VR Revolution: Facebook Announces $200 Wireless, Standalone Virtual Reality Headset!
Virtual Reality has become a huge game-change in the Entertainment Industry.
While it was extremely expensive just a few years ago, the technology has improved a lot and has become much more mass-adopted.
Although it's still not essentially a household item, VR sets like the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive or Playstation VR have become a lot more popular in recent years as the prices have dropped.
In 2014, social media giant Facebook acquired Oculus - one of the leading producers of Virtual Reality gear.
Since then, they have been working hard to bring Virtual Reality to mass adaption - and it looks like they have come one step closer.
This week, Oculus / Facebook announced a new standalone, wireless VR headset, codenamed "Pacific" - for only $200 !
Current VR headsets can range anywhere between a few thousand dollars to about $400, so Facebook/Oculus is hoping to bridge that huge gap with a device as affordable as $200 which could really further the mass adaption.
The company announced that the new product will come out at some point next year.
Although there isn't a lot of information about the new product yet, the company announced that it is working on it:
“We don't have a product to unveil at this time, however we can confirm that we're making several significant technology investments in the standalone VR category. This is in addition to our commitment to high-end VR products like Oculus Rift and mobile phone products like Gear VR.”-Statement from Oculus
There are 2 different types of VR headsets: those that connect to a gaming console for example the Oculus Rift ($600), and those that are built for a smartphone like Google'S Daydream View ($100.)
But there are immense differences in quality.
While the smartphone-VR sets only have limited featured and quite low image resolution, the high-end headsets can be used to play games on different consoles in high quality.
The new product that Facebook announced is somewhere in between.
It will be a wireless, standalone device, meaning that neither a console nor a smartphone has to be connected to it.
In terms of quality and functions, Facebook aims to produce something in between both worlds, offering both exciting features and high resolution as well as a relatively affordable price.
This is another step in Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's plan to revolutionize and promote Virtual Reality.
In 2016, he stated that Facebook already invested $250 million on funding VR content creators, and then announced that the company would double that sum and invest another $250 million in companies and developers to fund VR content like games and movies.
That's half a billion dollars which will be used to create more compelling VR content!
Of course, Facebook / Oculus aren't the only ones trying to kick-start Virtual Reality. The competition never sleeps!
HTC has announced earlier this year that they are also working on a standalone VR device based on Google's Daydream, and that they will invest $100 million in VR-centric startups to create more VR content.
Samsung will also release a standalone VR device in the future, code-named "Odyssey".
And even the classic Oculus Rift will soon be improved with a wireless version that doesn't need connection to a PC, but still offers the same image quality.
What's your opinion about Virtual Reality? Have you tried it or do you own one of these VR headsets?
© Sirwinchester
I own Playstation VR and this cost me over 500$ + i already owned ps4. So for 200$ i dont know what to expect, could it be something really good or is this just over hyped?
Facebook & Google Is 666 Evil. This new technology Is not what you think It Is.
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Excited to see where this ends up going. I would love to see a mass-adopted VR system going mainstream. I think it will completely blow up the tech industry and it's only a matter of time. Really excited to see the possibilities with this.
Agreed, I can't wait to see how VR will influence the rest of the Entertainment industry once it finally gets mass-adopted. It will definitely put a huge pressure on TV and regular gaming consoles.
IMO this wireless VR is not there yet.
You need 4k screens for each eye - at >120hz -
For that to happen today you need some fast GPUs and a cable.
YES! The main hurdle to VR becoming mainstream has been the barriers to entry - you'd have to have expensive hardware to get decent quality. I think Zuck's move to create a mid-tier product that many more can afford is going to really push forward mainstream adoption. As a content creator, I've been experimenting with a lot of the software (Unity, Unreal, Maya, Zbrush, etc) and have been eager to get into VR content creation, but haven't had the spare coin to get the hardware I need. Hopefully this will change things - not just for me, but for many of the creatives out there. And with Apple's ARkit starting to take off, this could be a watershed year for consumer-accessible Mixed Reality. :)
True!
If you already own a PS4, maybe the playstation VR would be great to try for you.
I also think that it was quite a smart move from Zuckerberg, because he knows the main barrier to enjoy VR is still the price. We'll see how this cheaper alternative will influence the future market!
This will certainly be a very locked-down mid-teir product.
Not quite a fan of how Facebook is approaching VR. I think there will be other major leaders in this space.
No opinion on virtual reality. Tried google cardboard once. But fuck facebook , GO STEEMIT GO ! TEAM STEEMIT BABY!!
Of course, Steemit is much better than facebook - Steem On!
Finally a VR headset that I can finally afford. I've tried VR before at my local mall and I fell in love I can't wait
i want to buy this technology, how much cost it have?
All I know is that i got to test that out when its available. Times are changing fast :)
Yes! I can't wait to see what the quality will be like for a device with this price.
hmm.. Im curious because I have a friend who has an Oculus Rift and he had to purchase a whole new computer set up to ensure optimum playback without latency... I dont know how powerful a standalone headset can be currently...
The quick answer is that it can't, at least if a $200 pricetag is to be believed. The closest we have is the GearVR, which largely depends on strapping a $700 smartphone to it. It's possible that they've partnered with the likes of Samsung to get their wonderful 10nm Exynos SoC featured on the Galaxy S8 stripped of all "phone" functions, but I'm still not convinced it can be $200 with even additional tracking features.
Yes, at current standards it definitely won't be possible to achieve the same quality. But I believe that VR technology will change and improve rapidly, and maybe the device could surprise us when it comes out in late 2018.
Definitely!!
Technology is finally evolving to aspects that we wanted since we started seeing Sci Fi movies. The feeling of having your imagination in front of you and back.
I play the Playstation VR, it wanst quite of expected but there is no progress without having errors at first.
Now...The Oculus on the other hand, that is the piece of magic you wanna tryout. You cant feel, taste or smell, but it more accurate to the feeling of believing that your inside a game. Have said that I can say that there is a long way to go, but through the year's will have a console who only works with VR...You will see