Best answer: No, the second-generation PlayStation VR will not be wireless. It will, however, feature a single cord and a “simpler” connection to the PS5.
PSVR 2 Not ready to cut the cord….yet
When it launches on the PS5 sometime after 2021, the PlayStation VR 2 will not be wireless. Sony revealed this somewhat disappointing news when it officially announced the PSVR 2. While many gamers were hoping that Sony would follow Facebook’s lead in delivering a wireless VR solution, it seems that the technology isn’t ready for wireless VR from a PlayStation console.
Sony is following Facebook’s lead on more powerful VR experiences in many ways by announcing that a single-cable solution will be employed with the PSVR 2 on PS5. Facebook’s official explanation for playing PC VR games on the Oculus Quest 2 is an Oculus Link cable, a single 15-foot-long USB Type-C cable. While Sony is still playing coy with many details on the second-generation PSVR, the announcement on February 23, 2021, suggests that Sony will use a similar solution. Since the PS5 has USB Type-C ports — the same port used on PC to link up VR headsets — it’s pretty easy to assume Sony will be ditching the processing box from the original PSVR and using only one long cable instead.
PSVR 2 Will it ever is wireless?
While it certainly looks like the PSVR 2 won’t be wireless at launch, Sony has been working behind the scenes on a wireless headset for some time now. We first heard about the possibility in a May 2019 interview with Sony Global Head of R&D for PlayStation Dominic Mallinson. Later in October 2019, a patent confirmed what Mallinson was saying.
Given that the PSVR 2 isn’t slated to release until sometime in 2022, at the earliest, it would be a bit surprising to see Sony only launch the headset with a wire attached. Oculus Quest and Quest 2 gamers can play PC VR games wirelessly using Virtual Desktop, a third-party app that uses your home’s Wi-Fi network as a wireless connection point. While this method works incredibly well for many players, folks without the best Wi-Fi 6 routers will likely see stuttering and other nausea-inducing effects. Given the unreliability of this solution, neither Facebook nor Sony is likely to make it an official way to stream wireless VR games any time soon.
The only other option we’re aware of now is a solution that was employed on the HTC Vive several years back and utilized a dedicated wireless card to stream a 60GHz signal to the headset and back. This is a pricier solution and, given Sony’s history of trying to keep costs down for its console hardware and accessories, will likely not be included in a base model. Given that the PSVR 2 is already an add-on accessory for the PS5, it’s not unreasonable to expect that Sony could debut an adapter or second wireless model either alongside the PSVR 2’s launch or sometime in the future.
