Sony HMZ-T2

Post by **DH1900** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 5:41 am

I was on the phone to Sony this morning, asking about HMZ-T1 availability and the salesman said that the reason they are out of stock is that they'll soon be announcing the HMZ-T2. He said that he couldn't discuss any of the details or the exact time frame (he said to check over the "next few weeks") but there is certainly going to be an update to the T1. Whether this will be cosmetic, hardware or both isn't clear.

Post by **cybereality** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:06 pm

This sounds promising, but I almost don't care considering the Rift is coming soon.

Post by **love2scoot** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 8:57 pm

These do have different usage models though. As a 1st person gaming interface the Rift will be untouchable, however the incredible FOV does not make it optimized for video (until we get a huge resolution jump so we can soft matte). An HMZ-T2 could be great for the HMD market (and therefore VR market), which is never a bad thing.

Post by **bobv5** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:01 pm

Also for other types of games. I wouldn't even attempt a flight sim with Rift, but HMZ would work quite well I expect.

Post by **cybereality** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:28 pm

Yeah, that's true. Also the Sony would be a lot better for video. Personally I think 720P is good enough for now, would like a slightly higher FOV though.

Post by **STRZ** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 10:04 pm

I don't think that they change the FOV, more than 45° is not very suited for video becase the customers could complain about seeing the edges of the screen blurred, The usual customer would think that this is a device fault instead of a limitation of their vision.

Post by **pierreye** » Mon Aug 06, 2012 11:26 pm

An interchangeable lens that can adjust FOV from 50 to 90 degrees would be great. This will give lots of flexibility depends on the needs. I would be happy for T2 that support 1080p and 60 degrees FOV. Anyway, I'm getting RIFT too to try out high FOV gaming.

Post by **EdZ** » Tue Aug 07, 2012 2:20 am

It could be as simple as an update to the controller box to make it cheaper to manufacture. I can't imagine they could eliminate the box entirely (then you'd have to run both a user-supplied who-knows-how-chunky HDMI lead and a separate power lead to the HMD), but if they can cut down manufacturing costs they can drop the price (of if the current HMZ is sold at a loss, keep the same price and reduce their loss). Maybe they're also taking the opportunity to tie it into the Playstation branding, similar to their PS3 + stereo TV bundle. An outside chance would be including illuminated markers in the casing to make it move-compatible for head tracking while gaming.

bobv5 wrote:Also for other types of games. I wouldn't even attempt a flight sim with Rift, but HMZ would work quite well I expect.

Really? Flight sims (of the more arcade variety, admittedly) are one of the first things I want to try with the RIFT.

Post by **bobv5** » Tue Aug 07, 2012 7:14 am

Well, I might try the microlight in fsx, what I meant is the planes with lots of instruments in. What are you planning on trying?

Maybe they will listen to JC and sort the firmware out. I imagine they will keep using the same displays, maybe slighty change the lenses to reduce blur. Probably the same or slightly smaller fov to achive this.

Post by **suckmysound** » Tue Aug 07, 2012 9:10 am

DH1900 wrote:I was on the phone to Sony this morning, asking about HMZ-T1 availability and the salesman said that the reason they are out of stock is that they'll soon be announcing the HMZ-T2. He said that he couldn't discuss any of the details or the exact time frame (he said to check over the "next few weeks") but there is certainly going to be an update to the T1. Whether this will be cosmetic, hardware or both isn't clear.

the rift is great but the only issue being the resolution!
why cannot the single panel being used , be upgraded to 1080p or higher in Rift - that 'd make it great ?
Also the user 'selectable' fov from 45 to 90[sensics have that on a few models] be incorporated then the rift will be the 'killer' HMD.

Sony with HMZ-T2 is a great news ! my hopes are pinned on hmz only[apart from rift]- as st1080 reviews generated so far are disappointing to say the least!
st1080 looks great on paper but i guess in practical terms it has everything wrong less portability - bad panels , immature optics and a design that needs a lot of fine-tuning .

An updated HMZ with better [comfortable,light weight] design and optics with 'reduced' hardware and added portability will give VR a great push.
i am holding back from buying hmz as despite it being the best, mature headset - it still has a lot to improve on to be in the mainstream as 'True video accessory'.

i hope the T2 will be portable in glasses style with 1080p OLEDs and comfortable fit and improved optics.anything above fov 40 is welcome for me.

best of luck Sony.

Post by **CyberVillain** » Sun Aug 12, 2012 1:27 pm

I hope the biggest change is the design of the casing

Post by **cybereality** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:53 pm

Yeah, how could I forget ergonomics!!!!!!

Post by **cybereality** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:03 am

Seems the specs are pretty much the same as the old HMZ but claims to be more comfortable.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/29/sony ... er-at-ifa/

The all-new, totally enhanced cinema and gaming experience–the Personal 3D Viewer

29 August 2012
Sharper display, improved sound and superior comfort with the new HMZ-T2
· Play 2D & 3D movies and games in vivid High Definition
· Enjoy smooth, comfortable viewing with bright, clear OLED screens and a lighter, more adjustable headset
· Get the full atmosphere with virtual 5.1 surround sound

Totally immersive gaming and movies
Now even more light and comfortable, the all-new Personal 3D Viewer from Sony is a head-mounted, High Definition 2D and 3D personal display with virtual 5.1 surround sound. It's perfect for movies and gaming, with twin OLED screens that display vivid, super-sharp images (with zero cross-talk interference) to absorb you in a truly personal experience.

Clear, smooth, cinematic 3D viewing
The Personal 3D Viewer features dedicated, high response Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) screens for each eye, which reproduces deep, vivid colour tones with sharp contrast and no blurring. And with a 45° field of vision, you'll feel completely immersed in a widescreen cinema experience.

The HMZ-T2 also has a set of detachable and adjustable light shields for greater privacy and total involvement in your viewing experience. These flexible light shields simply clip on or off the Personal 3D Viewer, and are completely unobtrusive to the headset comfort and design.

Viewing perfection for film fans or gamers
The Personal 3D Viewer is made for both film enthusiasts and solid gamers. 24p True Cinema mode shows films exactly as the director intended for the big screen, at 24 frames per second. Or, if you're a keen gamer, select the Clear mode for smooth fast-action sequences. Whatever you select, Auto Colour Temperature adjustment gradually lowers image tone intensity from blue to red hues so that you can watch or play your favourite movies/games comfortably for longer hours.

Lose yourself in 5.1 surround sound
With a choice of sound modes, the Personal 3D Viewer features Virtualphones™ technology to create a 360º natural sound field, just as though you're listening to true 5.1 channel surround sound. There's also Harmonic Equalizer technology built in, which restores audio compression losses in the digital waveform for a fuller, more spacious sound.

Lighter and more adjustable for wearing comfort
Weighing just 330g, the Personal 3D Viewer is 20% lighter than previous models, with greater options for wearing comfort. It has a highly adjustable headband and forehead support for a secure, gentle fit with positional screen lenses for relaxed and clear 3D viewing. You can also use your own favourite wired or wireless headphones or inner-ear phones to enjoy immersive surround sound.

"Everything about the HMZ-T2 Personal 3D Viewer is designed for comfort and total immersion," says Naoto Yoshioka, Home Audio Video Senior Product Manager at Sony Europe, "so once you're watching a film or playing a game, you're totally absorbed in the thrilling action and forget you're even wearing the headset."

Notes to editors

HMZ-T2Personal 3D Viewer

Your personal, cinematic home entertainment experience

· Immersive Full HD 2D and 3D – enjoy a 45° full cinematic widescreen picture
· Smooth 3D viewing – dedicated, high response OLED screens for each eye smoothly display 2D and 3D images without the blurring of image crosstalk
· Virtual 5.1 channel sound – crisp, clear 360º audio with ambient sound, also Harmonic Equalizer audio enhancement and a choice of listening modes
· Vivid clarity and high contrast picture – a TruBlack display creates a clear visual experience
· Watch comfortably for hours – Auto Colour Temperature adjustment lowers image tone intensity for longer play with less eye fatigue
· Adjustable supports for enhanced performance - for optimum comfort, headband and forehead supports are fully adaptable, with adjustable screen lenses for precise 3D viewing
· Use your favourite headphones– make it more personal by using your own wired or wireless headphones or inner-ear phones
· Detachable light shields etacable lwersg mode you select, you'dset[stipeirnce for different kinds of play. for greater privacy– fully detachable and adjustable light shields for total involvement in your viewing experience
· Wireless remote controls– adjust sound and vision, and access the menu wirelessly without breaking from the action
· Play while others watch TV – a dual output switcher means other people can watch TV or films while the wearer plays games (or the other way around)

Post by **brantlew** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:13 am

You gotta be kidding me. After all the uproar about comfort with the previous model and they are still pretty much using the same form factor. Fail.

Post by **cybereality** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 10:56 am

Yeah, its really sad they couldn't have come up with a better design. Namely, no cushions for the nose, and no over the head support. Maybe an elastic band instead of those cheap plastic ones. All in all a missed opportunity for Sony. At least the headphones look better quality, I'll give them that.

Post by **DH1900** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 11:14 am

But what about the control box? If Sony drop their VCR sized one in favour of a small portable one then SMD will be getting an order cancellation.

Post by **rmcclelland** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 11:14 am

Press release is out for the Sony HMZ-T2 coinciding with IFA.
http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/29/sony ... er-at-ifa/

Rift definitely makes this less exciting, but it sounds like an good step anyway. Ergonomics still look terrible. Did they even read the AvsForum owners thread?

Post by **DH1900** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 12:04 pm

Found this, didn't think to look on Sony's website:
http://www.sony.co.uk/product/head-moun ... lay/hmz-t2
What a letdown, still runs on mains voltage, still 720p. The only interesting addition is that it seems to shift the colour temperature from warm to cold over time to prevent eye fatigue and that you can now use wired and wireless headphones. Also, the Sony representative said it probably goes on sale at the end of October with pre-orders at the start of October, if anyone actually wants this.

Post by **cybereality** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 12:25 pm

Sorry, didn't realize there was already a thread so I merged them.

Post by **Namielus** » Wed Aug 29, 2012 7:48 pm

I see they use the term "total immersion" liberally lol

Post by **coresnake** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 1:43 am

They really do have their heads up their own asses with this. The worst part is I've seen people on other forums (Neogaf et al) say stuff like 'I'm choosing the T2 over the Rift because the T2 works with everything'. Talk about poor decision making.

Post by **WiredEarp** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 5:39 am

Talk about poor decision making.

Not really... most of those people just want to watch movies, not do VR. They dont even know what VR is. I really don't care to educate them personally, they will learn soon enough, along with everyone else.

Post by **Steinsholt** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 6:49 am

bobv5 wrote:Also for other types of games. I wouldn't even attempt a flight sim with Rift, but HMZ would work quite well I expect.

Why is that?

A flightsim with a virtual cockpit (Rift), and leap motion to press buttons and switches would be just perfect!

Post by **cybereality** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 10:27 am

coresnake wrote:The worst part is I've seen people on other forums (Neogaf et al) say stuff like 'I'm choosing the T2 over the Rift because the T2 works with everything'. Talk about poor decision making.

Thats actually a valid point. Software support for the Rift is nowhere close to what works on the Sony.

Post by **benz145** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 10:35 am

Sony's press release called the HMZ-T2 "sharper", "all new", and "totally enhanced". How silly.

Post by **cybereality** » Thu Aug 30, 2012 10:53 am

Not sure what incentive Sony had for refreshing a product so soon without really any benefit. Unless they can make them for cheaper I don't really see the point.

Post by **Haldir** » Fri Aug 31, 2012 12:41 am

It apparently still has no diopter correction

Post by **CyberVillain** » Mon Sep 03, 2012 1:47 am

I'm one of those that will wait to a version of the RIFT that has standard driver support, I play too many different games and dont have time to get each and every one of them to work with the RIFT.

So thats a valid point from my point of view, but still its very sad that Sony didn't listen to their consumers :/

Post by **pierreye** » Mon Sep 03, 2012 6:06 pm

The new T2 just look like my castrated T1 HMD mod. Not much improvement. The auto temp definitely not in my "want" list.

Post by **blzd1** » Sun Sep 09, 2012 9:36 am

If they update annually, and decrease the weight by 20% year after year, I'm thinking I may get one around 2015. By then they should be light enough to be comfortable. I tried the T1 on in the store, and it was so heavy. I'm wondering if anyone else has seen the mark it can leave on your forehead after prolonged use.

Post by **cybereality** » Sun Sep 09, 2012 9:46 am

Yes, I get a red mark on my nose after wearing the thing for an hour. Really horrible design.

Post by **PalmerTech** » Sun Sep 09, 2012 12:54 pm

blzd1 wrote:If they update annually, and decrease the weight by 20% year after year, I'm thinking I may get one around 2015. By then they should be light enough to be comfortable. I tried the T1 on in the store, and it was so heavy. I'm wondering if anyone else has seen the mark it can leave on your forehead after prolonged use.

I would not be so sure. The 20% weight loss is not due to any kind of technological advancement or weight saving techniques, it all comes from the fact that they removed the headphones and related mounting hardware.

Post by **blzd1** » Sun Sep 09, 2012 5:15 pm

Really? While it may be true that the headphones take some weight off, it appears at a glance that there has been weight taken off of the front end of the display. It doesn't extend quite so far out as the previous version and looks flatter. There has to be some enhancement over the T1, otherwise why would anyone upgrade?

Even so, I still say that Sony should have made it 1080p this time. I guess technology hasn't advanced that much in the previous year to make significant changes. I'm assuming another model will be out next year around this time as well. I remain optomistic that things will only improve with this product if people continue to support it.

Post by **pilzbefall** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 5:06 pm

for the HMZ-T3 I expect models with new colors...lol

Post by **brantlew** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 10:39 pm

For what it's worth here is a short review of the HMZ-T2. Sounds a bit better than the T1. Most importantly - the focusing seems to be improved somewhat. A year ago it would have been on my Christmas list, but this year...meh.

Alright, a very short review after playing around with it for about 30 minutes. Once I spend more time with it I shall make a much better review, and a video review possibly as well. But for now this will help those that can't wait!
I have the HMZ-T1 so I will be comparing it to this.

Outa the box the T-2 is noticeably smaller and much lighter than the T-1, when I picked it up I was surprised. Since I had my T-1 connected up, I decided to first try the T-2 on my T-1's pass through box. That didn't work at all, so pulled out the pass through and connected it up. One thing I noticed right away is the back straps are much better quality. Instead of using little hooks to connect, they adjust using sliders kinda like a zip tie. So much easier and feel a bit stronger also. Only down side to this is my cushion pads will not work on the T-2 so I have to make some that will. Once on your head the T-2 feels much better than the T-1, so much lighter and less pain. However, still rest on your nose and causes a little pain just not as bad. Maybe after fooling with it some more I can adjust the straps better to fix this. But so far I think I may need to design some pads for this one as well to help myself and others. The forehead pad is much bigger but still seems to push against your forehead, yes even after 30 minutes I had a red spot.

It goes through about the same info on startup as the T-1, select language and blah blah...

I slapped in Resident Evil Afterlife and powered up the T-2, a bit confusing because the buttons are in different areas now. I am so used to the T-1.

I plugged in my Denon AH-D510 headphones and started watching. At first the sound had to much bass and sounded bad. So I went to the menu and amazingly you can actually adjust if you are using inner headphones or outer! I chose outer and that made a world of difference. After fooling with the bass, treble and choosing cinema mode it sounded the way I wanted it. Like a damn IMAX in my ears!eek.gif In short, using your own headphones kicks ass and I love it much better than the T-1's built in crappy headphones.

After this I had to adjust the screen for my eyes. This was WAY more eaasier than the old T-1, since you can adjust both eyes independently. After doing this, I can report I got a 100% FULL SCREEN view with no blurry edges at all... A perfect picture, unlike the T-1 which was near impossible to do.
I sit back on my couch, cranked the volume and watched about 20 minutes of Resident evil Afterlife and truly felt I was in an IMAX, only no people there to bother me.... Just me and my super big screen, it felt great.

I haven't messed with picture settings, but looks like you can do more than the T-1, I noticed a noise reduction setting in the menu but it was not selecttable yet.. Not sure why?! It also has a few other modes I'll have to try out later. Have not tried games yet or lag, but I have a feeling it may be better.

More to come when I get time, but in short this is actually a good improvement over the T-1 as far as I can tell so far.biggrin.gif

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1426822/sony- ... t_22488037

Post by **cybereality** » Fri Oct 19, 2012 5:52 pm

Thanks for posting this. Sounds like a marginal improvement but still no match for the Rift (at least for VR).

Post by **avo** » Wed Oct 24, 2012 7:47 pm

Just received my set. Top rating for T2's capability in 3D; no more lumen loss, color shift and flicker compared to more conventional 3D display tech.

Post by **suckmysound** » Sun Dec 02, 2012 10:28 pm

Has anybody tested T2 with AMD laptops running tridef 3D on their HD3D capable APUs ?
I believe nvidia 3D vision is more mature than HD3D so likewise 3D using nvidia 3D vision 'd be better than that of HD3D from AMD ?

Any ideas ?

Post by **cybereality** » Sun Dec 02, 2012 10:38 pm

It should technically work, but I wonder how powerful those APUs are. Probably not that greatest experience.

Post by **Starftr** » Tue Dec 11, 2012 6:05 pm

New here, but could someone provide me the info on where to purchase the new HMZ-T2 by sony. and if it's outside of the US what will be needed to be compatible here.