This week in tech: Oculus Rift to be released to consumers in 2016

[advpoll id=”3″ title=”FIUSM Poll” width=”300″]

It looks like virtual reality, an idea that has so far been bound by sci-fi movies and literature, will soon be attainable.

The consumer version of the oculus rift has been set to go on the market in earlier 2016. Preorders for the set will begin later this year. Oculus Rift, a company bought by Facebook for two billion in July, 2014,  has not confirmed a set price of the headset but there have been rumors that it will cost up to $400. The set will come with an XBOX One gamepad. You can watch the Oculus Rift trailer here:

What we know: The camera is based on the Crescent Bay prototype – 360 degrees. It isn’t wireless (this means cable management may be a problem), it is glasses-friendly, recommended for use in a sitting position and allows you to control the Inter-pupillary distance of the optics making it easier to control the distance between the lenses and your eyes. This makes for a more comfortable viewing experience. A motion controller called Oculus Touch will be released after the headset. The Oculus Touch will be two wireless hand controllers that help track the virtual environment. Also, the headset will require a gaming console plugin while in use.

Oculus recommended these specs for the “full Rift” experience:

NVIDIA GTX 970 / AMD 290 equivalent or greater
Intel i5-4590 equivalent or greater
8GB+ RAM
Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output
2x USB 3.0 ports
Windows 7 SP1 or newer

Apart from the recommended the Rift will require:
Windows 7 SP1
2x USB 3.0 ports
HDMI 1.3 video output supporting a 297MHz clock via a director output architecture

Though the idea of a virtual reality headset being just a few clicks away is tantalizing I am going to wait until further prototypes of the headset are created before I purchase one. With all the competitors the 2016 Oculus Rift will be one of many prototypes to come.

Some other current prototypes that mimic Oculus Rift’s capabilities is: Google Cardboard, Project Morpheus (a Sony headset also set to release in early 2016), HTV Vive (a headset made from Valve, the creators of a popular PC gaming platform called Steam) Microsoft’s HoloLens and Project StarVR – a Swedish game studio’s headset set to be unveiled at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Exposition.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Google Cardboard by ‘Othree’ taken June 30, 2014

HTC_Vive_(19)

HTV Vice By Steam

This doesn’t include tech like Samsung Gear, powered by Oculus, that allows you to turn your Samsung GALAXY Note 4, S6, or S6 edge smartphone into a portable virtual reality system.

Samsung_Gear_VR_(15060788240)

Samsung Gear VR – Phone Detached

Samsung_Gear_VR_(15247457825)

Samsung Gear VR – Phone Attached

Breakthroughs such as the ones above are trying to bridge the gap between our physical world and the intangible, digital one. But are we ready?

Computer stimulated environments are going to change the way consumers view and interact with digital devices. It may be a change that reshapes the way we do business, the way we market products, the way we interact with others (think of VR chat rooms) – essentially, the way we do just about everything.

The more affordable virtual reality becomes the faster it will integrate into our culture. When people think of virtual reality one of the top five things they’ll say it relates to is gaming. I think VR is going to surpass gaming. Maybe not now, maybe not in five years but one day we are going to be wearing headsets to do work-out routines, to shop online, to read textbooks and watch movies. This is the beginning – the single drops that tips over the bucket. Soon we are going to be flooded with the new age – a virtual age.

I have no doubt that virtual reality headsets and their likes will be as frequent in peoples’ everyday routines as cell phones and laptops are now. I’m excited to see how the Oculus Rift and other products like it delve us deeper into the virtual world. But despite my excitement one word sticks to my mind when I think of the VR Revolution – disconnection. How will virtual reality affect human connection? There have already been merges with the adult industry and virtual reality tech. Will this affect the population size? Relationships?

There are still a lot of questions that need answered, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. As for right now virtual reality headsets are set specifically for entertainment. So my advice for anyone who wants to buy the Oculus Rift or one of the other headsets is just to sit back and enjoy.

Sources:
Oculus Blog
Google Cardboard
Project Morpheus
Starbreeze StarVR

Be the first to comment on "This week in tech: Oculus Rift to be released to consumers in 2016"

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.


*