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James asked: “What do you think of the state of VR? I have a PlayStation VR and am possibly interested in an HTC Vive”
James, it’s hard to say what the state of VR actually is, 2016 was supposed to be the year VR was going to go viral and everyone was going to embrace it, and it was not. Facebook has been dropping the price of the Oculus Rift since sales have lagged, and the new focus seems to be on AR above VR. Having said that, the technology is not dead, it just hasn’t found its killer app.
When you think about it, it’s not an easy sell, you’re expected to put on a headset, isolate yourself from those around you and go into a different world. AR can be a social experience, just look at Pokemon Go, VR is still seen as a more isolated experience.
He had an “uncanny valley” moment
Joe has tried the HTC Vive at the Microsoft Store in beautiful Dadeland Mall here in South Florida. He’s no gamer, but Vive blew him away. In fact, he had an “uncanny valley” moment — that’s where 3D graphics look so lifelike and fluid that it makes people uncomfortable — and had to take the headset off!
Keep in mind that virtual reality gear like the HTC requires a beefy computer system. You’re not going to get away with plugging it into a $299 bargain bin laptop. HTC suggests an Intel Core i5-4590 or AMD FX-8350 CPU, NVIDIA GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX-480 graphics card, 4GB of RAM, HDMI 1.4 or DisplayPort 1.2, and a 2.0 USB port. You can download the ViveCheck app from HTC’s website to test your system for compatibility.