ZyberVR Elite head strap, magnetic battery pack and Night IR light for Pico 4 review – Effective accessories to class up your game

Virtual reality headsets are all the rage and while the limelight is still on tech darlings like the newly announced Apple Vision Pro, it’s more mainstream VR headsets that don’t cost as much as a down payment on a car like the Pico 4 that are flying off the shelves in Malaysia. 

At launch, the Pico 4 had a dearth of accessories but there’s now a growing number of third party offerings that augment its comfort, endurance and capabilities such as ZyberVR’s latest range of gear specifically crafted for the Pico 4 as well as other VR headsets. We’ve managed to get test samples of their latest accessories for field testing in the past several weeks. Here’s our ZyberVR Elite head strap, magnetic battery pack and Night IR light accessory reviews!

ZyberVR Elite head strap review – Strap in and strap up

The ZyberVR Elite head strap is an upgrade kit that costs about US$32.99 (about RM154) at the time of writing that swaps out the existing top head strap for a larger, wider, sponge-lined strap made of breathable polyurethane and adds on a rear snap-on soft silicone headpiece that adds more cushioning for the back of the head. Combined, both additions aim to make wearing and using the Pico 4 more comfortable for longer durations of time.

The stock version of the Pico 4 VR headset primarily uses a narrow fabric head strap that loops across the top of a user’s head to suspend the weight of the eyepiece along with an additional adjustable strap that goes just above the ears that can be tightened to keep the entire rig secure.

While this arrangement is fine for short one or two hour jaunts, the weight of the front eyepiece tends to cause the whole affair to slump over in an uncomfortable fashion after a while that’s exacerbated if you’re playing something more engrossing which is where the ZyberVR Elite head strap upgrade kit comes into the picture.

The top head strap of our ZyberVR Elite head strap review sample is made of a sturdy fabric lined with velcro complete with a steel clasp that has a 5cm wide cushioning headpiece made from memory foam that’s about a centimetre thick lined with synthetic material that allows it to resist sweat easily and to make it easy to wipe down. 

The second additional item that’s part of the upgrade kit fits onto the rear head strap. It consists of a snap-on adaptor made of hard ABS plastic with a wide head support that’s about 35% larger than the stock design to distribute the weight of the Pico 4 more evenly and offer more comfort.

Installing our ZyberVR Elite head strap review sample onto our Pico 4 was a simple task and was simply a matter of swapping out the top head strap and then snapping on the rear headpiece.

By further distributing the weight more evenly, the Pico 4 became much more comfortable to wear even after a couple of hours of use, though you’ll still need to take a break or two to recharge it.

As accessories go, the ZyberVR Elite head strap is a simple, yet highly effective upgrade for the Pico 4. Even after a sweat-inducing workout, the upgraded head strap and headpiece kept the Pico 4 securely on our bonce and proved to be easy to clean and wipe down afterwards.

ZyberVR IR Light Review – Low light gaming delight

Modern problems require modern solutions. Using the Pico 4 requires a certain amount of ambient light so that the sensors can have something to see and track which makes playing it in dim light or in pitch black conditions a bit of a non-starter.

Unfortunately, this may often be a necessity since there is a possibility that you need to use it in scenarios where turning the light on may not be an option such as in shared accommodation which is where the ZyberVR IR Light that costs US$24.99 (about RM117) comes into play.

The design of the ZyberVR IR Light is relatively straightforward with a chassis that weighs a light 11.3g that is made of white polycarbonate. Oddly, the design has a U-shaped indentation along with a pair of IR emitters at one end as well as a USB-C male port to hook up to the Pico 4’s sole USB-C port and a rear USB-C female port for charging duties. 

After further inquiry, we’ve discovered the reason for the U-shaped indentation in the design. It seems that the ZyberVR IR Light was originally intended for deployment on the Meta Quest 2 VR headset which had a 3.5mm audio jack hence why it has a superfluous indentation. This fortunately does not affect its function.

The design also features a side-mounted button that lets you toggle between a low power 1.5W infrared light and a high power 3W light. You also get a USB-C to USB-C as well as a USB-A to USB-C adaptor to offer additional charging options via a USB-A port or to a USB-C port on a laptop or charging adaptor. Getting it up and running was simply plug and play as it doesn’t require firmware to run and works straight off the bat.

When put to the test with our Pico 4 VR headset, our ZyberVR IR Light review sample did not disappoint and improved hand and movement tracking in dimmer light scenarios which the Pico 4 originally couldn’t track efficiently and the low watt setting was sufficient with a night light in smaller rooms like a bedroom and the higher 3W setting for larger areas or dimmer ones like a living room. This does what it says on the tin and is an ideal acquisition if you want to use the Pico 4 in low light conditions.

ZyberVR Magnetic Battery Pack Review – Longer Endurance for Better Gaming

The Pico4 VR headset has decent battery life at about 2 to 3 hours on a single charge depending on what you’re playing but for many hardcore gamers, it wasn’t enough. The ZyberVR magnetic battery pack solves this problem in a particularly handy fashion.

In essence, it’s an external 5,000mAh battery that latches on to the Pico 4 VR via a clip on the headpiece that in turn plugs straight into the USB port. On paper, the Pico 4 retails for about US$23 (about RM116) and uses juice from the external battery first which adds about two extra hours of gameplay before resorting to the built-in battery for about 4 to 5 hours of gameplay in total.

Out of the box, you get two different clips that terminate in a USB-C port and a set of magnetic pins that interact with the detachable power pack. One clip is slim and designed for headsets with narrower headbands like the Meta Quest 2 while the other clip is larger and wider for headsets like the Pico 4.  Once you’ve picked the right clip, it latches on securely to the Pico 4 and stays there.

 

The battery pack of our review sample is a nondescript affair done up in a flat grey with a USB-C port for externally charging it and a set of pins and magnets that enable it to latch on securely to the clip. Of note is that the USB0C port accepts 5V/2A charging. It’s not fast charging so you’ll need some patience to fully juice it up. The side of the pack features a series of white LED indicators that give a rough idea how much juice is left.

Getting it up and running is as simple as it gets as the clip doesn’t require assembly and simply snaps on to the Pico 4 though you’ll need a couple of hours to fully charge the battery pack itself. Fortunately, the magnets holding the battery to the clip remained secure even with vigorous use of the Pico4 and it works as advertised, offering additional endurance beyond what the Pico 4’s built-in battery can offer.

Should you buy the ZyberVR Elite head strap, magnetic battery pack and Night IR light for Pico 4?

Taken individually, the ZyberVR Elite head strap is an effective accessory that offers better comfort for extended play sessions on the Pico 4 while the magnetic battery pack offers added battery life for said play sessions and the IR light enables the option of playing in low light.

When used together, they synergistically increase the potential of the Pico 4 as a gaming device by several fold. There is unfortunately one pickle though as the Pico 4 only has one USB-C port and you can only use either the battery pack or the IR light and not both so you’ll have to pick your battles. That aside, this selection of ZyberVR’s accessories are a sound choice for any Pico 4 owner.

ZyberVR Elite head strap, magnetic battery pack and Night IR light for Pico 4 review samples courtesy of ZyberVR. For more details and to purchase these accessories please visit their official website on the following links. If you use the code HITECHCENTURY on checkout , you’ll also enjoy a great 20% discount!

ZyberVR Elite head strap https://zybervr.com/products/zybervr-pico-4-headstrap-with-tpu-cushion 

ZyberVR magnetic battery pack https://zybervr.com/products/zybervr-battery-pack-5000mah-for-vr-headset-with-type-c-port 

ZyberVR Night IR light https://zybervr.com/products/zybervr-3w-u-shaped-ir-light