PlayStation hasn't officially unveiled the next iteration of PlayStation VR, but it may offer Samsung OLEDs according to a recent leak. The leak has also suggested a release window despite the lack of confirmation from Sony itself.
Since the original PlayStation VR released back in 2016 over 5 million units have been sold to early adopters of the virtual reality technology. According to a recent leak from Japan Display Inc., the follow-up to the original PSVR may release in the Holiday period of next year. According to the leak, Sony Group Corp. will be implementing Samsung OLED panels into the goggles in the next generation of PlayStation VR.
According to chief VR headset engineer at JDI, Yoshihiro Watanabe, the company is capable of producing displays with 1,200 pixels per inch, more than double the typical density of top-tier phone panels. On top of this, the company places an emphasis on affordability, making Japan Display Inc. one of the top virtual reality headset makers in the market. The leaked release for PSVR 2 contradicts things PlayStation has said in the past, so PlayStation fans may not have long to wait for the next generation of VR after all. An official date hasn't been confirmed by Japan Display Inc., but the Holiday release window encapsulates November, December, and January.
The use of LCD displays is drastically increasing at Japan Display Inc., but the company also projects to produce nearly double last year's OLED by 2025. LCDs are currently being projected by JDI to take over from OLED in order to dominate the VR headset market into the future. Last year, JDI produced 5.9 million units, but by 2025 the company expects to produce 20 million units. This drastic increase will be in order to meet the demand of a growing VR market and non-mobile production as JDI saw a significant decrease in mobile in recent years.
Since this PSVR leak exposed a potential release window for the next generation of PlayStation VR, Samsung and Sony representatives have declined to comment. Considering the timing of this leak happening around E3, PlayStation may reveal the successor to the original PlayStation VR during its next Future of Gaming showcase. Although the next PlayStation VR's leaked release is in the Holiday of next year, PlayStation has yet to unveil the next PSVR or any of the experiences that fans can expect from it.
Considering neither Samsung nor PlayStation has confirmed a release for the next PlayStation VR, this leak should still be taken with a grain of salt despite the fact that it comes from a company that may be producing the units right now. PSVR hasn't been confirmed for PS4 or PS5, but it may be exclusive to the new PlayStation console.
Source: Bloomberg