Pico 4 Ultra review

Let’s address the Meta elephant in the room. The Pico 4 Ultra feels like it was purposely designed for combat Meta-Task 3i.e. currently best VR goggles right now. If you’re looking for a reason to try a different headset, or you think an boost in RAM or a different headset fit would suit you better, the Pico 4 Ultra actually does a very good job of offering an alternative – provided you’re in the UK and EU. It is not available in the US for now.

At £529 for the 256GB model, which is the only version you can currently buy, it’s slightly more steep than the cheapest Quest 3 and slightly cheaper than the top-of-the-range Quest 3. This puts it essentially at the top of the range in the same market and makes that it is a decent competitor right out of the box. Both headsets come with a free game. The former will currently receive Blade and Sorcery: Nomad until February 2025, while the latter will receive Asgard’s Wrath 2 back after launch.

Out of the box, Pico 4 Ultra delivers exceptionally sleek operation, the controllers feel natural in your hands, and the glasses divider snaps into place intuitively. This makes it incredibly uncomplicated to simply put it on, operate the headset with your glasses, and then take it off again when you’re done. I thought the relative speed at which I could put this bracer on might cause it to slip out while playing, but that didn’t happen. There’s a Lego-like effect to it that works well.

This unfortunately leads to a bit of delicate leakage – where the headset doesn’t completely cover the face – but this is an unfortunate expectation for glasses wearers. Moreover, wearing glasses causes terrible pressure on the bridge of the nose. Once again, this doesn’t seem to be avoidable with VR headsets, but Pico doesn’t solve a long-standing problem here and won’t be the headset that changes your mind about VR.

However, if you’ve tried VR and understand its limitations, this is a super solid headset. In terms of comfort, in my opinion it falls somewhere between the satisfactory match of the Meta offering and the superior comfort of Sony’s PSVR2. Even though they’re heavier than Meta’s latest headset, they balance better on my admittedly quite vast head.

The strap itself moves up and down, with a ring on the back to tighten it and a top Velcro strap to position the headset. Although I found myself grabbing my hair at times, the headset never took my glasses with me when I took it off – a scarce occurrence in VR.

In terms of aesthetics, the Pico 4 Ultra looks almost identical to its predecessor, the Pico 4, with a white and gray aesthetic – allowing the black of the headset’s surface to serve as its central, most noticeable part. It’s a elementary aesthetic reminiscent of almost all of the best VR headsets available today.

The Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 powering this headset is the same one found in the Meta Quest 3 and the upcoming Meta Quest 3S, and it’s more than powerful enough to handle the games you can throw at it. Unfortunately, the offer for Pico devices is much more circumscribed than Meta. If you’re looking for a good standalone headset, the improved 12GB of RAM and ample storage make it an attractive package, although it simply can’t hold up to the digital Meta market.

If you want to operate it with PCVR, simply download the Pico Connect app to your computer, open the same app on your headset and connect. This can be done via Wi-Fi, helped by the headset’s built-in Wi-Fi 7 chip, or via USB-C, which can be found just below the strip on the left side of the headset. While USB 3.0 is recommended, USB 2.0 at just 500Mbps is also surprisingly stable.

Where the Meta Quest Link PC app tries to distract you from Steam VR, like Microsoft Edge does with a fresh Windows install, Pico Connect knows you’re there for Steam VR and avoids making you jump through hoops to launch it. While this doesn’t save more than half a minute each time, it’s nonetheless a welcome addition that makes the headset feel more natural to a PC user.

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While the helmet’s speaker is decent and the volume control built into the strap is quite nice, this headset is noticeably missing a 3.5mm jack, which means you can’t plug in your own headset. Other than that, tracking – in both Steam VR and native games – was mostly good, but not great. At my feet (or near my feet), the tracking wouldn’t be as precise on some controllers, which can make reloading in games like Boneworks a tad inconsistent.

My time with Half-Life: Alyx, where inventory is managed from above and above, was almost flawless and left me wanting to reboot perhaps the best VR game on the market yet again. This very minor tracking inconsistency was made even more peculiar considering how great the Pico 4 Ultra’s leg tracking is.

If you pre-order just before launch, or for an extra £80 now, you’ll get two Pico motion trackers to aid you with games like VR Chat and Dance Dash. They are truly great technology and add much more than I expected to moving around in VR.

The ring surrounding the Pico 4 controllers is gone this time, although the controller itself is strikingly similar. They each have four face buttons, a diminutive stick on the front, and two buttons on the back. The ABXY buttons are available in glossy black, and the two additional buttons positioned on either side are slightly more indented into the controller. This makes it very uncomplicated to find the most vital parts when you can’t see your hands.

The controllers themselves have textured grips, similar to those found on the bottom of an Xbox Core controller, which, combined with the strap at the bottom, make them feel nice and comfortable in your hand. Nothing great to write home about here, but that’s good because the controllers do their job without any gimmicks.

With a resolution of 2160 pixels per eye, the Pico 4 Ultra’s screen is gorgeous and extremely uncomplicated to operate. Transition play is also noticeably the best I’ve used in a mid-range headset, although it’s still not clear. All I have to do is check the notification on my phone while playing and the game is engaging enough that I can pick up my watch when it rings, assuming I’ll see him in the cozy cottage from “The Fisherman’s Tale.”

You can even record and watch surround videos using the headset, which is a marketing gimmick but an captivating feat nonetheless.

If you’re a PC gamer like me, the headset’s layout, most of its specs, and even bandwidth may not be that vital in everyday operate. Fortunately, the headset is comfortable and intuitive, and the controllers are super solid.

Unfortunately, it barely ranks above Meta Quest 3 in several areas, and because it’s a year younger, it’s less prone to flash sales. It’s good competition, but it won’t beat the Quest 3 in terms of sales by the ton, and it’s demanding to imagine that the Quest 3S won’t be quickly swept under the rug once it hits the market at almost half the price.

The Pico 4 Ultra’s specs are exactly what you’d expect from a headset of this caliber and at this price. The main reason I see someone choosing 4 Ultra is to avoid Meta, but I don’t know if Bytedance as a company is better.

Basically, Pico doesn’t offer a unique concept here, which will make it complex to overtake the current top dog, even if it does make a compelling case.