan]

Everybody worrying about sub pixels, but nobody gives a damn about dom pixels.
SMH.

[Deathdeliverer]

You a freak. That is all. 🤣

[Binarycode]

It's not blurry at all. I've recently tried it and it's as clear as fk.

Eye tracking saves gpu power.

The original VR is a mess. Not just cables but the image is poor and the games looked bad on it.

They made the right choices with it, but still it's a niche product and VR will always be that way.

[jznrpg]

I was with you until always be that way . Never can say always . Our lives are short and things change quickly . It may seem slow to us but 100 years ago we were using trains and boats and just learning to fly .

[Binarycode]

I get what you're saying with change.

But we are still using trains and boats and the same combustion engine with variations.

Electric cars are not the future. Cobalt will cause wars yet again with China basically owning the Congo that mines it.

The elite just push whatever narrative they wish, That's why tesla's work was bought and shutdown.

Things do change, but VR is a stretch.

There are too many things that stop it from being the future.

Cost
Having to wear something on your head.
Still not knowing the effects of sight over long periods.

It'll get sales to those who really want something different. But this isn't the wii. The sole reason that sold was cheap, and ease of use to grandparents to play with children. Even though the graphics were poor, the controls were lacking. but it was fun. that's what the masses want.

People can disagree as much as they want, but it's the truth.

Just like 3D tv which I actually liked. But because of when it released on PS3 era, those consoles didn't have the the power to produce the fidelity needed. 3D tv's will appear.

[RavageX]

OH NO!!!!!!

Seriously who gives ANY kind of care? Looks great to me and that's all that matters as far as Im concerned.

[badboyz09]

👀

[Nacho_Z]

Sony may as well pack it up and go home. There's no coming back from this. The subpixels have spoken.

[GotGame818]

Wow! Really? Why not concentrate on how much BETTER it is compared to any other VR headset available. My only complaint was the cord, but I don't care about that anymore. Super stoked to get one!

[outsider1624]

No problem. Sony will improve it on the PSVR3.

[Profchaos]

My untrained and uneducated eyes have been fooled by the evil Sony corporation and believed that the psVR2 far looked better than the psvr1.

I guess I'll go back to my misery and duel welding a sniper and shotgun in re 8

[Eonjay]

Of course the image actually looks much better because there are actually 4x the number of pixels period so PSVR 2 really has more sub pixels.. But of course that defeats the purpose of this article.

[VariantAEC]

Even the idea that there are less subpixels per pixel is wrong. The PenTile Diamond Pixel contains four subpixels per pixel.

3>4 in Germany though, at least according to the "journalists" that wrote this article.

[Aussiesummer]

While the res is up the lenses and all over look is worse, they just had to use fractal lenses didn't they, ruined.

[MrSec84]

960X1080 per eye on PSVR1 vs 2000x2040 res per eye on PSVR2, 4X the pixel increase, the headset's lighter, there's no way the experience isn't improved by the display tech in use compared to PSVR1.

Eye tracking, better supporting hardware in PS5 by a massive margin, what is the point of this article?
Every genuine user of the device has praised the imagine quality improvement.

[tbagmonster]

well there is always quest 3 to rely on

[BrainSyphoned]

Subway measures its toppings in subpixels.

Sorry, best I got today.

[jznrpg]

Hey , you tried .

[RiseNShine]

Remember that PSVR2 has 4 times the number of pixels of PSVR1 overall, so this is just click bait with no real meaning towards the huge jump that exists between PSVR1 and PSVR2.

[jznrpg]

Less sub pixels per pixel but total sub pixels is more overall considering it’s 4 times the pixels . I don’t care about the sub pixel count in the end because the images are so much better than the first one it’s not even close

[VariantAEC]

Pentile array has 4 subpixels per pixel as opposed to 3.

...But as we know from the high quality German public education system 4 is less than 3!

[shadowT]

we all need more subpixels

[azedean]

I absolutely don't give a shiit about that, I'm enjoying mine, it is far better than the psvr 1.

[thesoftware730]

You guys are a Sony sympathizers!

Do you not know the importance of dem subpixels?
I bought my google Pixel 6 Pro just because it had Pixel in the name, that's how important they are.

The normal pixels are the starting pixels, and whenever one pixel gets tired, the devices subs in the well-rested Subpixel, you cant game for a long time with tired pixels....they would score fewer points!...wait what are we talking about again?

Subpixels, It's subpixels....really, subpixels... subpixels.....subpixels.

[XiNatsuDragnel]

Man what a nitpick lol