When Pimax rolled out the details of their upcoming Dream Air headset, VR enthusiasts were left buzzing with curiosity. We took those burning questions straight to the company’s doors and managed to glean some insight into what they’ve been working on, including a sneak peek at early prototypes, a complete spec rundown, and updates on other projects that are yet to see the light of day.
Pimax is no stranger to the VR headset game, with quite a few years under their belt. However, they are not without their critics, who often point to issues like lack of polish, unclear strategic direction, and the habit of announcing new gadgets before fulfilling promises on previous ones.
The buzz around their latest headset, the compact Dream Air, brought these concerns back into the spotlight. Naturally, we asked the company directly how, this time, they plan to deliver on their promises. Here’s what they told us, along with images of the Dream Air prototypes, a deep dive into its specs, and an update on other still-pending products.
Q: How confident is Pimax that the Dream Air will be ready and shipped in significant numbers by May 2025?
A: We’ve literally been working on the Crystal Super micro-OLED and the Dream Air for over a year now inside the company. Essentially, they’re largely the same headset. We’ve nailed down a fully functional optical engine and feel that the time left until May is sufficient to complete everything else, following a similar development timeline as the Crystal Super from the previous year.
The Dream Air shares its optical engine solution with the Crystal Super and borrows much of its core tech, albeit in a new, more compact design. A big hurdle remains securing the supply of micro-OLED panels and potentially the ringless controllers. We suspect the initial headset batches might ship with our standard ringed controllers, which can later be swapped for the ringless variety.
We’re targeting the shipment of around 200 to 300 headsets come May, which also explains why announcing the headset now was necessary, for several reasons explained below.
Q: What’s the rush to announce the headset right after the Super? And what’s the reason for already accepting pre-orders?
A: There are several factors at play. Announcing the Dream Air now is strategic; we didn’t want to drop this news after the Super ships and leave users wishing they’d chosen this alternative. We’re already seeing such comments in our Discord community. Buyers can still switch their pre-orders from the Super to the Dream Air if they choose to do so.
Another key reason is the high demand for micro-OLED panels, which significantly outpaces supply. Placing an order means facing long lead times, so gauging headset demand is crucial to planning our production pipeline. Pre-orders help us estimate required volumes and initiate orders for these panels, set for delivery in May. Orders need to be placed by early January, as suppliers observe Chinese New Year holidays.
Pimax isn’t the only one wrestling with micro-OLED supply challenges—our competitors face similar hurdles, which is why many don’t offer refundable pre-orders. But we do allow our pre-orders to be refundable before shipping, and there’s a $1 reservation option in place, along with a trade-in window once the headsets arrive.
Q: What do you say to those who believe Pimax should focus on fewer products?
A: We’re passionate about being a multi-SKU company because the VR headset market is rapidly diversifying. Our mission is to deliver top-tier experiences tailored to different needs, hence the Crystal line and the new Dream line.
All our headsets share significant technical underpinnings—from software to hardware—all aimed at PCVR. We’ve learned vital lessons from past ventures, like the non-PCVR Portal. Pimax boasts nine years of expertise in VR headset creation; we run two R&D offices and are setting up a second assembly line to support this multi-SKU push.
By leveraging shared technology, we channel more resources into innovations that benefit our entire lineup. This strategy helps avoid giant sales spikes concentrated in a single part of the year, smoothing out production and supply chain hurdles (we handle manufacturing in our factory with our dedicated team). Big peaks are notoriously bad for keeping efficiency in check.
Q: Any new headsets on the horizon from Pimax?
A: We’re planning to update some older models, but no upcoming headsets will surpass the Dream Air and Crystal Super in terms of specs—except for the much-anticipated 12K model.
Q: How far along is the Dream Air design? Are the announcement renderings mockups or near-final designs? Is a functional prototype available?
A: We have completed much of the headset’s internal design, and we’re actively testing a fully operational optical engine. Software-wise, it mirrors the Crystal Super, incorporating things like SLAM tracking, eye and hand tracking, and all Pimax Play settings.
Externally, we’re using the Crystal Super’s chassis for trialing the micro-OLED optical engine while we work on Dream Air’s unique housing.
Here’s a peek at two prototypes we crafted during development.
Newer:
Older:
Update (December 31st, 2024): Earlier, the prototype images were mislabeled; this has now been corrected.
Q: Will Cobb, the standalone module for Dream Air, be released in 2025?
A: We don’t have a precise ETA for Cobb yet. It’s intended as an add-on for the Dream Air, and there are additional features we still plan to elaborate on following our earlier Frontier announcement.
Q: What safeguards exist to prevent the auto-tightening head strap from becoming a hazard if it malfunctions?
A: The strap is designed to be robust enough to support the lightweight headset but gentle enough to avoid causing harm. The internal straps use elastic rubber, a technology mirrored in self-tightening shoes like Nike’s Auto Adapt.
Q: Can the head straps be replaced, and how?
A: Indeed, the head strap can be detached at the stems for easy replacement.
Q: Will we possibly see the headset utilizing HorizonOS or AndroidXR in the future?
There are no such plans. Internally, it’s identical to the Crystal Super’s micro-OLED optical engine, functioning solely as a PC VR headset through Pimax Play, with OpenXR/OpenVR runtime, and of course with SteamVR.
Pimax also shared with us the detailed specs of the headset, which are as follows:
Pimax Dream Air Specs
Visuals
- Display: 2 × micro-OLED, 100% DCI-P3 colors
- Resolution per-eye: 13MP (3,840 × 3,552)
- Pixels per-degree: Unknown
- Max refresh rate: 90Hz
- Optics: Pancake
- Field-of-view: 102°H
- Pass-through view: Black & white
- Optical adjustments: Continuous IPD (automatic), prescription lenses (optional)
- IPD adjustment range: 58–72mm
Input & Output
- Connectors: DP 1.4 (PC) to USB-C (headset), 1 × USB-C accessory port
- Input: Dream Air controllers (rechargeable battery), hand-tracking
- Audio: In-headstrap speakers
- Microphone: Dual-microphone
- Weight: 200g
Sensing
- Headset-tracking: Inside-out (no external beacons), SteamVR Tracking (optional)
- Controller-tracking: Headset-tracked (line-of-sight needed)
- Eye-tracking: Yes
- Expression-tracking: No
- On-board cameras: 4 for tracking, 2 for passthrough
- Depth-sensor: No
Price
- MSRP: $1,900
Pimax Product Shipping Update
Q: Could you provide the latest on shipping times for unreleased Pimax products?
A: Expect the Crystal Super to be featured at CES 2025, particularly the QLED 57 PPD optical engine, shipping by the end of January. The 50 PPD and micro-OLED optical engines are close to completion and will roll out in March and April, respectively.
The Crystal Light model that doesn’t include dimming will drop in June 2025, further driving down costs.
The 60G Airlink for the original Crystal is also demoing at CES2025, with an external beta testing phase set to kick off imminently. It should ship by April 2025.
As for the 12K, providing an exact ETA is tricky. Although initial solutions were outlined for its major technical hurdles, some did not meet our quality benchmarks, such as the dual DP 1.4 approach and another panel-related solution we can’t yet disclose further.
Pimax is all ears for any more burning questions—feel free to share in the comments below!
