Virtual Reality Headset

Tech, TV, Mobile, Internet and Geek Corner
1
Does anyone have any experience with a Virtual Reality headset? I am thinking of buying one as a gift, namely Oculus Quest. I have wandered into an alternative universe trying to understand the specifications. Does anyone have one or have any advice? Many thanks in advance.

2
I can't be of much help when it comes to comparing specs, but the PS4 headset is extremely good.

3

I love my Quest, its a stand alone system but can also be connected to a (powerful) PC for any PC VR Game

4
Could I ask if you have streamed anything from Steam VR.

5
You sure you mean "streaming"? I know that steam VR Games are working with the Quest thanks to a very nice german facebook group. The "official" usb 3.1 cable by Oculus will be out in Jan, but there are other options available. Just check on youtube or google.

6
To be honest, I have no idea what I mean by streaming. I thought I had heard one of my sons mention that. Basically I wanted to know if steam games work with Oculus. Thank you for the confirmation that they do and your help. I shall opt for Oculus. Happy gaming!

7
I had a demo of a Quest from a friend and I lasted an hour before I ordered one, I demo'ed to three friends and they all bought one.

The big advantage of it is that it doesn't need Steam as it's standalone. The new Oculus link feature allows it to be linked to a PC to use Steam to provide the rendering power and displayed in the headset, but - cable. I've not tried the link as my PC graphics card doesn't have the grunt for it.

The quest has two models, 64gb and 128GB, the reviews I read said that 128 was only if you were seriously into gaming, otherwise 64 is fine.

I recently took mine to my parents and mum spent a happy hour in it with me showing her places I had travelled that she wouldn't be able to get to.

8
Thank you very much for this. I have ordered the 64gb and am really pleased to have confirmation that I have chosen the right one.

It also wouldn't ever have occurred to me that it could have any other function apart from gaming.

Thanks for your help.

9
I've not tried this, but does anyone use this for watching films? I wondered if it would be an alternative to getting a giant TV if you can create a 'virtual big screen' with it?

10
Now that we have unpacked and tried out our Occulus Quest, I can confirm that you can watch Netflix on it, for example. It is as though you are sitting in a virtual room looking at a huge screen. I don't personally know if I would want to sit with the headset on for the duration of a film, but my sons are very taken with it. It certainly seems well worth the money.

11
I have an oculus rift connected to a powerful PC. It is an awesome experience whether gaming or watching footage. For movie watching, it depends what you are in to. I like the immersion you get with the VR experience, but bear in mind you are looking at a full HD screen, as opposed to in my case a 4K HDR TV, which I'd rather be looking at for movie watching.

I use the VR mainly for gaming (e.g. Elite Dangerous... the virtual cockpit experience is insane).

Well worth the money.

12
I wish I hadn't clicked on this thread now. Seems inescapable that I am buying one now.

Would you mind elaborating? I have an elderly grandma with bad eyesight and a more immersive experience might really help. What's the set-up for taking the set over to her place? Can I just load the jpegs and some avis into the memory? They have a TV with USB ports and a laptop. Thanks!

Sorry for the noob questions, I haven't really researched because I felt like VR isn't "ready" yet.

13
I just got an Oculus Quest second hand and I agree, it's brilliant.

One small issue: I wear glasses and the seller seems to have lost the glasses spacer that should have been included. I can't find any way to order it separately.

If any of you don't need their glasses spacer, I'd gladly buy it from you.

@Bozza: Yes, you can put pictures and videos on the Quests internal memory.

14

OK. 7 years later, I managed to try one over the weekend and was pleasantly surprised.

With a Meta Quest 3S, I was able to watch a film in a ‘virtual cinema’ and it was much nicer than my small crappy TV. The downside is that you’re wearing something on your head, which isn’t as comfortable of just watching TV.

I could see the advantage of using this if you were on a long flight (and don’t mind looking like a knob).

I also tried a virtual boxing game, which just showed how unfit I am. After three 2 minute bouts, I was tired and I can feel my muscles hurting today.

The headset does need precise placement on your head to get a sharp image. I’m told the more expensive Quest 3 has better lenses which are more forgiving of inaccurate placement.

As I don’t really play games, I’m not sure I’d have too much value in having one. But, overall, it was better than I thought it would be.

15

My son had one, connected to his PC - to play games.

The problem was that you need a hell of a lot of room to use it and his room where his desk and PC were located was just not big enough.

He doesn’t play games any more so it’s sitting in a box somewhere.

I ought to have a look and see what else we can do with it.