Facebook announces the Oculus Rift S PC VR headset

[HEXUS]

Higher res, improved comfort, single cable, inside-out tracking HMD will cost $399.

Read more.

[Pleiades]

Heard about, was interested, then saw spec compromises, disappoint :-(

[Ttaskmaster]

Four Hunnerd Bucks.... I'd have to try it first, really.
My biggest bugbear on VR is that the fresnel lenses are utter cack for anything not dead-centre of my vision, and since my eyeballs swivel it's a real problem in both FPSes and space/flight sims.

Valar Morghulis

Valar Dohaeris.

[cptwhite_uk]

Yeah the hands-on from Tech Crunch wasn't very favourbale. Can't believe they've removed the headphones. So they reduced clutter by the inside out tracking, then made it more cumbersome to fit by having to use your own headphones. That was one of the major benefits of the Rift for me...

[Spud1]

I can live with the compromises to get the increased resolution for that price - if I can get circa £100-£150 for my existing rift CV1 then the upgrade cost will be worth it for me....increased convenience and higher resolution is a huge plus.

I never use the headphones that came with the rift anywat as my others are much better so I won't miss those.

Mostly just pleased they are not abandoning their PC userbase - I really thought they had given up and decided to go mobile only which was a huge mistake.

[Ttaskmaster]

Own headphones means they can save money faffing about with theirs, and audiophile users can enjoy their own specific setup. I'm quite happy with that part.

[Wrinkly]

They should have allowed it to also work with existing sensors. Inside out tracking is very much a step backwards.

[ValkyrieTsukiko]

I wonder with the lower amount of cables could this be used on a streamed system (i.e. stream in house streaming to a laptop, use this on a laptop) for a much more portable experience :S (I don't like moving my heavy pc around for VR gaming in a bigger space).

[Salazaar]

Four Hunnerd Bucks.... I'd have to try it first, really.
My biggest bugbear on VR is that the fresnel lenses are utter cack for anything not dead-centre of my vision, and since my eyeballs swivel it's a real problem in both FPSes and space/flight sims.

I wonder if the digital IPD adjustment would improve this at all (or make it worse, I really don't know!)?

They should have allowed it to also work with existing sensors. Inside out tracking is very much a step backwards.

How so (assuming it works as well)? As someone considering getting a Rift for the first time, not having to set up two (or more) external tracking units sounds great!

[Ttaskmaster]

I wonder if the digital IPD adjustment would improve this at all (or make it worse, I really don't know!)?

Not really. That still just centres the image in the middle of the lenses, which are centred on your eyes with the physical IPD adjustment.
I had this with DK2, Rift and Vive.

The problem, for me anyway, is if I adopt my natural shooting position my head drops and I'm looking more 'through my eyebrows', as it's so often described. Same bows (the archery game in VR Labs is great) as well as guns, which stuffs up FPSes, as I'm no longer looking through the centre of the lens and it's blurry.
When I play Elite, the ships' display consoles are off to the sides and corners, so I have to look directly straight at them and lean in close, else the text is blurry, whereas on my monitor I just flick my eyes up to the corner of the screen and quickly read the data, while still keeping an eye on the windscreen ahead.

[Hoonigan]

If I can get circa £100-£150 for my existing rift CV1

I'd be tempted to take that off your hands, if you're selling.

[DanceswithUnix]

They should have allowed it to also work with existing sensors. Inside out tracking is very much a step backwards.

Why? I consider the sensors of my Rift to be the weakest point. I can't easily move them to use the headset on a second computer and at £120 for a pair I'm not buying another set. If they worked really well it wouldn't be so bad, but there isn't a good place for me to put them where I game so I find they lose tracking quite often. I was OK with the fiddly sensor setup, but I can't imagine my mum doing it. So it sounds like really I need another sensor to get reliable tracking despite the Rift only shipping with two, but two helmet mounted cameras is going to be more USB friendly than 3 desk cameras.

If they got it working, it sounds like progress to me.

[Saracen999]

Own headphones means they can save money faffing about with theirs, and audiophile users can enjoy their own specific setup. I'm quite happy with that part.

I'm not a good candidate for a VR headset as I've yet to try one I get on with (though, who knows, maybe this one is the magic ticket) but that principle I entirely agree with. It'd be far from the first time something came 'bundled' with a component that goes straight onto the shelf and never gets used because I already have, or am about to buy, a much higher quality component.

And headphones are a superb example, because it's not only about audio quality, critical though that is, but, at least for me, wearing comfort. It's naff-all use having the greatest sound if they're so uncomfortable that after 10 minutes, I can't wait to get 'em off my head.

So unless "bundled" components are both very good in their own right (which they ususlly aren't) and comfortable I'd rather buy my own .... and indeed, probably already have.

[sharkysi]

Will see if I can get hands on first before deciding on upgrading, maybe nip into Scan if they get it. If its better then CV1 then I will probably sell mine and upgrade.

[Ttaskmaster]

I'm not a good candidate for a VR headset as I've yet to try one I get on with

My friend of whom you remind me has a floating retina, so is similarly opposed to VR in that respect. Same for 3D films at the cinema.
It's unfortunate that some people just fall outside the average range of visual specifications around which these things are designed, especially those who'd otherwise love them.

It's naff-all use having the greatest sound if they're so uncomfortable that after 10 minutes, I can't wait to get 'em off my head.

They're actually very comfortable to use and work perfectly well. I just don't need them as I already have my own headphones, so would rather save money by getting a reduced features version.