Current virtual reality (VR) headsets like Oculus Rift and HTC Vive certainly do a good job when it comes to immersing users in virtual worlds, but they are still first generation consumer headsets that can be improved upon. Yesterday, Pimax launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund its 8K resolution headset – and its little 5K brother – and judging by the reaction so far better resolution certainly seems to be the way to go.

Pimax was looking to raise $200,000 USD in just over a month. Well it certainly smashed that quickly and easily achieving its funding goal within one hour and 13 minutes, Twitter user Nick Morey spotted. As many hours have passed since then, Pimax has so far secured almost $600,000, tripling its funding target is less than 24 hours and with 44 days still to go.

Those with long/good memories may remember Oculus Rift’s Kickstarter back in 2012, which saw the company look for $250,000, achieve that in under 24 hours, and go onto achieve $2.4 million by the end of the campaign. Will Pimax replicate Oculus Rift’s Kickstarter success? That’s hard to say as the market is very different now. The Oculus Rift DK1 was only a developer kit with no competition, while the Pimax 8K costs more whilst fighting for customers in a small but expanding market.

What has gained people’s attention are Pimax’s specs. With a 200-degree field of view (FoV), a resolution of 3840 x 2160 per eye, Steam VR and Oculus compatibility for loads of content, and the headset can be bought with its own tracking solution or used with HTC Vive’s Lighthouse base stations and controllers.

There’s certainly plenty of interest around the Pimax system, as the campaign continues VRFocus will bring you further updates.