The best VR headsets for 2023
There's never been a better time to jump into virtual reality.
Valve Index VR Kit
88
Engadget Review
The Valve Index has almost everything we want in a next-generation PC VR headset. It delivers excellent image quality, believable VR presence and it has a revolutionary pair of motion tracking controllers. It’s just too bad it’s so expensive, but hopefully its innovations will spur on cheaper competition.
It has almost everything we’d want from a PC VR headset.
Devindra HardawarJune 28, 2019
Pros
- Excellent image quality
- Realistic presence
- Incredibly comfortable headset
- Finger-tracking controllers add a new level of immersion
- Very stable motion and space tracking
Cons
- Priced only for pros
- Inconvenient wired connection
- External sensors are a pain to set up
Valve
Index VR Kit
Engadget
88
Critics
7 reviews81
AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE
Users
6 reviews90
AVERAGE USER SCORE
View All Critic & User Reviews
Valve Index VR Kit
- Critic Reviews (7)
- User Reviews (6)
- 81AVERAGE CRITIC SCORE7 ReviewsPC World90The new bar for VR headsetsIt's pricey, but Valve's new virtual reality headset is the one to beat thanks to its crisp display and high field of view.Polygon70Index VR Kit ReviewI was impressed with Index, but often left frustrated at the time commitment and lack of reliability. I hope stability improves in the near future, because Index has the potential to be the most comfortable and effective virtual reality platforms on the market. But none of those innovations mean anything if the system doesn’t work consistently.The Verge80High-powered VR at a high-end priceThe Index isn’t necessarily the “best” VR headset — at least, not for everybody. Unless the price drops in the future, it’s a product for people who play VR games very heavily, use headsets for professional work, or have a very large disposable income. But within those limitations, it delivers high-quality virtual reality with very few compromises.VentureBeat80When only the best will doThe Valve Index is the best head-mounted display that a consumer can buy off the shelf. But it’s probably not the best for you. You need an even more powerful PC to take advantage of the improved resolution and refresh rate. That means you’re still tethered to a computer and to external tracking stations. And let’s not ignore the price. While the Index is better than any other headset, it’s not $400-to-$600 better than them.TechRadar80Valve Index reviewThe Valve Index is the next-generation VR headset we’ve been waiting for, but the Steam VR platform on which the headset depends is still capricious, and painfully hard to troubleshoot. At $999 / £919 (about AU$1,425) for the full package, Valve’s high-powered headset is an expensive portal to the future – and one that we’ll use almost exclusively going forward – but it’s powered by decades-old software.IGN90Valve Index ReviewValve’s Index is a premium VR set for enthusiasts: those of us who have a powerful PC, the space to set up external sensors to cover a large area, and who want to experience the cutting edge of finger-tracking input devices. It justifies its high $1,000 price with a high-quality screen capable of a 144Hz refresh rate and a noticeably wider field of view, as well as controllers that strap to your hands and let you fully open your fingers, which it can track individually. It’s forward-looking right now so early adopters might not see its full potential for a while, but even now the Index is arguably the best way to experience VR.PC Gamer80High-end VR with a luxury priceValve's Index is best VR headset available, but its steep price tag makes it difficult to recommend over the competition.
- 90AVERAGE USER SCORE6 ReviewsTara90December 1, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I have owned a PSVR, HTC Vive (with DAS), HTC Vive Pro, Oculus Go, and Oculus Quest. I have used a Rift S for over an hour. If I could only have one headset it would be Valve Index. I’m a petite female with a small head and tiny IPD (55.5) and the Index is by far the most comfortable headset I have ever worn. I can play in VR for hours without neck strain (Oculus Quest & Vive Pro) or eye strain (Oculus Go, Rift S, Vive Pro). It fits securely and doesn’t wobble around on my head like the PSVR or Rift S. The facial interface distributes pressure evenly and doesn’t mash only into my forehead like on the Oculus Quest. The resolution is gorgeous and what I had hoped VR would be right from the beginning. Screen Door Effect is almost nonexistent, god rays ARE nonexistent, text appears crisp and I am able to comfortably read a lot of it in Fallout 4 VR. The Index (knuckles) controllers are phenomenal and I assume they will become the industry standard. The one thing that is a step backwards for me is the cord. I played a lot with my Vive with an HP Omen X backpack PC and thus had an excellent wireless experience, and I’ve also played a lot with the Oculus Quest, which is honestly a phenomenal headset at its price point and the one I most recommend to casual gamers. But after playing predominantly wirelessly, it is frustrating to trip over a cord, or wrap it around my neck. But all in all, Valve has really done something amazing here, and at the end of the day, this is the most comfortable and enjoyable headset a pinhead like myself could own.French Revolution in the USA90November 29, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I bought an original Vive when it first came out. I refused to buy the pro and waited until hopefully something else came out that was a true upgrade. The Index is definitely an upgrade, but I am unsure if it is the next generation. I got tired of waiting though. I first bought the headgear and a couple months later the controllers. I'm still using the original Vive lighthouses. I, at first, thought I would need to upgrade those because I was getting some issues with one of the Vive controllers, but that disappeared with the Index controllers. I am very happy with the upgrade in performance. I do wish the controllers were actually a bit heavier. I also have issues with Beatsaber. The grips force your hands into a stiff position. I have to hold the controllers in an odd way to be competitive. Since Facebook now owns the game, they will likely destroy all the mods that make it a repeat play anyway. The real issue is high end games designed for VR. I've mostly been playing rhythm games. I get to play games and exercise. AAA games seem to be on the horizon though. I wear glasses and have to adjust them from the side a lot when putting the headpiece on. It tends to push glasses right to my face on one side. Easily fixed, but annoying. There could have been a bit more room. I didn't have this problem with the Vive. Admittedly, I bought new padding for the Vive and pulled it as far out as possible. This isn't an option with the Index. Then there is the wire..... I am not buying a Quest, but it is attractive. I wish I could play a game like Holopoint without tripping on a cord. I will pray to the 5g gods. Over-all I think it is probably the best recreational VR headset on the market. (not counting those 5 grand super headsets)Jonathan90November 28, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!I love the controllers they are the next level of vr. It is kinda like watching someone on horse and buggy when your in a super car and think thats cute and fly past them. The headset is also great. The screen door effect is almost gone but when playing the only downside is the cord but only a matter of time till thats gone.Blam90November 28, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!People often make comments about the Valve Index like: “But is it really worth the $600 more than the Rift s just for a slightly larger field of view?” But thats not really seeing it for all that it is. I first tried 6dof VR a few years ago when I bought my kids the PSVR for christmas. The resolution was low and the images fuzzy but even then I could see the potential of what it would be like in the future. Now first off lets fill in some background of my experience with VR in the years since as a basis for comparison.I needed a newer pc anyways so I asked my wife what she thought about getting one that was VR ready... She said to go for it! After buying the pc I proceeded to check out the pc VR headset options. My local BestBuy had an Oculus Rift demo station setup on the weekends so I went in with my wife to check it out. We both tried the demo for Robo recall which was great however, the screen door effect seemed worse than the PSVR (and in hindsight the rep didn’t even have us adjust the ipd slider so it had to have been waaay off for at least one of us as my ipd is almost 10mm wider than my wife’s since I’m a big guy at 6’4” tall). The Rift didn’t seem like it was the upgrade I was looking for.Then I heard about the Vive Pro and eagerly awaited it’s release... Only to find out that it was $800 JUST FOR THE HEASET with nothing else included. So when the Samsung Odyssey went on sale for $399 I pounced. The comfort and clarity on that headset was good as well as the FOV which I measured at 103H X 103V using ROV tool in Steam VR. After that the Samsung Odyssey + came out and went on sale for $299 for Black Friday so I got it. The fit and comfort wasn’t as good and the lenses seemed to have a smaller sweet spot but it pretty much did away with the SDE.The subpar tracking and hit and miss compatibility and performance with games (most Oculus games would run really jittery and stuttery even though my pc was more than powerful enough) eventually led me to sell the WMR headsets and get an Oculus Rift S. The comfort, performance, controller tracking, lenses, screen detail and clarity were the best I had seen but the black levels were lacking, the build quality of the hmd and controllers isn’t great, my ipd is just a touch high for me to ever feel quite right, the built in audio sucks and the FOV was the worst I had ever seen (The measurement I got in ROV was 90H X 90V) with the view leaving me feeling pretty boxed in. Overall the Rift S is a pretty good value and the headset I would recommend if you are on a budget. Finally we can talk about the Valve Index. If you take all of the improvements that the Index has over the Rift S and divide them by the $600 more that it costs, you get $67... So would I pay $600 just for the larger FOV (I measured at 113H X 103V) alone? No... But I would happily pay $67 for it. So what are the 9 improvements that you get for $67 each? 1. Way better build quality=$672. Far more advanced (finger tracking) and better built controllers=$673. Large FOV=$674. Clarity across the entire FOV rather than blurring towards the sides=$675. The absolute BEST microphone and speaker audio available on ANY headset period=$676. The best tracking you can get using the Valve 2.0 Lighthouses=$677. The possibility for future upgrades by utilizing the frunk=$678. Higher resolution with better black levels, color pop and contrast=$679. The final upgrade you get?.. wait for it.. The ability to run at 80, 90, 120, or even 144hz=$6710. Just for fun lets add 1 more: a free copy of the most anticipated VR game, Half-Life Alyx.So in summary, is it worth the extra money to get the Valve Index if you are really into vr and you can afford it? Heck yeah! If you can’t justify the expense, the Rift S offers a good experience and is a good value for money and don’t forget about Oculus Quest Link which allows you to play pc vr games on your quest via a usb 3 cable (which I am happy to report works surprisingly well).Etienne90November 28, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Having owned the Index since July 2019, I’ve been using the device 2-3 times a week ever since. What I like the most:• visual clarity • wider field of view • innovative controllers and unique audio solutionWhat I like the least:• lack of Oled displays for deeper black levels• occasional glare • unsupported games which you must manually configure to work properlyOverall, I’m very happy with my purchase and recommend it highly to anyone who wants the best VR experience currently available.Max90June 29, 2019Feedback submitted!Unable to submit feedback!Been a VR enthusiast since the Touch controllers came out. Used just about every headset and this is by far the best one I've had. The display is crisp and has practically no SDE even compared to Odyssey+ and Vive Pro. Super comfortable and secure. Hand tracking is fantastic, thanks to Valve's decision to remain externally tracked instead of doing inside-out like everyone else.Only downsides are cost (obviously) and finger tracking, which for me was a bit hit-and-miss. Still, getting to flip the bird half the time is better than not at all. Worth every penny.
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