The announcement of the HP Reverb G2 had sparked a lot of hype in the virtual reality scene: For comparatively cheap 700 Euro it offers PC-VR with a resolution of 2160 × 2160 pixels per eye.

Immediately after putting it on, you will notice that the display of the G2 is beyond any doubt. The picture looks bright, clear and colorful. The HP headset uses the same lenses as the more expensive Valve Index VR glasses, but pairs them with higher-resolution LC displays – the index only shows 1440 × 1600 per eye. In terms of sharpness, the G2 has the lead, and we also noticed fewer reflections than with the Index. With the flight simulator Xplane, for example, the displays of a Cessna 172 can be read without having to look forward lean. The G2, however, draws the short straw in the field of view (FoV): While the Valve headset is one of the devices with the largest FoV on the market, the HP G2 only offers mediocre performance: The FoV is roughly on par with Oculus Quest (2) and HTC Vive.

HP also worked with Valve on the speakers and the “Ear Speakers” were taken over from the index. These direct the audio signal to the ear without touching it – this prevents “being locked in” when the headphones are closed, which many people find uncomfortable. The Valve audio system works almost scary well, at Half-Life: Alyx, several colleagues winced because the sound didn’t sound like game sound, but like real. Unlike the previous G1, there is no jack socket for connecting your own headphones.

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