One of the biggest points against any sort of augmented reality, mixed reality, or virtual reality is that the headsets are just too big and bulky. “Once they’re just like wearing a pair of glasses,” people will often say, “then I’ll be more interested.” Well, the latest iteration of Viture’s virtual display glasses, the Viture Pro XR, are about the closest I’ve seen a device get to that point.
True to its name, the Viture Pro XR is an XR or “mixed reality” headset that works as a virtual display. While it’s not an all-in-one device like the Apple Vision Pro, you can hook up the Viture Pro XR to a wide range of devices and use it as a monitor for office work, a personal home theater for watching movies or YouTube, or a giant screen for gaming. The screen reaches up to 1080p resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. Best of all, they look like a chunky pair of sunglasses. While you won’t be mistaking these for a pair of Ray-Bans, they nonetheless sport a design that looks unmistakably like sunglasses–ones that just project a giant screen in both lenses.
We tested the Viture Pro XR over the last few weeks, specifically to determine its viability for gaming. After several sessions across multiple games and consoles, it’s fair to say the Viture Pro XR lives up to its promise as an affordable virtual display–once everything is set up and the glasses are finally on your head, the experience is largely great. But, as you’ll see, it can take some trial and error get to that point.
Setup
Depending on which devices you use the Viture Pro XR glasses with, the setup is either super simple, or annoyingly cumbersome.
The core components are simple enough to get together–the glasses attach to whatever external devices you’re watching via a USB-C cable that secures magnetically to the end of the right arm of the glasses, attaching just above the ear. If you’re using the glasses with a device that supports DisplayPort over USB-C–such as a Steam Deck, iPhone 15, and select laptops–this is all you need to connect the two. However, desktop PCs and consoles like the PS5 or Xbox will require an additional HDMI adapter, and the Switch needs and entire separate battery pack before you can use the glasses with it–and these extra dongles and attachments require separate purchases on top of the Viture Pro XR’s normal $450 price tag.
Regardless of which devices you’re connected to, you will need to be seated relatively close to it since the Viture Pro XR uses a hardwired USB-C connection, and the included cable is only four feet long. This is less of an issue when using it with a portable device like a Steam Deck, Switch, smartphone, or laptop since those devices are going to be kept nearby anyway. Using it with a console or desktop PC, however, is more cumbersome. For example, you won’t be able to sit back on your couch and play PS5 from across the room. You’ll need to be seated right next to it for the cable to reach.
Again, the spacing considerations are less of an issue if you’re using a nearby portable device or seated at a desk next to your PC, but it’s the first or several small limitations that hamper the Viture Pro XR’s viability for many users.
Once the Viture Pro XR glasses are connected to your PC, smartphone, or console, you’ll next need to adjust the fit and focus to match your head and eyes. While the glasses themselves are somewhat bulky–no one is going to mistake these for a real pair of sunglasses–they are light enough to stay comfortable for longer play sessions. The trick is making sure you find the right fit for the nose rest. The glasses come with multiple nose rest shapes and sizes, and it’s very quick and easy to swap them out. Unfortunately, in my case, I never quite found the “perfect” option for my face since different bits rest at different points on your nose, which affects the viewing angle of the screens inside the lenses. The issue was compounded by my ears being drastically uneven on the sides of my head, so glasses were always slightly askew or uncomfortable–which is a problem I encounter with all glasses. Others will likely find them much more comfortable to wear–one my colleagues with evenly aligned ears found them to be quite comfy–and I appreciate that users get multiple nose rest options out of the box. I do wish there were more customization options like extendable/retractable arm lengths and pivot points for folks like me with uneven ears.
On the other hand, dialing in the focus on the screens themselves was a cinch. There is a keystone dial on top of each lens that you turn to adjust the focus. I don’t wear glasses in my daily life, so there wasn’t much adjustment needed, but there seems to be a decent range to help folks match their eyesight.
Viewing experience
As you can see, depending on which devices you use them with, it can take a bit to get the Viture Pro XR set up and ready. But once you finally have them on and are playing a game, the experience is excellent–mostly.
The screens themselves are bright and clear, delivering 1080p picture quality at just the right display size to keep the picture crisp. One thing to note is that there’s a noticeable yellow tint to the picture, which is by design to help reduce eye strain. This does affect the colors, but it isn’t detrimental. For my part, I tested them on Steam Deck and PS5, and I found the picture quality to be excellent. Another GameSpot editor tested them on Xbox Series X and experienced comparable performance to the PS5. My biggest concern was the possibility of input lag, but I was able to play multiple hours of Final Fantasy XVI, Elden Ring, and Returnal without any issues. However, the Steam Deck offered the best experience. The setup is mostly plug-and-play–no additional dongles needed– through you’ll need to download and install the official Viture XR Steam Deck plugin first. Best of all, you can play directly with the Steam Deck’s handheld controls. Moreso than any device we tested the glasses with, the Viture Pro XR feels best as an accompaniment for Steam Deck.
If you’re looking for a way to play PS5, PC, Xbox Series X|S, or Steam Deck games while someone else is using the TV and you don’t want to be stuck with a tiny screen, the Viture Pro XR is a great solution. The same cannot be said for the Nintendo Switch, unfortunately.
While the experience on Switch ultimately became just as smooth as the other platforms, it didn’t start out that way. On my initial tests, almost every Switch game experienced performance dips when connected to the Viture Pro XR–that is, until I updated my Switch’s firmware a few days later and the performance was suddenly improved. Nowhere in the setup manual or other documentation does Viture mention the Switch firmware needs to be updated for them to work properly, and there’s nothing within the latest patch notes to indicate issues specific to the glasses were part of the update, so it’s possible such issues could crop up again later. Nevertheless, even though the glasses eventually worked as intended on the Switch, I still found them less enjoyable to use with Nintendo’s handheld due to the cumbersome extra setup required. You’ll need to connect the undocked Switch to a separate battery pack via USB-C. Both devices are then secured with a plastic case (that’s also surprisingly difficult to get the Switch out of). Finally, the glasses are then plugged into the battery case, which charges both the glasses and the Switch while in use. You can only play with detached Joy-Con controllers, but that’s actually not much of an issue since the Switch and portable battery combo is heavy. Still, the lack of a true handheld mode like Steam Deck was a letdown.
While I have reservations about the Viture Pro XR’s user experience on Switch, the other platforms were much more enjoyable, especially Steam Deck. Nevertheless, there are some smaller quibbles worth mentioning. Most notable is the field of view.
The Viture Pro XR’s virtual screens are surprisingly big, and while that is great for immersion, the experience is hampered somewhat because–just like with a regular pair of sunglasses–your peripheral surroundings are always visible while wearing the glasses. Even worse, at some viewing angles, the projected screens inside the glasses can also appear bigger than what’s visible in the lenses. Expect to try out multiple nose rests to find the proper viewing angle, but if parts of the screen aren’t visible even after finding the right nose piece, you can also adjust the screen display area in your console or PC’s settings to make them fit.
I also ran into a strange issue with the glasses’ transparency toggle. The left arm of the glasses includes brightness controls and a button to toggle the glasses’ transparency, letting you see through the glasses or block out whatever is directly in front of you with a single press. However, when two pairs of glasses were connected to a device at once–which Viture lists as a standard feature of the Pro XR–the screens would freeze and glitch out with static and image artifacts for a few seconds whenever one of the glasses’ transparency buttons were toggled. While it’s a very specific issue that wouldn’t necessarily affect the watching experience unless one of the two people were constantly changing the transparency setting, it’s still a notable glitch.
While those issues did impact the viewing experience, the Viture Pro XR’s baseline visual quality is excellent and worked as intended most of the time. The same is also true of the Viture Pro XR’s audio quality. In fact, I would say the audio is what I was most impressed with overall. I never ran into any issues, and while I wouldn’t say the built-in open-back speakers can stack up to a good pair of headphones or a high-end gaming headset, they were clear and loud enough to do justice to Elden Ring boss fights. Even better, despite being external speakers, they have surprisingly minimal noise bleed; while I was hearing Bayle the Dread’s bombastic boss theme, my wife, sitting just a few feet away, said she could barely tell any sound was playing at all.
And I think that example perfectly describes the Viture Pro XR: When they work, they’re great, but the handful of quirks can quickly add up and can limit their usability. That’s true of all AR, VR, or XR devices these days, and this is no exception.
Viture Pro XR vs. Viture One XR
The Viture Pro XR are just the latest version of the company’s XR sunglasses. The previously released Viture One XR and One Lite models are also available, and while the Pro XR eclipses both in terms of specs, they are still similar enough that some users may be wondering whether the Pro XR’s higher cost are worth it. The biggest difference is the screens. The XR’s screen is larger and brighter, with a wider field of view and higher refresh rate. However, since it’s larger, the pixel density is slightly lower on the Pro than the One. While that likely won’t be a dealbreaker for most people, it’s still worth noting. Another major difference is the that the One and One Lite lack the electromagnetic film on the lenses, which means you need to use physical lens covers to block external light. The Lite also uses a standard USB connection behind the right ear, rather than the proprietary magnetic connectors on the Pro and One.
Beyond physical design and specs, the other difference is device compatibility. The Pro XR and One support the same list of devices–including gaming consoles–while the One Lite only works with PCs, laptops, smartphones, Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and Lenovo Go.
Conclusion
The Viture Pro XR achieves what it sets out to do, the technology is sound, and it works great if it fits into your setup and lifestyle–the problem is that the Viture Pro XR’s use case feels extremely niche right now, especially given the setup hurdles and uneven device support. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for a pair of XR glasses for virtual computing or privacy reasons–and you can work around its quirks–the Viture Pro XR glasses are great once you have them on and are easily one of the most affordable XR displays out there.
Viture provided a product sample for the purpose of this review.
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