I-O Display Systems

I-O Display Systems
Information
Type	Private
Industry	Virtual Reality, Personal Display Systems, Stereoscopic 3D products
Founded	1993 in Seattle, Washington, United States
Founder	Greg Amadon, Linden Rhoads
Headquarters	Seattle, Washington, United States (originally); later Menlo Park, California (as division of Ilixco, Inc.)
Notable Personnel	Greg Amadon (CEO, 1993–1997); Linden Rhoads (President, 1993–1996)
Products	i-glasses series (i-glasses PC, i-glasses SVGA, i-glasses HRV), i-Theater
Parent	Initially independent; later Ilixco (controlling interest); previously a venture with Liberty Media Group
Website	(Defunct)

See also: Companies

I-O Display Systems, LLC (originally styled Virtual i·O) was an American technology company that specialized in the development and manufacturing of head-mounted displays (HMDs). Founded in 1993 in Seattle, Washington by entrepreneurs Greg Amadon and Linden Rhoads, the company is best known for its i-glasses product line, which provided personal display systems for virtual reality (VR) and video applications. The company was a significant pioneer in the early consumer VR market of the 1990s, attracting almost US$20 million in venture funding before filing for bankruptcy in 1997.

History

Origins and Formation (1993-1997)

I-O Display Systems began as Virtual i·O, founded in 1993 by Greg Amadon, a former Microsoft engineer, and attorney Linden Rhoads. The company attracted early investment after demonstrating a stereoscopic viewer prototype to cable-TV magnate John Malone, whose Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI) became the company's lead investor.

By late 1994, the firm had developed prototypes using dual 0.7-inch LCDs and an in-house "sourceless orientation sensor," which was later patented in the United States. The first retail models reached North American shelves in May 1995.

In 1997, the original Virtual i·O was restructured as I-O Display Systems, LLC ("IOD"), formed as a new venture between Ilixco, a privately held display technology company, and Liberty Media Group, an AT&T company with interests in video programming, communications technology, and Internet businesses. Ilixco itself was a holding company formed in 1996 by Jeffrey Fergason, son of James Fergason (founder of the first LCD manufacturer, ILIXCO, in 1968). The new Ilixco held controlling interests in I-O Display Systems and Razor Digital Entertainment.

Bankruptcy and Closure (1997)

Despite gaining market share in the emerging VR headset market, the company faced financial difficulties as consumer VR adoption grew slower than anticipated. Co-founders Amadon and Rhoads resigned in January 1997, and Virtual i·O filed for Chapter 11 protection on March 14, reporting US$9.7 million in assets against US$21.6 million in liabilities-most owed to TCI and Thomson SA.

Annual headset returns peaked at 30 percent owing to fragile cables and dust ingress, further complicating the company's financial position. A court-appointed turnaround team failed to secure a buyer, and operations ceased on April 30, 1997; the remaining assets reverted to TCI the following month.

The company's intellectual property and brand would later be utilized in continued development of i-glasses products into the early 2000s.

Products

I-O Display Systems was best known for its "i-glasses" series of HMDs and the "i-Theater" personal display. These devices aimed to provide a large-screen viewing experience in a portable, head-worn form factor.

i-glasses Series

The i-glasses line included several models with varying specifications and target markets:

Selected i-glasses Models and Features

Model Name	Key Features	Resolution (per eye where applicable)	Virtual Screen Size	Weight	Connectivity	Notes
i-glasses (Original/PC Version)	Full color video, stereoscopic 3D capable, optional head tracking, see-through capability ("VideoMute"), could be worn with eyeglasses.	640x480	Claimed equivalent to an 80-inch screen from 13 feet.	Approximately 8 ounces (227g)	PC (VGA), Video (Sega, Nintendo, Atari, 3DO)	Released May 1995 at US$549.
i-glasses SVGA	Portable monitor, flicker-free (120Hz refresh), built-in stereo headphones, adjustable color/brightness/contrast. Supported frame sequential stereo with nVidia game drivers or other applications (optional stereo version).	800x600 (scaled from VGA/SVGA/XGA)	Virtual image of a 90cm screen from 2m (approximately 35 inches from 6.5 feet)	7 ounces (198g)	VGA	Released 1998 at US$699 for 3D version.
i-glasses HRV	High-resolution video monitor for camcorders, VCRs, DVDs. Intended for patient comfort in dental/medical settings.	640x480 (each eye)	Equivalent to viewing a 70-inch monitor from 13 feet	Not specified	S-Video, RCA stereo-audio, composite video (Incompatible with computer signals for the Pro version)	A "Pro" version offered better video quality and contrast. Released 1999 at US$499.
i-glasses HRV Pro	Introduced in April 2003, used Three Five Systems Z86D-3 microdisplays	800x600 (1.44 million pixels per display)	Equivalent to viewing a 70-inch monitor from 13 feet	Not specified	S-Video, composite video	Priced at $1,199 for 2D version and $1,499 for 3D-capable version in 2003.
Personal I-O Eye-Glasses/I-Glasses (GVD310)	Marketed for private entertainment in vehicles, public transport, and for hospital patients.	180,000 pixels (800 x 225)	Virtual 36-inch screen from 6 feet	7 ounces (198g) for head-wear part	RCA type AV source with 2-channel stereo audio (DVD, VCD, VCR, MP4, Game Console, PC, Digital Camera, Video Camera)	Featured detachable Dolby surrounding stereo earphones and on-unit controls for volume, brightness, and contrast.

Common features across many i-glasses models included:

• Built-in or detachable stereo headphones
• Lightweight design for comfort during extended use
• Adjustable head straps
• Compatibility with eyeglasses for many users
• Controls for display adjustments like brightness, contrast, and color

i-Theater

The i-Theater was marketed as a lightweight mobile video eyewear.

• Resolution: QVGA (320x240), 230,000 pixels per LCD
• Field of View (FoV): 25 Degrees Diagonal
• Weight: 3.5 ounces (99g) without cable
• Video Signal: NTSC / PAL / SECAM
• Virtual Image Size: Equivalent to a 50-inch screen viewed from 8.5 feet
• Power Consumption: Less than 450mW
• Battery Life: 6-8 hours
• Connectivity: Gaming Systems, VCRs, DVD players, Video iPods, Cell Phones
• Patents: Technology protected by over 200 global patents

Technology

I-O Display Systems developed several patented optical and tracking subsystems:

Display Technology

The company's products utilized LCD technology to create virtual images. The i-glasses SVGA, for example, displayed a virtual image by scaling input from VGA, SVGA, or XGA sources down to an 800x600 resolution. It featured a fixed focus set at 3.9m and did not require inter-pupillary distance (IPD) adjustment. A 120Hz refresh rate was advertised to ensure a flicker-free display.

Key technological innovations included:

• Catadioptric fiber‑optic faceplate optics – eliminated bulky relay lenses for a lighter visor.
• Optical Design: The i-glasses utilized an optical system that allowed for both immersive viewing and see-through capability (via the VideoMute feature).
• Display Technology: Over the years, the company transitioned from lower-resolution displays to SVGA-compatible microdisplays.

Tracking Systems

• Magneto‑inertial sourceless tracker – combined flux‑gate magnetometers with a sealed fluid‑tilt sensor to output yaw, pitch and roll without external beacons.
• Stereoscopic 3D: Some models supported stereoscopic 3D viewing, which was compatible with specific graphics cards and software.

The company also held patents related to personal visual display systems, head-mounted display apparatus, depixelated visual displays, and optically corrected helmet-mounted displays.

Market Position and Competition

I-O Display Systems positioned itself in the consumer and prosumer segments of the early virtual reality market. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the company competed with other HMD manufacturers such as:

• Forte Technologies with their VFX1 headset
• Virtual Research Systems
• Sony with the Glasstron series
• Olympus with the Eye-Trek displays
• Canon with their HMDs

The i-glasses products were generally positioned as more affordable alternatives to high-end professional VR systems while offering better quality than the most basic HMDs. Contemporary reviews often compared the i-glasses favorably to competitors like the VFX1 in terms of comfort and ease of use, though sometimes noting trade-offs in display quality or immersion.

Market Reception

Early press coverage praised the light weight (227g) and competitive price compared with the Sony Glasstron, yet criticized visible pixelation and limited software support. Analysts at TWICE magazine cited insufficient in-store demonstrations and fragile demo units as key barriers to mainstream adoption.

By late 1996, the company was shipping roughly 300 units per month, with professional and medical buyers representing 25 percent of volume. Despite modest early sales-about 30,000 units went to U.S. dentists alone for chair-side "patient distraction" video-revenue fell short of projections, contributing to the company's financial difficulties.

Legacy

I-O Display Systems was one of the longest-running companies in the early consumer HMD market. The company was described as "one of the longest, most tenacious companies in this business" that "pioneered wearable, semi-comfortable headsets" designed to work with both PCs and video sources.

The company's contributions to VR technology include:

1. Patent Portfolio: Its patent portfolio covering lightweight catadioptric optics and magneto-inertial tracking was cited by subsequent VR manufacturers throughout the early 2000s.
2. Virtual Cinema Concept: The company's emphasis on an "80-inch virtual cinema" foreshadowed the media-consumption positioning later used by Sony Glasstron, Myvu, and Meta Quest "theater mode" features.
3. Technological Advancements: The challenges and innovations addressed by I-O Display Systems and its contemporaries helped pave the way for the more sophisticated immersive technologies available today.
4. Historical Significance: Surviving i-glasses units remain a reference platform for retro-VR enthusiasts and museums such as the Deutsches Museum in Munich.

While I-O Display Systems is no longer in operation, its products represented an important step in the evolution of consumer virtual reality technology. The company's efforts to create accessible HMDs helped introduce the concept of personal virtual displays to a broader audience during a period when the technology was still in its early stages of development.

I-O Display Systems' products can be seen as precursors to the more advanced VR and AR headsets that would emerge in later years, such as the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and various augmented reality glasses.

See Also

• Head-mounted display
• Virtual Reality
• Augmented Reality
• Liquid Crystal Display
• Stereoscopy
• Forte VFX1
• Sony Glasstron
• Virtuality (company)