Hands-on with the HTC Vive: Virtual reality just got real The latest headset for escapism might just be the best so far. 18 May 2015, 15:34 BST
Were going to be blunt there are no words to describe just how impressive the HTC Vive is as an experience.
If Oculus Rift was the watershed moment for the creation of the modern generation of virtual reality HTC and Valves partnership on Vive looks as though it could mark the beginning of version 2.
Had a chance to talk with Allen Yates (creator of Lighthouse) and Monty Goodson (Valve hardware engineer) pick their brains a little at the Maker's Faire on Sunday at their booth next to the quadrocopter racing arena. Both total gentleman, and quite happy to talk about the hardware and share in the excitement.
Wish I had better questions to ask them! I did ask about Lighthouse tracking dev kits outside of the HMD's and he says they are coming, but the focus is on the headsets atm to get the eco-system jumpstarted, with talk of chicken and the egg.
No minimum size to the workspace they track. We all had a giggle and shared puzzlement at the prevailing myth that it's not suitable for a seated solution on that note. Only one base station req, 2 is just to reduce occlusion, but with the onboard IMU's that's not a big deal cause they can track pretty well on its own for short periods without being subject to much drift.
The controller photodiode arrays have their own IMU's in them, and it is my understanding that they will make arrays available without the controllers as well as the raw sensors without the arrays, but those need to be assembled and calibrated as a unit to be able to function.
Lighthouse dev kits would include things like lighthouse base stations and pre-assembled/calibrated sensor arrays that you can stick on whatever you want tracked, as well as raw sensors that would need to be assembled and calibrated as a unit (the sensor arrays on the controllers have an IMU in them as well), and software for integration.
The VR controllers are symmetrical and there is no left/right. I asked some questions about the trackpad, because I'm looking fwd to the Steam Controller coming out for my own hacking projects (zero-order positioning/absolute trackpad in a circular form factor mounted onto a joystick grip for gimbal aim in Star Citizen among other projects...).
I told them the controller with it's array looks like a turtle penis (it does...), which they looked at me funny and told me it's a jalapeno with a sombraro.
SteamVR controllers are calibrated in such a manner that touching the tail end of it to an object in a setup mode allows you to map and store a 3d point in space, like for mapping out a room for Chaperone. I asked him if it could be used for outlining a more complex shape like a couch, and while he said it *could be done that way, it would be a crude way to handle such a thing and that a better solution is already nearing completion. I asked if it was depth of field camera based, but he just grinned and said I'd have to wait.
The left/right pads on the Steam Controller are mechanically/electronically identical, and just have different shaped molded plastic disks. Allan said I should have no problems separating the controller's board into 2 halves either, and then they laughed about how roughly they did their first ones with a bandsaw.
Don't be fooled by the crappy 90's graphic of that hoopty ad, for those that don't know who eMagin is, they are one of the oldest VR companies out there and their z800 headsets are only *now being replaced as the industry standard in several fields.
This 3rd+ gen unit is a flip up goggle form factor, 2kx2k oled microdisplay/eye, adjustable diopter/IPD.. made by guys make VR hardware for the military. It probably won't be cheap though, and still no specs on latency, low persistence, tracking solutions, integrated audio... things like that but it will be shown in some fashion at San Jose at Display Week SID 2015 so I can't wait to hear more about this seasoned dark horse that jumped in the race.
Cool. Its a wide open playing field now. No one dominant player anymore. Very exciting.
Assuming that eMagin doesn't price themselves right outta the market like they did years ago, anyway.
The older Z800 used to be under $1,000, but when they refocused on the military market, that price went UP by several thousands!
The resolution per eye sounds really good, but it's also important to state the FOV along with that. High FOV is important for that feeling of presence, as I've found.
Most importantly, though, we need to know what kind of head-tracking system they might bundle with it. That part is absolutely critical for immersive VR, and if they do bundle a tracker, it needs to be made compatible with whatever APIs Oculus and Valve/HTC are using as well, in much the same way people hack existing HMD trackers to work in TrackIR enhanced mode.
I am primarily focused on using VR in a flight sim, thus seated position only. As such I have no need for the HTC controllers but I would really like a glove that tracked the position of my hand(s). That should then make it possible to reach around in the virtual cockpit to activate switches / buttons. Has anyone heard any word on something like this?
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
I am primarily focused on using VR in a flight sim, thus seated position only. As such I have no need for the HTC controllers but I would really like a glove that tracked the position of my hand(s). That should then make it possible to reach around in the virtual cockpit to activate switches / buttons. Has anyone heard any word on something like this?
The resolution per eye sounds really good, but it's also important to state the FOV along with that. High FOV is important for that feeling of presence, as I've found.
Most importantly, though, we need to know what kind of head-tracking system they might bundle with it. That part is absolutely critical for immersive VR, and if they do bundle a tracker, it needs to be made compatible with whatever APIs Oculus and Valve/HTC are using as well, in much the same way people hack existing HMD trackers to work in TrackIR enhanced mode.
FOV was stated at 100deg, but someone on a VR forum calculated it closer to 113deg, but either is perfectly acceptable. As to tracking solutions, I'm really hoping they just adopt Lighthouse. Valve has by far the best known working solution worthy of being the industry standard, and it's free for other developers to incorporate. Either way Tracking a headset is not a terribly difficult problem to solve these days, it's just how many additional options (tracking multiple objects/headsets, Chaperone, hardly affected by occlusion, low latency/processing cost etc) that Lighthouse offers that makes it so attractive.
When things are going to really get interesting to me, is when we have really good pass-through cameras on these headsets in a gen or two and can use them in a more AR fashion. Imagine a high fidelity cockpit with greenscreen canopy glass and instrument faces/MFD's to present appropriate real-time imagery, while leaving the rest of the physical cockpit right there where you can see what button your hand is pushing etc... and Lighthouse makes it possible to do with multi player, which our headsets/heads can also be greenscreen'd into whatever avatar we want.
I am primarily focused on using VR in a flight sim, thus seated position only. As such I have no need for the HTC controllers but I would really like a glove that tracked the position of my hand(s). That should then make it possible to reach around in the virtual cockpit to activate switches / buttons. Has anyone heard any word on something like this?
Cool, thanks! Looks like I may not even need a glove!
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
The resolution per eye sounds really good, but it's also important to state the FOV along with that. High FOV is important for that feeling of presence, as I've found.
Most importantly, though, we need to know what kind of head-tracking system they might bundle with it. That part is absolutely critical for immersive VR, and if they do bundle a tracker, it needs to be made compatible with whatever APIs Oculus and Valve/HTC are using as well, in much the same way people hack existing HMD trackers to work in TrackIR enhanced mode.
FOV was stated at 100deg, but someone on a VR forum calculated it closer to 113deg, but either is perfectly acceptable. As to tracking solutions, I'm really hoping they just adopt Lighthouse. Valve has by far the best known working solution worthy of being the industry standard, and it's free for other developers to incorporate. Either way Tracking a headset is not a terribly difficult problem to solve these days, it's just how many additional options (tracking multiple objects/headsets, Chaperone, hardly affected by occlusion, low latency/processing cost etc) that Lighthouse offers that makes it so attractive.
When things are going to really get interesting to me, is when we have really good pass-through cameras on these headsets in a gen or two and can use them in a more AR fashion. Imagine a high fidelity cockpit with greenscreen canopy glass and instrument faces/MFD's to present appropriate real-time imagery, while leaving the rest of the physical cockpit right there where you can see what button your hand is pushing etc... and Lighthouse makes it possible to do with multi player, which our headsets/heads can also be greenscreen'd into whatever avatar we want.
The glasses have mini projectors, and are used with retro-reflective material to bounce the projected images back to your eyes for Augmented Reality. They also have a clip on that turns them into VR glasses.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Oculus has never been delayed, as they never announced anything close to a release date until now.
Another question, will people preorder the Rift instead of buying the HTC Vive, if Oculus announces better specs, with more content, at a cheaper price point? Vive has already stated their unit won't be cheap, and Oculus has suggested they will try, and sell their unit near cost, garnering profit from all the software companies they're supporting.
The market will be big enough for more than a few headsets, but its too early to tell, and we will have to see more Spec, Content, and Price info to make a knowledgeable decision on which company might have the upper hand.
Intel core I7 4790K @ 4.4 Asus Maximus Hero VII Motherboard 16 gigs DDR3 2133 EVGA GTX980Ti Oculus Rift LG 37" LCD BLack Mamba III Joystick Cougar Throttle/X55 Throttle/Saitek Levers Saitek Pro Rudder pedals Voice Activation Controls
Dlodlo VR Glasses spec-sheet blows Oculus and the gang out of the water
The company claims that the 2K+ Full HD (their words, not ours) display is the highest on the market, with a 16:9, distortion free experience that has no screen door effect. The field of view is 110 degrees, there's a 120Hz refresh rate, there's not one but two 9-axis sensors and a tracking time of less than 10ms.
Delayed Again: Will There Still be a Spot for Oculus Rift When it Ships? Luckey was quoted saying that "something would have to go terribly wrong for the consumer Rift not to come out [in 2015]."
May 19, 2015 Marius Maronilla
"What might be bleak is Oculus Rifts future amidst competition."
Many of the new arcade flyers could create a demand for more demanding combat flight sims, creating a market big enough for developers to jump back into the genre.
Intel core I7 4790K @ 4.4 Asus Maximus Hero VII Motherboard 16 gigs DDR3 2133 EVGA GTX980Ti Oculus Rift LG 37" LCD BLack Mamba III Joystick Cougar Throttle/X55 Throttle/Saitek Levers Saitek Pro Rudder pedals Voice Activation Controls
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
I put the hater and fanboy arguers on ignore. Its great, no more garbage.
+1 no doubt. if you are going to bash oculus and all the other hmd's, please tell us of a better solution that is possible for us simmers. at this moment, i do not have the space for a cave nor do i have a PC that will support my DCS habit that allows 4k res with all options turn to high.
so bashers, please bash with some solutions. if not go find something else better to do, cause this is the SimHQ forums, and we want to hear all possiblities that help simming
Oculus Founder has no Problem with Virtual Reality Porn
.....there seems to be a wide gap when it comes to the moral values between Facebook and Oculus, while the former has shown a stricter stance on whats viewed on its service, the latter doesnt seem to be taking the matter of morality that seriously.
so bashers, please bash with some solutions. if not go find something else better to do, cause this is the simhq forums, and we want to hear all possiblities that help simming
Who is this directed at????
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz