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The change coming to the VR industry is now quite apparent and obvious. Yes, we are talking about the VR industry leaning towards more powerful standalone VR headsets which will feature top-of-the-line specs, enhanced software, and more immersive-rich content.
With major industry giants like Google, Samsung, and Microsoft already invested in standalone headsets, hopes are now high that Oculus will soon enter the fray. However, industry reports seem to suggest that Oculus is exploring multiple options for NOT ONE but a “Spectrum” of standalone VR headsets in the future.
Something’s Cooking Within Oculus
Last year, at the Oculus Connect Conference, the company demonstrated the SantaCruz Prototype and revealed its plans about standalone headsets which are likely to have high-end features like full-motion tracking and “six-degrees of freedom.” Though, these headsets are not expected to be released anytime soon.
Reports from the industry suggest that the company might release multiple standalone VR headsets, each with different layers of hardware enhancements. This is an effort to provide more affordable price points and encourage more people to join the VR bandwagon. It looks like Oculus has learned quite a lot from the success stories of Gear VR and Daydream View headsets! While offering a more valuable deal to consumers, the company has slashed the price of its existing Rift headsets multiple times since the start of 2017 and is currently offering the Rift + Touch bundle only for a price of $399.
However, Oculus seems to be quite clear about its plans ahead. The company doesn’t see the new line of wireless VR Headsets as a threat to the existing PC-based Rift headsets. Oculus believes that both the mobile-powered VR headsets and the PC-powered VR headsets are altogether different categories than the standalone VR headsets and all three categories will continue to evolve alongside one another. This means that the company won’t be turning a neglecting eye towards the existing Rift lineup and will continue to offer support to Rift customers.
In a recent official statement, Oculus spokesperson said “We don’t have a product to unveil at this time, however, we can confirm that we’re making several significant technology investments in the standalone VR category. This is in addition to our commitment to high-end VR products like Oculus Rift and mobile phone products like Gear VR.”
Mark is all set for the ‘Big Leap’
Image credit: Facebook
At last year’s Oculus Connect event, Mark Zuckerberg said that his company is working on standalone VR headsets with full “inside-out” tracking. He then said, “We have a demo, but we don’t have a product yet. This is the kind of thing we believe will exist… a completely new category of virtual reality product. We want hardware that’s lighter form factor. That’s smaller, that can do both VR and AR, that can do eye tracking, hand tracking.”
It looks as if Oculus is getting closer to its goal. This “spectrum” of VR headsets is expected to be priced above the existing mobile VR headsets but below the high-end PC-based virtual reality headsets. Of course, you cannot expect the entry-point headsets in this range to come with special features like 6DoF and full-scale tracking but we will have to wait and see what features are reserved exclusively for the top-end versions of this series.
Most of the standalone headsets are scheduled to arrive in December of 2017, and we expect Oculus to release their version in the first quarter of 2018.
this is an awesome news, this would be super fun to see streamed content 24*7
I appreciate the fact that Oculus is planning to come with VR headsets for every consumer-segment…. Reminds me how Samsung did the same thing with smartphones
“Of course, you cannot expect the entry-point headsets in this range to come with special features like 6DoF and full-scale tracking but we will have to wait and see what features are reserved exclusively for the top-end versions of this series.”
Inside-out tracking IS 6DoF tracking, assuming it works properly.