News Bits – Page 60 – Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation

September 4, 2016

Samsung Gear VR 2015 Model Now $60

See Also: Samsung Launches Gear VR Headset in the US, Coming ‘Soon’ to Europe

If you’ve got a compatible Samsung phone, here’s a deal worth considering: the 2015 Gear VR headset can be bought brand new for $60.

Launched last year as the first ‘consumer’ version of the Gear VR headset, the 2015 model is still a perfectly viable choice compared to the 2016 Gear VR model released last month, provided you’ve got one of the compatible Samsung smartphones: Note 5, S6 Edge+, S6, S6 Edge, S7, and S7 Edge. See all Gear VR headset models and phone compatibility here.

ritchie gear vr — **See Also:** New and Improved 2016 Samsung Gear VR vs. 2015 Model

Amazon now has the 2015 Gear VR headset for sale for $60, also part of Amazon Prime, so if you don’t want to wait (and you’re a Prime member), you’ll be able to take advantage of free two day shipping.

The Gear VR headset, which distributes games and apps through the Oculus Home platform, has led the way in mobile VR performance and content since its introduction. Samsung launched the latest model, which sells for $100, last month, and is compatible with all the smartphones of the prior model, including the new Galaxy Note 7. Meanwhile, Google is set to introduce Daydream, a VR platform which the company says will be competitive with Gear VR, this fall.

The post Samsung Gear VR 2015 Model Now $60 appeared first on Road to VR.

August 23, 2016

Free Shipping on Oculus Rift Through August 31st

According to the official Oculus product page, the company is offering free shipping on Rift orders through the end of the month.

If you’re looking to pick up an Oculus Rift, you can snag a small discount if you order before the end of the month, thanks to a free shipping offer from the company.

oculus touch apple marketing — **See Also:** 3 Moves Oculus is Borrowing from Apple’s Marketing Playbook

Following shipping delays with the headset’s initial launch earlier this year, the company eventually sorted things out and beat back a 4 month order backlog, announcing in July that all pending Rifts had been shipped. Currently the Oculus Store says that headsets usually ship within 2 business days.

If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you need not fear the limited nature of this free shipping offer, as you can order the Rift directly from Amazon through Prime to get free two-day shipping (or one day for a little extra) whenever you want.

The post Free Shipping on Oculus Rift Through August 31st appeared first on Road to VR.

August 22, 2016

New Thinner, Lighter HTC Vive 3-in-1 Cable Spotted in the Wild

An HTC Vive customer has posted images of a replacement headset cable which looks to significantly reduce the size and weight of the original.

One of the aspects most mentioned in the first rush of reviews to appear after the Vive’s launch in April, next to the headset’s front-loaded weight, was the chunky 3 in 1 cable that fed from the system’s link box to the headset itself. A seemingly trifling matter you might think, but with the Vive built for room-scale, the drag that cable added to a user’s head could be a considerable, sometimes presence-sapping annoyance.

Now, a user who claims to have returned his Vive’s 3-in-1 cable as faulty, has posted images of the replacement which seems to sport a single, lighter consolidated cable for the majority of it’s run. Weight is therefore reduced and so could be that potential head drag.

No word on whether this is a peek at standardised units sent with newer Vives, or indeed if this is what you’ll receive should you order one from HTC’s Vive accessory store.

The post New Thinner, Lighter HTC Vive 3-in-1 Cable Spotted in the Wild appeared first on Road to VR.

August 13, 2016

Ubisoft Fart Simulating “Nosulus Rift” South Park Ad Pokes Fun at VR Headsets

Ubisoft have taken immersive hardware peripherals to the next logical level for the new South Park game with a fictional, but completely functional, nose-mounted odour generator, the Nosulus Rift.

Subtlety, taste and class – three words you’ll never hear associated with the South Park, so why should advertising campaigns associated with Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s most infamous animated creation be any different?

Ubisoft’s latest ad campaign for the latest, otherwise non VR related game based on the franchise, South Park: The Fractured But Whole (geddit?), features the Nosulus Rift, a nose-mounted aroma generator that can reproduce the smell of powerful, human sourced gaseous emissions.

“In South Park: The Fractured But Whole you are playing the new kid in town, the hero,” explains Ubisoft San Francisco’s Jason Schroder says in the video. “One of your special abilities is the power of your ass. The only way to help people experience that strength is to really make sure that they can feel it, and that means getting really close.”

It’s comforting to see that virtual reality and, in this case, the Oculus Rift has become so culturally relevant that expensive promotional campaigns can be inspired by it.

But what we really want to know is: If it really did exist, would you buy it?

The post Ubisoft Fart Simulating “Nosulus Rift” South Park Ad Pokes Fun at VR Headsets appeared first on Road to VR.

August 12, 2016

Elders React to the HTC Vive with Joy, Fear, and Disbelief at How Far Technology Has Come

…granted, that’s not much different than how the rest of the world reacts to it in their first try of VR, but this video (above) in the ‘Elders React’ series is too good to pass up.

public-perception — **See Also:** Insights into the Public Perception of VR from Viral Video Reactions

Fine Brothers Entertainment took a group of older folks through three popular HTC Vive games and filmed the reactions to their first time in the VR system.

What amazes me most is that all of these folks have no problem using the system even to do traditionally complex tasks for the inexperience, like digital content creation (as they did in Tilt Brush) or playing a first person shooter (as they did in The Brookhaven Experiment); this speaks to the power of natural motion input, and that VR can be accessible to everyone.

The post Elders React to the HTC Vive with Joy, Fear, and Disbelief at How Far Technology Has Come appeared first on Road to VR.

August 11, 2016

Killer Raptors and Crash Landings – ‘Robinson: The Journey’ Dev Diary Explores Crytek’s Second VR Title

Robinson: The Journey is Crytek’s second VR game, coming to PSVR, following The Climb which was launched earlier this year for the Oculus Rift. A new development diary explores the game’s premise, design philosophy, and killer raptors.

Crytek has long been known for amazing visuals powered by their own CryEngine; lucky us then that the company has had their attention focused on VR from quite early on and is in development of their second VR title, Robinson: The Journey.

sky harbor virtual reality vrscore crytek cryengine (1) — **See Also:** Crytek and Basemark Accidentally Made the Most Spectacular Cinematic VR Short I’ve Ever Seen

Due out for PlayStation VR later this year, the game puts players in the boots of a child stranded on an unknown planet that’s anything but devoid of life. Players will encounter incredibly lush terrain and all manner of dinosaurs.

While in demos of the game we’ve seen mostly friendly (if gigantic) creatures, the company’s first development diary of the game (above) suggests we’ll come face to face with raptors who would love nothing more than a quick snack.

If that turns out to be half as frightening as the raptor encounters in Jurassic Park (1993), sign me up.

The post Killer Raptors and Crash Landings – ‘Robinson: The Journey’ Dev Diary Explores Crytek’s Second VR Title appeared first on Road to VR.