October 07, 2024
I think it’s a potential game-changer, with a couple of caveats. Here’s my recent evolution in VR (we’ll just skip the scary 90’s VR stuff). Keep in mind that I’m an aggressive early adopter of tech, not a mainstream consumer. I also work mostly with business applications of VR and AR, not consumer products.
Phase 1: HTC Vive. Got to try it before it shipped and I loved it. Big PC to buy, lots of cables, lots of setups. Probably $3k when I bought everything. I’ve traveled with it, and that sucks. Going on-site for a client requires an extra 30+ minutes to make sure everything is set up, calibrated, and good to go. Not to mention a huge pelican case for all the pieces and a couple of light stands for the base stations. Primary disadvantages: cost, setup time, and bulk.
Phase 2: Windows Mixed Reality + Laptop. Fewer cables, some setup. Total cost under $2,000. Traveling with it is much easier. Everything fits in a single backpack. Traveling is much easier and the final experience is largely comparable to the Vive. Primary disadvantages: cost, setup time, and short cables (no idea why, but WMR devices have much shorter cables than the Vive).
Phase 2a: Oculus Go. A simple, self-contained, highly portable VR device. No cables, no setup. Totally un-tethered (although not really usable un-tethered since it doesn’t track position). Total cost: $300. Literally, power it up and go. Fantastic for seated 360 video VR. Ideal for travel. It will easily fit in a small backpack along with a bunch of other stuff. Primary disadvantages: no positional tracking, limited graphics power (compared to a PC).
In my mind, the Oculus Quest has the potential to be my Phase 3 device. Simple, self-contained, highly portable, and under $400. Full tracking, ideal for travel, and will easily fit in a small backpack. It will have limited graphics power compared to PC-based VR, but I am much less concerned about that. The roadmap for mobile GPUs is very aggressive and performance is increasing rapidly. The latest generation smartphones have GPUs that already outperform desktop PCs from just a few years ago. Furthermore, there are a ton of opportunities for optimization that many developers don’t use simply because they are used to having relatively unlimited compute resources. Find a dev that worked with early generation Xbox or PS2 and they’ll reel of a laundry list of tweaks they used to maximize performance.
There are some potential negatives.
Is the tracking any good?
I really like the computer-vision-based tracking that WMR delivers. It works well. In contrast, I’ve tried multiple iterations of Qualcomm’s headset and I thought they all had significant problems. I have no idea how well the Quest will work. I find Rift tracking slightly odd, although I’m not sure why. There always seems to be a bit of float that I don’t experience with the Vive or WMR headsets. To be clear, this is largely just me. Others don’t seem to notice it as much.
How is the graphics performance?
Personally, I think this will be fine, but there will be constraints on what experiences you can create.
How are the developer tools?
I’ve had somewhat mixed experiences with Oculus so far. The sig file that Rift etc required was a pain, but the Oculus Go doesn’t use that. However, with the Go you mostly have to deploy via the Oculus portal, which can also be a pain.
How is compatibility?
One of the genii moves by Microsoft was the SteamVR-WMR bridge. This allows a WMR headset to play more or less any SteamVR title. I don’t have to buy anything new. It just works. Oculus’s history in this area isn’t great. They are getting better though.
Some Other Thoughts
A bunch of my corporate clients loves the Oculus Go. Why? It is super simple to set up, doesn’t require an IT guy to manage, and just works. No Windows Update drama, broken drivers, or complex setups. If it breaks, you just buy a new one. My only complaint is that it doesn’t have much in the way of device management tools e.g. control the device from a central machine (for example, for control in a classroom environment).
Their next favorite device is a WMR headset. One cable, one device. Just plug it in.
Their least favorite device of the three is the Vive. Lots of cables (mostly proprietary), multiple adapters, and many separate parts, some of which are fragile. Fairly complex setup. Not a great recipe for success in a corporate environment.
One more thing… Some of you may be thinking, “Yes, but you can add wireless to an HTC Vive now and get rid of the cables.”. That’s certainly true, but it means more cost, more complexity, irradiating your brain, and it does not address the other issues (tricky setup, lots of parts, hard to travel with, etc).
Great pricing, ease of use, lack of cables, near-instant setup, small footprint… These are all very strong positives for the Oculus Quest. As long as it works well, and the developer community gets the hang of optimizing content for it, I think it will do very well.
