How To Tell If Your PC Is VR Ready

Republished By Plato

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With a growing number of affordable next-gen PC-compatible headsets like Quest 2 and HP Reverb G2, there’s more reason than ever to finally jump into VR. For the gamers out there who are beginning to consider purchasing a PC VR headset, one major question marks the starting point on their journey to a decision: can my PC handle it? Here’s how to find out.

Updated – May 7th, 2021

VR gaming is much more resource intensive than monitor gaming. In short, that’s because the render resolution is much higher than the 1080p displays used by most PC users today. Not to mention, VR games must also be rendered in 3D and anywhere from 72 to 144 FPS depending on the headset.

Before we dive in, you’ll want to know a few things about your computer. First and foremost, PC VR headsets are not supported by MacOS. Next up, you’ll need to know your PC’s specs. Expand the section below if you don’t already know where to find that info.

To determine if your PC can handle VR, there’s four core things you’ll need to know:

Video Card
CPU
RAM
Video Output

GPU

Press the Start button and type ‘device manager’, select it from the list
In Device Manager, expand Display Adapters, your video card is listed beneath

CPU & RAM

Press the Start button and type ‘about your PC’, select it from the list
In the About window, scroll down to find ‘Processor’ (also known as CPU) and ‘Installed RAM’

Video Output

For this you’ll need to look at the back of your computer and see which ports are available on the back, specifically on your GPU (which is usually lower):

The ports can look very similar, so look closely at the shapes of each. Remember that you will need a free port to plug your headset into.

Many headset makers provide what they call a ‘recommended’ hardware configuration for virtual reality gaming. This gives VR developers a baseline hardware target so that they can ensure the consistent FPS requirement is met. If your hardware does not meet the recommended specification, you risk dropping under framerate which can result in a choppy and potentially uncomfortable VR experience.

The recommended specs provided by each company are relatively similar but there are some key differences worth looking at in detail:

Oculus

Oculus Rift S Recommended VR Specifications:

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1060 / AMD Radeon RX 480 or greater
CPU: Intel i5-4590 / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X or greater
Memory: 8GB RAM or greater
Video Output: DisplayPort
USB Ports: 1x USB 3.0 port
OS: Windows 10

Oculus Rift CV1 Recommended VR Specifications:

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1060 / AMD Radeon RX 480 or greater
CPU: Intel i5-4590 / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X or greater
Memory: 8GB RAM or greater
Video Output: Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output
USB Ports: 3x USB 3.0 ports plus 1x USB 2.0 port
OS: Windows 10 (Windows 7/8.1 no longer recommended)

Oculus Quest & Quest 2 with Oculus Link

Oculus Quest & Quest 2 can also play PC VR games via Oculus Link. See this article for the most up to date info on Oculus Quest recommended specs and supported graphics cards.

Valve

Valve Index Recommended VR Specifications:

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1070 / AMD equivalent or greater
CPU: Quad Core+
Memory: 8GB RAM
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.2
USB Ports: 1x USB 2.0 port (USB 3.0 required for camera passthrough), 1x DisplayPort v1.2
OS: Windows 10, SteamOS, Linux

Check your PC: You can automatically check that you meet these specifications with the ‘Are you ready for Valve Index’ app on Steam.

HTC

Vive Cosmos Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1070 / AMD Radeon Vega 56 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5-4590/AMD FX 8350 equivalent or greater
Memory: 8GB RAM
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.2
USB Ports: 1x USB 3.0 port
OS: Windows 10

Vive Cosmos Elite Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1070 / AMD Radeon Vega 56 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5-4590/AMD FX 8350 equivalent or greater
Memory: 8GB RAM
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.2
USB Ports: 1x USB 3.0 port
OS: Windows 10

Vive Pro Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1070 / Quadro P5000 / AMD Radeon Vega 56 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 / AMD FX 8350 or greater
Memory: 4GB RAM
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.2
USB Ports: 1x USB 3.0 port
OS: Windows 10

Vive Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1060 / AMD Radeon RX 480 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 / AMD FX 8350 or greater
Memory: 4GB RAM
Video Output: HDMI 1.4 / DisplayPort 1.2
USB Ports: 1x USB 2.0 port
OS: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows 10

WMR & HP

General Windows Mixed Reality Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1060 / AMD RX 470/570 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 / AMD Ryzen 5 1400 or greater
Memory: 8GB
Video Output: HDMI 2.0 or DisplayPort 1.2 (may vary based on specific headset)
USB Port: 1x USB 3.0
OS: Windows 10 (Note: Not supported on N versions or Windows 10 Pro in S Mode)
Bluetooth Some headsets require Bluetooth 4.0 for controller connectivity

HP Reverb G1 and G2 Windows Mixed Reality Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card: NVIDIA GTX 1080 / AMD RX 5700 or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5, i7 / AMD Ryzen 5 or greater
Memory: 8GB
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.3
USB Port: 1x USB 3.0
OS: Windows 10 (may require latest updates)

Pimax

Pimax 8K X Recommended VR Specifications

Video Card
- Upscale Mode: NVIDIA RTX 2060
- Native Mode: NVIDIA RTX 2080
CPU: Intel Core i5-9400 equivalent or greater
Memory: 8GB
Video Output: DisplayPort 1.2
USB Port: USB 2.0 or greater
OS: Windows 10