- ofcourse like everybody else would like: higher resolutions (but IMHO only when the size of the screens are bigger (FOV in all directions), otherwise it doesn't really make any difference IMHO)

- and anotherone like everybody else would like: higher FOV

- Better immersive eyeshields (or at least put it in the box as a standard)..

- I also never used the provided earplugs, so for me it could do without it, but I can imagine it needed to be able to sell to a lot of people..

Also I would like to comment on the glasses themselves, I have said it before on this board, the old VFX1 is still one of the best helmets around when it comes to comfort, it sits perfectly, the headphones are quite amazing (well, that's what you get when using a real brand.. hehe).. the way the optics work are also great (you can adjust the eye distant, focal etc).. It also fits to about any sized heads because. The only drawback (except for the old tech ofcourse) for some is the weight, but it shouldn't be a big problem to create a new version of it with all the negatives removed.. but being a realist I imagine it won't be possible as it would propably increase the units price by a lot (although seeing how cheap big plastic toys can be, it also shouldn't be a big problem..)

This is what I'd like to see in a set of VR goggles that the VR920 doesn't have, or doesn't appear to have.

Wider FOV without sacrificing resolution, and without increasing price much.

     The way I see to do this is to use a single higher resolution monitor, and use optics to split it into two horizontal strips.  One strip for each eye.  By eliminating one of the two monitors, I'm hoping a more capable monitor could be had.  This might result in a longer monitor, as the optical path would have to be kept clear across the bridge of the nose, but shouldn't involve much additional weight.

I, too, second a couple diopter wheels, or screws.

I, too, second an immersion screen included.

Perhaps a set of earpieces of different lengths, or a clutch mechanism that will allow the earpieces to slide back and forth, when folded, but would lock them in place when open.  This would result in having a couple short wires protruding from the front of either side of the face, if the persons face was very short at all.  A rubber grip beside the earpiece rod could act as the brake.

This may be an idea with a limited audience, but how about a set of "replacement earpieces", that basically allow an unmodified Vuzix viewer to be mounted inside a third party helmet or visor.  Just a stem and a plate, that can replace the factory earpieces.  No refunds on the stem and plate, as it'd be assumed the user would modify them, drilling their own holes to mount the vizor somewhere.

Has anyone suggested you modify your casing to allow for better heat dissipation yet?

How about a user-replacable cord package?  It doesn't even have to have a standard plug on the vizor side, just so long as it would allow someone who has caused damage to their unit to replace it for less than an arm and a leg. (I just replaced the power brick for my laptop, which is why it's on my mind.  Over time, the cord was trying to pull in two at the base, despite my wrapping it up regularly with a velcro strap for transport...or more likely BECAUSE I did so, judging from the form the damage took.)

I like the idea others have presented for eliminating the headset.  After all, if someone is using your display, they likely have a good rig already.  The extra wire could easily be secured to the first two by braiding, or wrapping with fine black thread...or just tying a bit of bread tie to it at regular intervals.

As for blue sky items.  That is, things you might be able to do in a decade or so, (but hopefully sooner).

Micromirror array display.  Possibly even a daylight fed micromirror array display, with a backlight that can be turned on to supplement the light in a dark environment.  I think you might be able to squeeze more resolution out of this for the same surface area of monitor, while possibly even dropping the power consumption slightly.  This wouldn't be of much use except in a periscope type system, however, (as described above.)

View through, by using a high-res, monochrome LCD as a "projection screen" immediately behind a partially reflective layer.  If you're showing an image, the silhouette of that image is "displayed" behind it to prevent the natural view from being viewed through the projected image.  Think of it like this.  If you point a projector at a partially reflective window during dusk, you won't get much.  If you take a can of white, or even black, paint and paint the alpha channel onto the back side of that window, you would have an image, but still have a window everywhere else.  And all this while preserving the focal length of the system.  Again, this depends on the periscope solution over the direct view solution.  Actually, you could do it with a direct view system, but you'd have to have even more optics to handle the natural view.  Basically, you could bury your system in the middle of a pair of binoculars this way, but I think a periscope system would be a better fit for this suggestion.  On the software side, the driver would have to be able to recognize the windows desktop, and treat it as transparent.

Whoops.  I messed with the color settings.  Edited to change the color to white.

Whoops again.  I forgot to include the suggestion of eye-tracking as a way to optimize VPU cycles.  If the eye isn't looking at it, you don't need to apply full color depth, antialiasing, or bump mapping.  I've covered this in another thread.  Something cheap, such as you'd find in an optical mouse, and watching one eye only, should be sufficient, so long as you could talk to the video card to tell it NOT to dress other parts of the image.

I'd split the thing in various components:

- earphones, make provision for an integrated one or not

- strap: branches like glasses, removable, replaceable, be able to accomodate a bigger head, smaller head, a rubber band, put inside an helmet, or not

- cover: be able too swap it for another, change to covert mode (tainted glasses style), overt mode (futurist look, eye catching), hot mode (more heat dissipation), see thru mode (nothing a the back of the lcds, so that one can see what is behind, be able to do some overlays), camera mode (provide a cover with provision for some integrated camera (one central, 2 for visual separation, 3 in triangle for real time 3D analysis), for doing augmented reality stuffs with cams, in see thru mode or opaque mode, whatever best suits our needs), with provision for active vision (passive: the cam sees what it can, in active mode, something on the cam illuminates the world - leds, whatever), provision for non visible range (like IR cams like the ones on the wiimote, either to position things around us, see actions, or more funky usages like see unseeable things)

- display: interchangeable displays, transparent or not, broken?, different resolutions, different field of views, different optics ( fixed, adjustable )

- head tracking: wiimote style with a ref point, G sensors, cam, none, magnetic field, whatever.

- electronics: integrated or not (for heat, weight), video/s-video/pal or not, one vga (for thos who don't need 3D vision, two vga controler (for 3D vision), clone mode (both screen display the same thing), 3D mode (interlaced - one screen displays even frames, the other odd frames ; dual display); overlay mode (one input on which another input is overlaid)

- etc

With this in mind, you can have 1 or 2 basic standard designs that people would buy as entry points, with addons to accomodate for the various usages available out there (I'm pretty sure not every one uses the helmet for the same things).

If you fear having too many components to design, you can also decide that you won't provide the additionnal stuffs yourself, but give pointers to other sources of supply and take them into account while designing your helmet (ex: earplugs, head strap, video to vga converters, vga splitters, wiimote as point of reference, etc etc), and if you detect that you can have some added values in those components, make deals, integrate it in a package...

(if you keep it modular, people can just remove the component they think suck - like the yaw detection which seems to be troublesome in some cases/environments ;-) - and replace it if need be by another more adequate one)

the ability to remove the arms completely and allowing the main unit to be placed into a slim styled plastic casing with support strapes that sit on top of your head, and maybe a temperature monitoring chip like the ones used on computer motherboards to and a fan that will turn on at a certain temperature. maybe with attached over the ear style headphones with magnetic sheild to stop interferance with the headtracking.

so my main advise would be maybe keep the choice of av920 and vr920 but make the vr920 more suited to a hardcore gamer that is going to be at there pc and not worriering about a small looking unit but rather comfort and stability