The first glimpses of the Oculus Rift CV1, the consumer version of the company’s hotly anticipated headset are finally here. Like the Rift DK2 and Crystal Cove prototype that came before it, the CV1 shares a clear lineage with the prior Crescent Bay prototype, but refines it yet further.
The Oculus Rift Crescent Bay prototype was revealed at ‘Connect’, the company’s first developer conference back in September 2014. Since that time, it’s remained the lightest and most comfortable headset from any of the major competitors (sorry Sony, Morpheus ergonomics are great, but Crescent Bay has got you beat on weight).
Just announced to be shipping in Q1 2016, the new Oculus Rift CV1 shows svelte refinements to the foundation of Crescent Bay. The evolved design is curvier, making it a bit more friendly to the eye, reeling it back ever so slightly from the edgy future. However, the all-black design, touted by the Rift from the beginning, says that this headset is no toy.
Likely contributing to the design are former members of the Carbon Design Group, which Oculus acquired back in June 2014. Carbon was known for the industrial design of the Xbox 360 controller and the original Kinect, among others.
See Also: Designer Mocks-up Oculus Rift Consumer Version (CV1) Concept
The headset’s materials have received significant attention and one interesting thing to note is the near cloth-like texture on the casing and inside of the CV1 (see lead photo). While this would surely make the headset softer to the touch, my guess is that we’re looking at a very lightweight material, designed to reduce the overall weight of the headset.
The headphones have also received attention and see a nice composition of material design. They look more professional now, hopefully instilling more confidence in their quality. While the Crescent Bay prototype headphones weren’t pretty, Oculus maintains that they’re design for a very high quality audio experience.
See Also: Oculus Rift ‘Crescent Bay’ is Designed for Audiophiles – Here’s Why that’s Important for VR
A long switch on the bottom right of the headset seems an odd choice for a power switch, but with lenses that appear to be mounted in place, the desired alternative (an IPD adjustment lever) seems even less likely. Though it could be something like a volume or brightness adjustment.
While Oculus is light on CV1 info for now, new information about the headset’s specs are due soon.