Huawei VR 2

Huawei VR 2
Basic Info
VR/AR	Virtual reality
Type	Head-mounted display
Subtype	Mobile VR, PC VR
Developer	Huawei
Manufacturer	Huawei
Announcement Date	20 October 2017 (China)
Release Date	By February 2018 (China, Huawei Vmall store)
Price	1,999 yuan (Huawei Vmall store, China)
Requires	Compatible Huawei or Honor smartphone, or a Windows PC
Predecessor	Huawei VR (2016)
Display
Display	Dual 3.5-inch Fast LCD
Resolution	1600 x 1440 per eye; 2880 x 1600 combined (marketed as "3K")
Refresh Rate	90 Hz
Image
Field of View	100 degrees (manufacturer figure)
Optics
IPD Range	Adjustable
Tracking
Tracking	3DoF
Audio
Audio	3.5 mm headphone jack; IMAX DTS audio (manufacturer claim)
Connectivity
Ports	USB-C (phone, PC or charger), 3.5 mm headphone jack, Micro-USB (third-party USB tracking devices only)
Battery Capacity	3020 mAh (typical)
Device
Color	White
Sensors	Accelerometer, proximity sensor, gyroscope, magnetometer
Input	3DoF controller with touchpad, trigger, Home, Back and volume buttons

The Huawei VR 2 (styled HUAWEI VR 2) is a virtual reality head-mounted display made by Huawei. Unlike the company's first headset of 2016, which used the screen of a smartphone placed inside it, the VR 2 has its own displays and connects through its USB-C port to a compatible Huawei phone or, with a separately sold cable, to a Windows PC. Huawei lists two 3.5-inch Fast LCD panels with a resolution of 1600 x 1440 pixels per eye, a 90 Hz refresh rate and a 100-degree field of view.

Huawei introduced the headset in China at its Mate 10 launch event in Shanghai on 20 October 2017 and showed it to Western press at CES 2018 in January 2018, where it announced a partnership with IMAX and DTS. Huawei's Vmall online store sold it in China for 1,999 yuan. At CES 2018 Huawei did not give a price or release date for the headset.

Reviewed 15 October 2026. Specifications, prices, compatibility lists, dates and CES 2018 hands-on statements checked against archived Huawei spec/product and Vmall pages, ifanr, Engadget, TechRadar, Android Central, CTA, Steam, LBCI, TechCrunch and IThome. About review dates.

Announcement and release

Huawei's first headset, announced in April 2016 alongside the P9 smartphones, was a phone holder: a compatible Huawei phone slotted into the front and acted as the display. The VR 2 replaced that design with built-in screens. At the Mate 10 series launch in Shanghai on 20 October 2017, Huawei also presented a VR headset that ifanr called the "HUAWEI VR giant-screen cinema headset"; ifanr reported that it connected over a USB Type-C cable, had a 3K high-refresh-rate screen, and should give better picture quality than the earlier version that used a phone as its screen.

At CES 2018 in Las Vegas, Huawei gave the VR 2 its American debut. CES organizer the Consumer Technology Association had scheduled a keynote by Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei's Consumer Business Group, for 9 January 2018. According to ifanr, Yu announced at the show that Huawei had formally partnered with IMAX and DTS and that they had jointly launched the Huawei VR headset. Huawei representatives told TechRadar that there was no official price or release date yet. Android Central reported an expected price of about US$300, plus the phone or computer needed to run it.

In China, the headset was sold through Huawei's Vmall store at 1,999 yuan. A February 2018 capture of the store page lists it as compatible with the Mate 10, Mate 10 Pro and Mate 10 Porsche Design. By October 2019 the same listing, now titled "HUAWEI VR 2 虚拟现实眼镜" (virtual reality glasses), still showed 1,999 yuan, named the P30, Mate 20, P20 and Mate 10 series as compatible, and advertised upgraded phone and PC screen projection and an upgraded PC mode.

A Steam store entry for the Huawei VR 2, with a release date of 15 May 2018 and Huawei listed as manufacturer, describes it as able to connect to both smartphones and PCs and says the device won a 2018 iF award. Huawei's Consumer Business Group named the VR 2 among six of its products honored at the 2018 iF Design Award, together with the Mate 10, Mate 10 Pro, nova 2, MateBook X and 4G Router.

Design and hardware

Display and optics

Huawei's specification page lists two 3.5-inch Fast LCD screens, a per-eye resolution of 1600 x 1440 pixels (Huawei calls the two-eye total of 1600 x 1440 x 2 "3K"), a 90 Hz refresh rate and a 100-degree field of view. Huawei's product page gives the combined resolution as 2880 x 1600 and a pixel density of 615 PPI, which the company says reduces graininess and the screen door effect. The same page states that the Fast LCD keeps motion rendering latency under 20 milliseconds (a figure Huawei attributes to its own lab tests) and that the panels use backlight black insertion to reduce smearing in games. Android Central's reviewer still noticed some pixelation during a 15 to 20 minute demo.

The interpupillary distance is adjustable, and the headset can be worn over glasses.

Head mount and comfort

The front of the headset is on a hinge and can be flipped up, so the wearer can see the room without taking the headset off. Huawei describes a ventilated design intended to stop the lenses from fogging, and high-rebound foam padding. TechRadar compared the head mount to the PlayStation VR and Lenovo Mirage Solo: it rests above the forehead and tightens around the back of the head. Engadget described the inside as lined with soft fabric and plenty of cushioning rather than straps or hard plastic.

Sensors, ports and power

The headset contains an accelerometer, a proximity sensor, a gyroscope and a magnetometer. It has a USB-C port for connecting a phone, a computer or a charger, a 3.5 mm headphone jack, and a Micro-USB port that Huawei says is only for connecting third-party USB tracking devices. Huawei lists a typical battery capacity of 3020 mAh.

Huawei describes the audio as IMAX DTS surround sound, combined with virtual spatial sound field technology. Its specification page lists spatial positioning, head-tracked sound, environment modeling and multichannel output. TechRadar wrote that the sound "really rocked" in its IMAX clip demo.

Controller

The included controller tracks rotation only (3DoF) and has a Home button, a Back button, a touchpad, a trigger and volume buttons. It contains an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a magnetometer and runs on two AAA batteries. Huawei's product page says the controller has an open interface that allows 6DoF applications to be added.

Box contents

According to Huawei, the box contains the headset, a USB-C charging cable, a 5V 2A charger, a USB-C 3.1 data cable for connecting a phone, the controller, two AAA batteries and documentation. The Huawei VR computer cable needed for PC use is sold separately.

Specifications

Item	Specification (as listed by Huawei)
Display	Dual 3.5-inch Fast LCD
Resolution	1600 x 1440 pixels per eye; 2880 x 1600 combined
Pixel density	615 PPI
Refresh rate	90 Hz
Field of view	100 degrees
Battery	3020 mAh (typical)
Headset sensors	Accelerometer, proximity sensor, gyroscope, magnetometer
Ports	USB-C, 3.5 mm headphone jack, Micro-USB (third-party USB tracking devices only)
Controller	3DoF; Home, Back, touchpad, trigger, volume; two AAA batteries
Color	White

Software and features

Phone mode

The VR 2 is not a standalone headset: it takes its data connection over a USB cable and must be connected to a phone, tablet or PC to run. Huawei's 2019 specification page lists these compatible phones: the Huawei P30, Mate 20, P20 and Mate 10 series, the Mate RS Porsche Design, the Honor Note10 (with a minimum software version) and the Honor V20. For video, Huawei's product page lists a VR edition of Huawei Video with more than 20,000 hours of films and series, plus access to Youku VR and iQiyi VR.

At CES 2018, the main phone demo was a virtual IMAX theater showing movie trailers, run from a Mate 10 Pro. Android Central reported that, under the IMAX partnership, the VR 2's films come directly from IMAX. In its CES report, TechRadar wrote that Huawei was building its own library of games and experiences and that the headset was "said to work with Steam and Google Daydream". Android Central, by contrast, reported that the headset did not run Daydream.

PC mode

Connected to a PC, the VR 2 works with Steam. The Steam entry says the computer screen can be projected into the headset and VR videos and games can be played. Huawei's recommended minimum PC is an Intel Core i5-4590 or equivalent, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 or equivalent, 8 GB of RAM, DisplayPort 1.2 or later, a USB-A 2.0 port and Windows 7 SP1 (64-bit) or later, connected with the separately sold Huawei VR computer cable.

At CES 2018 Huawei showed the headset running a Steam game on a PC with a stationary exercise bike as the controller. TechRadar identified the bike as a VirZoom and described a tank game steered by pedaling and head tilt. Engadget described a helicopter game played with a custom controller that combined a pair of triggers with a stationary bike.

Reception

The CES 2018 hands-on reports focused on comfort. Engadget's Terrence O'Brien called it the most comfortable VR headset he had worn: it felt light, his glasses neither fogged nor dug in, and he felt fine after about 20 minutes despite being sensitive to VR sickness. He found the PC demo more fluid than a normal mobile VR experience, although he did not consider the game itself groundbreaking, and wrote that it remained to be seen whether Huawei could compete with the major VR companies. Android Central's Andrew Martonik found it more comfortable than a typical Daydream headset because of its weight distribution and padded strap, and said the IMAX trailer demo looked and sounded "fantastic", although he noticed some pixelation. TechRadar's Cameron Faulkner called the headset "sleek" and "comfortable" and found the visuals of the IMAX demo "crisp".

Later Huawei headsets

Huawei later released the Huawei VR Glass, a thinner headset that also connects to a phone or PC. It went on pre-sale in China in December 2019 at 2,999 yuan, with a resolution of 3200 x 1600 and a 90-degree field of view.

See also

• Huawei
• Huawei VR Glass
• Huawei VR Glass 6DoF
• Mobile VR
• PC VR