New Pico headset could be called Pico 4S and feature ringless controllers
There are new hints of an upcoming Pico headset that could compete with the Quest 3.
Pico-owner Bytedance has trademarked Pico 4S with the China National Intellectual Property Administration, and there are new hints that Pico device could indeed come with ringless controllers, reports UploadVR.
Screenshots of a folder titled "icons_4s" containing icons depicting a ringless VR controller have been posted on a Chinese forum. The folder is said to be from Pico's PC VR streaming software and has been removed in the latest version. Images of ringless Pico controllers resembling the icons were leaked back in September.
Pico has another go
In December, The Information reported that Pico had discontinued development of a successor to the Pico 4, but planned to release a refreshed version of the Pico 4. This is likely to be the Pico 4S. The suffix "S" suggests that it is a slightly improved Pico 4.
The information did not give any details about the specs of the device, but it is likely to be equipped with the same chipset as the Quest 3. Otherwise, it would be technically outdated at launch.
The site reported that sales of the Pico 4 had fallen far short of expectations and that the company had therefore decided to abandon the Pico 5. The question now is what Pico plans to do with Pico 4S.
The Pico 4 never launched in the biggest VR market, the United States, and if the same is true for the Pico 4S, the device will remain equally irrelevant in the bigger scheme of things. Pico owner Bytedance might as well not bother.
The company behind TikTok acquired Pico in early 2021 for a reported $1.3 billion to follow Zuckerberg's metaverse vision. In 2023, Bytedance reversed course: It laid off more than half of Pico's employees and severely scaled back its VR ambitions.
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