Oculus Rift Review: The Age of VR Has Begun

(music)

This is the Oculus Rift Virtual Reality headset.

And, now we can finally say that

without tacking on words,

like prototype or developer kit

because starting today,

the Oculus Rift

is finally shipping to customers.

So, how does it stack up?

Well, that depends.

It's not a self-contained device.

It's a peripheral,

and it won't work

with just any computer.

You need a desktop PC running Windows,

and you better hope that it's brawny.

Now, the headset itself

is actually remarkably comfortable,

not just to wear,

but to deliver you VR experiences.

Once you get past that

whole box on your face thing.

Thankfully, it feels lighter

than it actually is.

Thanks to some savvy, ergonomic design.

Just, don't make it too tight,

or after more than about 15 minutes,

you might end up with VR face.

Inside the rift, what you wind up

looking at is really

two custom displays

running at a combined 2.5K resolution.

But, thanks to some added magic,

like what we think is a diffusion layer

to smooth out any visible pixels.

A lot of the dreaded screen door

effect has been mitigated

since earlier versions.

It's not like you don't

know that you're looking a screen,

but all that visual stuff

is just one small element

in a whole constellation of technologies

that works together to enable presence,

that phenomenon when your brain

actually reacts to a virtual experience

as though you're really there.

Integrated on your headphones

might not look like much,

but they deliver shockingly-good sound.

The entire front of the headset

is studded with infrared LEDs,

as is the rear triangle.

And, that allows the

included infrared sensor

that comes with the rift

to track your headset in space.

What that means,

is that when you're

sitting at a table in VR,

you can lean forward

in the real world,

and you'll lean forward in VR as well.

That's called positional tracking.

And, it's one of the

most significant differences

between a hire and headset

and a mobile VR device that runs

off a smart phone like the

Samsung Gear VR.

It's also an absolute must

for most things you're going to

want to do in VR.

While, 360-degree videos and pictures

don't take advantage

of positional tracking, games do.

And, games are by far

the most robust-used case right now.

If you're not at least

somewhat interested in games,

(gunshot noise)

then this won't be

a day-one purchase for you.

If you are interested in games,

there are 30 of them available

in the Oculus store starting today.

The rift isn't cheap.

It's $600 for the headset and accessories alone.

And, if you need an

Oculus-ready PC to go with it,

you're looking at $1,500 minimum for the whole thing.

Now, if you've been excited about VR,

and you've been keeping tabs on it,

you've likely already been saving your pennies.

And, if you have been,

you won't be disappointed.

If you're just curious though,

you may want to check it out

at a friend's house.

But, if you do,

don't blame me if you run

out the next day

to join the VR revolution.

This is not a fad.

I repeat, this is not a fad.

This is a very real

first step into the future.

How's my VR face?

(background laughter)