One of the biggest obstacles facing virtual reality (VR) adoption isn’t price/variety of headsets or content availability it’s comfort. Not on the hardware side as companies like VR Cover have lots of options available, rather the trickier problem of in-game nausea. Movement in VR titles has always proved to be a bone of contention, mainly due to the fact that what affects one person won’t necessarily affect another. There have been numerous ways to address the issue, using both software and hardware solutions. The latest comes from VRGO with a new chair mounted device called VRGO Mini, which has begun a Kickstarter crowd-funding campaign today.
VRGO is a British VR hardware company based in Bristol, previously known for the VRGO Chair, a Bluetooth compatible device which allowed users to tilt and shift their body to move their virtual avatar. The VRGO Mini works on the exact same principle – it features the same chipset – just shrunk down to a more portable and lightweight size that can be used on a chair or sofa.
The Kickstarter campaign aims to raise £20,000 GBP in 30 days which doesn’t sound a lot when developing hardware. However, as mentioned most of hardwork has already been solved by transplanting the circuit board and sensors from the VRGO Chair. VRFocus got to see this in action and test it using PlayStation VR and Oculus Quest, check out the hands-on preview for more info.
There are three main tiers depending on how quick you are and whether you want haptic feedback in your VRGO Mini. The cheapest price is £119 for the Super Early Bird tier or £149 for the Super Early Bird haptic model. These two are very limited in quantity, with the price then jumping for the Special Kickstarter Price tier and then the Normal Kickstarter Price.
The VRGO Mini has been designed to work with most VR headsets via Bluetooth including Oculus Rift/Rift S, HTC Vive, Valve Index, Pimax, Windows Mixed Reality, Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR for example. With a built-in rechargeable battery it’s completely wireless, offering eight hours of gameplay for a one-hour fast charge.
Should the Kickstarter prove successful (many recently have) then deliveries are expected to commence during March 2020. For further updates keep reading VRFocus.