{"id":3895,"date":"2017-10-12T14:30:06","date_gmt":"2017-10-12T13:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vrs.org.uk\/?p=3895"},"modified":"2017-10-12T14:00:13","modified_gmt":"2017-10-12T13:00:13","slug":"oculus-go-fantastic-surprise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vrs.org.uk\/oculus-go-fantastic-surprise\/","title":{"rendered":"Oculus Go is a Fantastic Surprise"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Oculus
Oculus Go. Image Copyright: Oculus. Image used under fair use rationale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Of all the things I expected to read this morning, a press release about a new Oculus HMD was not very high on the list. Yet here we are, Oculus has revealed a standalone VR headset in the form of the <\/span>Oculus Go<\/span><\/a>. While we\u2019re still waiting for standalone HMDs from Google and HTC, the original modern VR pioneers has just edged them all out with a product just about ready to hit shelves.<\/span><\/p>\n

Priced to Sell<\/span><\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s get right to the most important detail. Oculus is selling their standalone VR headset for a frugal $199. Presumably the inclusion of the phrase \u201cstarting at\u201d indicates that this is the cost of the base model. <\/span><\/p>\n

However, considering that a higher-end HMD case <\/span>without any phone hardware<\/span><\/i> costs pretty close to the two hundred mark, I\u2019m pretty shocked at the asking price. It\u2019s clear that Oculus is going for the jugular with the Go\u2019s pricing and the folks at Google and HTC must be feeling a little hot under the collar right now.<\/span><\/p>\n

What We Know About the Oculus Go<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"Oculus
Oculus Go. Image Copyright: Oculus. Image used under fair use rationale<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There\u2019s not a lot of information about the internals of the Go yet, so it\u2019s difficult to say whether the hardware Oculus is selling is a good deal at the asking price. However, I seriously doubt that the Go is to be sold at a profit. As with video game consoles which are sold at a loss, it is in Facebook\u2019s interest to get their VR platform into as many hands as possible. A loss leader (or cost-neutral product) is a great way to do this. Remember that the PS4 was only $100 cheaper than the Xbox One at launch, but that small price difference played a large part in who won the war this generation.<\/span><\/p>\n

We do know what screen will be in this unit, with <\/span>Engadget<\/span><\/a> reporting a 2560X1440 \u201cfast switching\u201d LCD. It seems one of the major goals Oculus has with the Go is to do away with the nasty chicken wire effect even high-end smartphone screens produce. They claim this display unit is amazing for visual clarity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Loud and Proud<\/span><\/h2>\n

One weird move is the decision to build loudspeakers into the HMD itself. So you don\u2019t need headphones to hear the spatial audio. That makes it very compact and convenient, but you might want to use the included headphone jack if you\u2019re on a plane or something.<\/span><\/p>\n

Gear Buddies<\/span><\/h2>\n

Oculus says that Go apps are binary compatible with Gear VR, which suggests the Go runs some form of Android.It also means developers only develop once for both platforms. The Gear controller is also already compatible. One way of looking at the Go then is as an uprated Gear VR that does not lock you into buying a specific brand and model of phone.<\/span><\/p>\n

Track and Trace<\/span><\/h2>\n

Although the Oculus presser doesn\u2019t seem to mention it, Engadget also reported that the Go uses onboard cameras to do a sort of inside-out tracking that we saw with the <\/span>Windows Mixed Reality<\/span><\/a> headsets.<\/span><\/p>\n

If this is true then I feel even more confident in saying that external camera tracking is done. It now looks like a primitive interim-step to integrated 6DoF tracking and I don\u2019t feel like I want to own an HMD that needs a clunky camera to sit around on my desk.<\/span><\/p>\n

Warm and Fuzzy<\/span><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s also interesting that the Go is a fabric-covered device in the same vein as the <\/span>Google Daydream View<\/span><\/a>. This may be a sign that VR for the masses will dump the shiny tech-nerd so that it appeals to tweens and the grandparents. Who, by the way, are now the <\/span>main denizens of Facebook<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not Santa Cruz<\/span><\/h2>\n

The Oculus Go is a separate product to the Santa Cruz headset. Which means that if you were hoping it could be used as a wireless HMD along with a powerful PC, you\u2019re in for a disappointment. Getting wireless transmission of motion data and HD video to work with little enough latency for VR seems like a nightmare, but according to Oculus in the same presser they are still on track. So that\u2019s something to look forward to in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ready for the Big Time<\/span><\/h2>\n

It seems like this may be it. It probably won\u2019t be long until Google and HTC spring their standalones on us and then the mainstream VR revolution might actually happen. It will be interesting to see how the competition respond to the go in terms of pricing, although at this point the core hardware might already be set. Oculus might be holding off on GPU and processor specification announcements to stop Google and HTC from uprating their units at the last minute.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s also going to be important to see how this new form factor will be used best. Smartphones were not designed for VR, which is why their screens suck, they overheat and generally aren\u2019t great for this application.<\/span><\/p>\n

Having a dedicated device like this means you can do more in terms of \u00a0battery life, heat management and component specifications. There\u2019s more room to work and the hardware doesn\u2019t have to multitask.It\u2019s truly exciting to anticipate what a purpose-built VR HMD will be like.<\/span><\/p>\n

It seems that we\u2019ll get to buy the Oculus Go early next year.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Of all the things I expected to read this morning, a press release about a new Oculus HMD was not very high on the list. Yet here we are, Oculus has revealed a standalone VR headset in the form of the Oculus Go. While we\u2019re still waiting for standalone HMDs from Google and HTC, the … Continue reading Oculus Go is a Fantastic Surprise<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3896,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[273,274,272,201],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nOculus Go is a Fantastic Surprise - Virtual Reality Society<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In what was something of a shock at Oculus Connect 4, a new standalone headset was announced to be priced at $199 with inside out motion tracking\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vrs.org.uk\/oculus-go-fantastic-surprise\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Oculus Go is a Fantastic Surprise - 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