Oculus
I've had an Oculus Developers' Kit for a couple of years, (I use it in my work). I recently upgraded to the consumer version and have really been enjoying it. First, for you cynics, VR is not all about shoot 'em up games or porn. There are many really worthwhile applications in it and most are free after you have the hardware. A couple of my favorites are an exploration of the ISS and an exploration of the solar system (both free). The ISS app puts you inside the space station and you feel like you are floating and you use grab bars to push off and propel yourself thru it. It is HIGHLY realistically detailed and has information video tutorials by some of the astronauts and has exercises such as using the joysticks to control the Canada Arm to retrieve and dock a cargo module. You can also make your way to the EVA module and then exit to an exterior exploration of the entire station, again very highly detailed as you float above the earth. Believe me, it is friggin' breathtaking.
The pics from Saturn in another thread lead me to post about Oculus. In the solar system app, you get into your own personal space ship in a space port hangar and then fly out to any body you choose in our solar system. Of course there is cheating on the speed limit and worm hole shortcuts, but each body is modeled using the latest and greatest real photos of the planet or moon's surface. The navigation system is genius for finding the various planets and it really gives you a feeling of the scale and layout of our home system. You can fly thru the rings of Saturn and visit the moons. You can fly to Pluto and see the shiny ice volcanoes. Both of these apps are highly educational in that you come away feeling like you have actually been there and you will have a much better understanding of these places
There are many more free apps, including 360 degree photos of hundreds of breathtaking places on this planet. There is also a Google Earth app, and hundreds of other apps, some free, some for $30-$50. Oh, and MS Flight Simulator has been ported to it.
I have no financial interest in Oculus and no gain from recommending it. But it has gotten so much better and is somewhat reasonably priced these days. Here is what you need and what you need to spend:
1. You need a somewhat modern desktop PC, with an i5 or better processor and reasonable ram and storage (not anything abnormal). Laptops will not work, and Macs won't work (that I know of yet).
2. You need a high end video card that will set you back another $200 (altho my nVidia GTX 770 works fine and can probably be found for $100).
3. Oculus, the current consumer version which includes headset, two hand controllers and two sensor cameras. The kit retails for $399 but can be found on sale occasionally for $350 (probably soon now that Christmas is past).
That's it. For $500 - $600 USD you won't be sorry. I apologize for my enthusiasm, and I know that many wooden boaters are traditionalists at heart and recoil at stuff like this. But if you are at all curious, check it out, you might like it.
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Originally Posted by Mike J
Or maybe I just have always underestimated the apathy towards VR in general. It's something that has fascinated me since the early 90s and I guess I expect others to be equally fascinated by it.
