[Technology] Right then Space Cadets Who is Saving up for An Apple VR Headset?

[South Stand Bonfire]

All this VR stuff never really bothered me. Then I purchased a kitchen from Wren and, after days of designing it, I was taken into a VR room and there was my kitchen in full. I could walk around it as if it was there. So tempted to buy the full Sony PS with F1 full kit, but never did.

Out of interest, could you virtually open the cupboard doors, corner units etc to see how they worked/ where the pinch points were etc or was it just a 3D visualisation of what was on the drawings?

 

[schmunk]

Stuff like AR contact lenses are decades away because there is no way of powering them - even at the highest price point for the elite.

Don't be such a negative ninny - it's an easy fix using current technology. No downsides. Next?

 

[portlock seagull]

I’m enjoying reality too much. Don’t need anything virtual, using up even more energy we can’t afford environmentally

 

[beorhthelm]

so was there any selling point, new innovation, on the app side maybe? all i can see is something 5x price of Oculus with an Apple badge.

 

[Official Old Man]

Out of interest, could you virtually open the cupboard doors, corner units etc to see how they worked/ where the pinch points were etc or was it just a 3D visualisation of what was on the drawings?

Don't think you could open doors. We had an island and I was worried about the gaps. Also was knocking down a wall so with VR could see room in full.

 

[Bozza]

so was there any selling point, new innovation, on the app side maybe? all i can see is something 5x price of Oculus with an Apple badge.

Having just watched MKBHD's first impression video (I'll pop it below), I'm not sure there's anything else available that is in any way comparable. But those who approach all this stuff from a perspective of "Apple just copy other people and charge a lot more for the same stuff other people have been doing for ages" then there's little point reading/watching anything as minds are already made up.

It looks very, very clever indeed, but that doesn't make it a consideration for most given the price etc.

 

[Arthur]

Having just watched MKBHD's first impression video (I'll pop it below), I'm not sure there's anything else available that is in any way comparable. But those who approach all this stuff from a perspective of "Apple just copy other people and charge a lot more for the same stuff other people have been doing for ages" then there's little point reading/watching anything as minds are already made up.

It looks very, very clever indeed, but that doesn't make it a consideration for most given the price etc.

It does look very cool but $3.5k and only 2 hours battery life means it's a no from me.

Plus you'd look a right bellend with one of those on.

 

[Bozza]

It does look very cool but $3.5k and only 2 hours battery life means it's a no from me.

Plus you'd look a right bellend with one of those on.

Exactly - very much a proof of concept / first draft at this stage, and I can't envision what I'd possibly use it for even if I could justify the price and, like most, I certainly can't!

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Exactly - very much a proof of concept / first draft at this stage, and I can't envision what I'd possibly use it for even if I could justify the price and, like most, I certainly can't!

Wonder if the day might come that the Albion will be able to offer a VR Headset Season Ticket? Wouldn't take that much of a giant leap in technology, I'd have thought, more of a challenge in terms of licencing

 

[jcdenton08]

Wonder if the day might come that the Albion will be able to offer a VR Headset Season Ticket? Wouldn't take that much of a giant leap in technology, I'd have thought, more of a challenge in terms of licencing

A lot more possible would be select premium boxes offering an AR headset with overlays of replays/match stats etc live at the game: the problem would be the huge cost in developing software for this, maintaining it and operating it. The wifi barely works as it is…

 

[CheeseRolls]

MKBHD in the vid Bozza linked talked about sitting virtual courtside at an NBA game. It was one of the least convincing parts of the presentation for me. The work on the user interface is outstanding and the promised integration into the apple ecosphere, will attract many, but if you want to watch a play in the game and the director wants to show someone in the crowd, you can move your head as much as you like, you still aren't going to be able to influence where the camera is pointing.

I am so far off target audience for this device, but it will be interesting to watch how it progresses. It sets a high standard for the competition and I don't think the battery life is going to be as big an inhibitor as people think.

 

[Audax]

Having just watched MKBHD's first impression video (I'll pop it below), I'm not sure there's anything else available that is in any way comparable. But those who approach all this stuff from a perspective of "Apple just copy other people and charge a lot more for the same stuff other people have been doing for ages" then there's little point reading/watching anything as minds are already made up.

It looks very, very clever indeed, but that doesn't make it a consideration for most given the price etc.

Yup, Apple do a whole lot more than just "copy". They're very good at sitting back, watching how the market and user experience etc develops for a product, and then a) forecasting out what the future is for that product, b) whether it will be marketable and profitable, c) refining, polishing, and enhancing so that when they d) drop an announcement, they're presenting a very desirable looking product that has taken off a lot of the rough edges that those who've already launched have left in place.

Where Apple isn't so good, IMO, is iterative innovation after launch. It's almost as if they get tunnel vision once they've launched: "our product is better than theirs, and will always be better, so we can't learn anything from them" seems to be their mentality. The reality is that in the mobile space there's a lot of areas where the iPhone (a genuine game changer in mobile originally) has fallen behind over the years, and Apple has been very slow to wake up to that.

I expect there will be enough people buying their new device that it will help further open up the market for xR devices. But I also expect an awful lot will baulk at the price point. For now, Apple are entering the market at $3.5k with a super top-end device. They'll still be competing for wallets with the existing (and next generation) devices that are sub-$1k.

At some point in the next few years I'll invest in an xR device (for home use). I've been fortunate enough to have a friend who works in xR and been able to sample a number of devices over the years as a result. I won't be stretching my budget to the Apple thing, though. More likely it'll be a Quest 3 or whichever version of the HTC Vive makes sense for my budget when the time comes.

 

[beorhthelm]

Having just watched MKBHD's first impression video (I'll pop it below), I'm not sure there's anything else available that is in any way comparable. But those who approach all this stuff from a perspective of "Apple just copy other people and charge a lot more for the same stuff other people have been doing for ages" then there's little point reading/watching anything as minds are already made up.

It looks very, very clever indeed, but that doesn't make it a consideration for most given the price etc.

while the tech looks impressive, and see where the expense comes from, feels like a lot of solutions to problems headsets create. like showing your eyes through, 3d models of you for face time. i do like multiple "screen" available as i look around, rather than limited physical. they may have nearly delivered the OS from Disclousure (1994).

notably there were no apps or real changes to what's gone before, still seems a lack of scenarios where a headset beats screens. (there are some in specialist areas, design, training, etc). its no bad thing to acknowledge innovations Apple have made in the past have been taking some fringe tech and making it mainstream in a usable way. and tieing you to their eco system (iTunes was their greatest hit). this still seems a step behind what was attempted with Google glass, which remains peak headset (killer USP - always on, wearable in everyday use).

 

[clapham_gull]

Having just watched MKBHD's first impression video (I'll pop it below), I'm not sure there's anything else available that is in any way comparable. But those who approach all this stuff from a perspective of "Apple just copy other people and charge a lot more for the same stuff other people have been doing for ages" then there's little point reading/watching anything as minds are already made up.

It looks very, very clever indeed, but that doesn't make it a consideration for most given the price etc.

 

[HeaviestTed]

The only way VR will work is for gaming, that is what it was designed for, that is the only realistic experience that works.

The problem is that business execs think they can shoehorn business and lifestyle experiences into it but it just doesn’t work.

Wanna watch a film by yourself, don’t mind a sweaty head, don’t wear glasses, don’t want to be aware of your surroundings- great watch a film on vr.

Other demos like viewing your family photos, other than single men who have screwed up their marriages and want to spend hours crying over their photos of their children’s parties (obviously not actually crying as that would mean taking the headsets off) - who wants to look at photos by themselves? Join an online viewing party, great, I’ll wait until my mother in law, father in law, uncle and nan all spend £3k each to buy one.

VR should be left to the gamers to enjoy.

 

[HeaviestTed]

The only way VR will work is for gaming, that is what it was designed for, that is the only realistic experience that works.

The problem is that business execs think they can shoehorn business and lifestyle experiences into it but it just doesn’t work.

Wanna watch a film by yourself, don’t mind a sweaty head, don’t wear glasses, don’t want to be aware of your surroundings- great watch a film on vr.

Other demos like viewing your family photos, other than single men who have screwed up their marriages and want to spend hours crying over their photos of their children’s parties (obviously not actually crying as that would mean taking the headsets off) - who wants to look at photos by themselves? Join an online viewing party, great, I’ll wait until my mother in law, father in law, uncle and nan all spend £3k each to buy one.

VR should be left to the gamers to enjoy.

Although after watching that explainer video it looks well cool and I’ll probably get one

 

[jcdenton08]

Although after watching that explainer video it looks well cool and I’ll probably get one

Let me tell you about my MLM scheme, you make money while you sleep! It has a glossy video and everything. If you’d just DM me your bank details…

 

[HeaviestTed]

Let me tell you about my MLM scheme, you make money while you sleep! It has a glossy video and everything. If you’d just DM me your bank details…

Details sent!

 

[RandyWanger]

Thinking about it for work purposes, watching the collaboration video while in a video call but you never see it from the other people's perspective. There's no camera, so do you use your iPhone Continuity Camera and then they see you with the goggles on?

--

EDIT - Keep watching and it will make a VR version of you. Spooky.

 

[South Stand Bonfire]

Wonder if the day might come that the Albion will be able to offer a VR Headset Season Ticket? Wouldn't take that much of a giant leap in technology, I'd have thought, more of a challenge in terms of licencing

Oh buggar, typical technology arriving too late. If available earlier we could have seen a virtual Locardia actually playing football ….