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Bloomberg reports that Oculus (Facebook) will unveil a standalone VR headset that does not require a tether or smartphone:
Facebook Inc. is taking another stab at turning its Oculus Rift virtual reality headset into a mass-market phenomenon. Later this year, the company plans to unveil a cheaper, wireless device that the company is betting will popularize VR the way Apple did the smartphone.
Currently VR hardware comes in two flavors: cheap headsets that turn smartphones into virtual reality players (like Samsung's $130 Gear VR) and high-end gaming rigs (like Facebook's $400 Oculus Rift) that hook up to $1,000-plus desktop computers. Facebook's new headset is designed to bridge the gap -- a device that will sell for as little as $200 and need not be tethered to a PC or phone, according to people familiar with its development. It will ship next year and represent an entirely new category.
Like current Oculus products, the new headset will be geared toward immersive gaming, watching video and social networking, said the people who asked not to be named to discuss a private matter. Code-named "Pacific," the device resembles a more compact version of the Rift and will be lighter than Samsung's Gear VR headset, one of the people said. The device's design and features aren't finalized and could still change, but the idea is that someone will be able to pull the headset out of their bag and watch movies on a flight just the way you can now with a phone or tablet.
Even $400 is not low enough.
Also at TechCrunch and The Verge.
Previously: Google Partnering With HTC and Lenovo for Standalone VR Headsets
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 14 2017, @02:01PM (1 child)
I hate exercise; it's almost never enjoyable for me—it provides me with very little reason to want to do it, or even to build a habit. I almost feel like exercise is another one of those lies taught by the powers-that-be, that it's actually bad for health (because it makes me feel ill), and that the little people are taught to exercise in order to speed up their deaths.
Well, then again, maybe the problem is that I find exercise so incredibly boring, especially when its loner activity—and social exercise, such as sports, takes so much effort to organize that it's a challenge to keep going, let alone set up in the first place.
So, maybe this will be the solution: In the future, people will have dedicated "holodeck" rooms in their houses, which are padded and meant specifically for VR activity. Then, in the comfort of one's own private and pitiful existence, one could easily engage in social exercise—imagine first-person shooters, where you have to do 5 push-ups to reload your weapon, or to respawn, etc.
This sort of thing could get all those nerdy, sedentary kids working out, and building up an appreciation for the bodies at the same time that they're entertaining their minds.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 14 2017, @03:12PM
Sure, why not. Not that VR is required in your pushups-to-play scenario. Strap any old smartphone bursting with accelerometers to your belt and you're set.
I passionately hate Failbook and sincerely hope all their ventures go bust.