The status of VR headsets in 2019: What should I buy?
by Chikko Moni Chakma ✔Guest Posting / Article Writing ✔Link Building ✔In the last three years, virtual reality has not set the world on fire. Still, 2019 is emerging as the best year in the history of the RV, with new headphones that could have cracked the code of what players need.
After all, how many people do you
know with a room-scale RV equipment in your living room? Probably not many, and
according to Statista, less than 5 million units were sold in 2018. Clearly,
the RV is not the overwhelming success that some expected when Oculus and HTC
launched their high-end PC headphones in 2016. But that it doesn't mean the
party is over.
Is this the year you should worry about RV? Let's take a look.
A lot can change in a year, and
the independent headphones - which do not require a PC or a phone - which we
said would come have begun to arrive.
That said, none of the main use
case of the RV has changed in the past two years; It is still mainly about
games. There have been several furtive attempts to turn the RV into something
more than gaming platforms, such as VR virtual desktops (such as the Oculus
Desktop and the Multiplatform Virtual Desktop) and cinematic experiences. But
virtual desktops are clumsy, and video platforms are prima facie inferior to
real-world home cinemas. Why watch a movie in a headset - with a lower
resolution and with the mesh effect we see with most headphones - when instead
it can be seen in the real world at 4K?
Speaking of Star Trek, there are
also simulators, such as Star Trek: Bridge Crew, which puts you in command of a
starship (and is as rewarding as it sounds). And then there is the realistic
and enough to smell the salt water Iron Wolf VR, a sub-simulator of World War
II. There are rhythm games, lightsaber games and lightsaber rhythm games. If
you have played the 2D version of Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes, you owe it
to yourself to play the VR version, in which a player drives a VR bomb while
surrounded by teammates in the meat space, helping to disarm it. And it's hard
not to love ridiculously lovely puzzle games like Waddle Home.
Regardless of the game you are
in, don't be surprised if you have a silly smile all the time you are in an RV
environment, and the emotion does not disappear over time.
We would like to see more
conventional developers dedicated to creating large flagship games, but there
is no shortage of innovation in games, thanks to the countless independent
developers who create small games for various platforms.
In short: RV games are not a
single trick pony, a trick or a fad. You might get tired of a specific game,
but the experience of the VR keeps attracting you to get more.
Wired headphones are becoming cheaper and easier to use
So why doesn't everyone have
their own RV team? Well, there is no doubt that cost and complexity have made
adoption difficult.
The “tied” headphones that led
the revolution in 2016 - the HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift - suffered a high
cost, but prices are moderating over three years. Early adopters were willing
to spend $ 798 to get a complete Rift package or $ 799 for an HTC Vive, but the
Oculus Rift S (an update of the original Rift) sells for only $ 399.
Also, HTC Vive, which remains
essentially the same product that HTC launched in 2016, sells for $ 499, less
than $ 799.
That is still a lot of money, and
complexity remains an Achilles heel. Anchored systems require robust PCs with
expensive graphics cards. Oculus needs an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti or higher,
while HTC needs an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970. If you are already a player, you
probably have a PC that meets those specifications, but it may be in a small
room that is not suitable for the RV, so you will have to move it to the living
room or purchase a second PC. And for the Vive scale living room, it is
necessary to mount the trackers on the wall. Is it surprising that adoption is
slow?
Tracking the inputs and outputs makes the RV easier
Another exciting innovation is
the arrival of the so-called “inside out” follow-up.
This year, however, we are
beginning to see headphones “from the inside out”, and these are the ones that
change the game. By placing a set of cameras in headphones designed to provide
6DOF without external hardware, the initial setup is greatly simplified and the
headphones themselves become much more portable.
The Oculus Rift S is one of those
headphones from the inside out, which should be available at the time this
article was published. It sells for $ 399. And HTC is not far behind, preparing
the next HTC Vive Cosmos, which similarly dispenses with the need for the
Lighthouses.
Mobile headphones are still for RV tourists
Until recently, when it came to
VR, there were only two options: an expensive connection system or mobile
headphones that depended on a smartphone inserted to deliver the products. Now
there is a third option, the independent headphones, which we will reach in a
moment. But before getting there, it is worth noting that mobile headphones
offer great value if you want to dip your toes in the ocean of the RV,
especially because you can do so for less than $ 100.
The gold standard for mobile
headphones is probably the Samsung Gear VR, which accommodates a variety of
Galaxy headphones.
If you are not a Samsung user,
there are also options such as Google Daydream View, which works with a dozen
mobile phones, including Pixel 2, Pixel 3 and LG, ASUS and Huawei models. Or,
there is the Pansonite 3D VR and the MERGE VR, which work with a wider variety
of iPhones and Android phones, and cost about $ 50.
Independent headphones could be the sweet spot
What's new in the RV universe in
2019 is the growing availability of independent VR headsets, models that don't
require connection to a PC or a phone, since all the electronics are on board
the headphones. It is the next logical step in the evolution of the RV, and it
may be the version of the RV that puts virtual reality headsets in each living
room.
It is a world of RV
With so much innovation happening
in the RV space, we are beginning to see that headphones are transformed into
products that make sense for average consumers, rather than for the first to
adopt a tracking system from inside to outside that allows room-scale movement,
independent headphones that don't require a PC or smartphone, and smart
innovations at all price points. ”
Although that does not guarantee
the success of the RV at home, it is likely that the RV will not go anywhere.
We are developing an appetite for VR, as evidenced by emerging VR experiences
in shopping and entertainment centers across the country. Dreamscape, for
example, offers a handful of interactive RV adventures in the southern
California area with plans to deploy additional locations later this year.
What you should do in 2019
As you can see, this is a
turbulent time to look at the VR headset.
If you want to invest $ 100 or
less to see what all this fuss is about, a mobile headset that is compatible
with your smartphone is a good provisional measure, especially if it includes a
handheld controller, so you don't have to keep a hand on the headset to move
around the environment.
But if you're willing to make a
bigger investment, you may want to wait a few months to see how the dust
settles on the board of new products that fall this year. You can't deny that
independent headphones with inside-out tracking like the Oculus Quest feels
like the future, but it could take more than one or two generations of these
devices before graphics and performance maintain the standard set by the
Headphones with microphone attached.
Meanwhile, if you can take care
of the cables and PC system requirements, there is much to be said for more
traditional headphones attached like the Rift S and possibly even the next
Valve Index ($ 999) (which doubles the tracking index from the inside out, but
promises a noticeably better resolution at a higher price). If you have an
interest in VR and have not yet purchased a system, 2019 promises to be a compelling
year.
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Created on Jul 28th 2019 13:54. Viewed 697 times.