Best PC Virtual Reality Cameras
FREE CONTENT WITH PURCHASE - On Viveport, HTC's global VR app store, get a free trial for Viveport Subscription plus Google's Tilt Brush, Everest VR, and Richie's Plank with your purchase.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"If you were like me, you might be a little hesitant about tech like this, because you tried a GEAR VR, or think 3d desktop gaming and 3d movies are kinda of cool, but certainly not worth this kind of investment. Kind of like that first time you picked up that wii controller and "bowled" and thought "hey, this is pretty cool." Once you complete the setup you'll enter the tutorial and blow up a balloon.. You'll (without instruction) think.. What happens if I try to hit this floating balloon.. Probably nothing.. but you'll immediately realize how intuitive and accurate this "new world" is when the balloon flies in the direction and velocity you would expect it to based on your hand movement. You separate when you realize you can (literally) walk underneath the balloon, look up at it, jump and swat it down to the floor. I can't imagine how silly it looks in real life with your hand just jerking up and down, left to right, ducking, spinning.. etc. But in the game it really feels like you're in a serious situation and your hand needs to dodge these incoming blobs at all costs. When I realized that I could walk closer to my boundary wall that the desktop was on at that time, and the text got closer/clearer, it was an additional level of "that's friggin cool." Once you've got a Steam account set up, be careful, it's easy to blow through 80 dollars (of real money) in a 4 minute virtual shopping spree. Plug in ear buds and "mirror" the sound so you can rock out hard to audioshield without waking the neighbors. So you can control the session for them (get them into a game, get them started, etc) without having to walk them through everything - but again, it is pretty intuitive and should be easy to pick up for 90 percent of people. There are several "full" games available, and I haven't even gotten to them, because The Lab, Zombie Trainer, The Brookhaven Experiment, and (especially) AudioShield have me completely satisfied for the time being. We're all still waiting on the "major" releases of Doom, Fallout 4, Serious Sam, Arizona Sunshine etc. The action of "teleporting" in large scale games seems to be the goto method for moving around in the world. I'm interested to see how games like "Don't stop talking and nobody explodes" work and bring a "crowd" together with one headset. When you feel like a freaking rockstar defending yourself from incoming musical notes, you won't be thinking about the slight pixilation, or how the graphics in the background aren't super detailed. Keep in mind.. That while the software is pretty polished and works well, this type of thing probably isn't for someone who isn't at least a moderate "power user." I've had some minor issues like weird Steam crashes, VR world disappearing if the CPU is under a lot of stress, computer not completing POST when the link box was plugged in. The mass population isn't exactly tech savvy so that excludes a major percentage of potential buyers. Honestly, I've got a lot of cool stuff but this is ABSOLUTELY and UNEQUIVOCALLY the coolest tech I've seen or played with in my entire life."
"Sitting in front of a desktop PC doesn't do my body any good at all. I feared that I would use the Vive as a form of escape and ignore my real world responsibilities and kill my social life. There are sensors to set up, a good amount of space needed, a LOT of cable management. It works best if you have an entire room dedicated to VR, but not all of us are fortunate enough to have that kind of space. The last thing you want to see when you return is a sink full of dishes, dirty laundry, clutter or anything that would cause you disappointment. I have a welcoming, clean open space complete with yoga mats. :) She used to be an avid scuba diver but can no longer dive due to health issues. My friend's wife was trying to plan a small surprise birthday for him but they're new in town and don't know many people. I'm planning on having people over most weekends to have fun and explore the possibilities the Vive offers. You will need a top of the line computer with a powerful graphics card in order to run the Vive properly. Being a big gamer, I already had the computer ($1100 about six months ago) but I still had to upgrade to a GeForce 1070, which currently runs just over $400."
Get 6 free titles, including: Robo Recall, Luckyʼs Tale, Quill, Medium, Dead and Buried, and Toybox.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I ended up taking the PS VR back to Best Buy. I've got a solid state C: drive and really didn't want to install there - but it was inordinately difficult to switch. One would think that the lines on top of the sensor should point to the general middle of where you will sit/stand. If you get them close enough to where they need to be, the install will show you how to twist things around - but it definitely seems odd setting them up originally. I can sit and stand and pretty much anything in between and both head and hands are tracked very well. On initial setup, you use the touch sensors with sound/vibration to delineate your play area without your Rift on. it sounds more complicated than it really is - I've got an oddly shaped area with other desks and bookshelves and it works just fine. Reloading is a neat flip of the hands and the sensors pick things up just fine. It can be tough finding your way around the world flying like Superman... Then the one I was really wanting to try... Elite Dangerous. Things to note here: if you already have Elite installed, you have to go into graphics settings and select the headset from the 3d options. Initial setup had me completely turned around in my chair in order to see the menu. You may have to fiddle with that a little bit to get your head properly seated in your in-game body. Eyes hurting from flying too close to that sun while doing a fuel scoop - just look around your cockpit to take a break! Okay - that one breaks the immersion a good bit as your body is left behind."
"I decided this generation of VR wasn't for me back when both systems were around $800, as I thought that price point was too high for the amount of value and content you received (especially on the Oculus side). When I checked over a year later and saw that the price had been cut in half, the Xbox controller had been replaced with Touch, an extra sensor was included, and 8+ games were given away for free, I decided to pull the trigger."
"I'm personally at a point in life where I don't know if I will survive long enough to see a device like this really evolve into something that will transform the way we game work and experience media. Games written specifically with VR in mind and especially those Occulus exclusives (Robo Recall, Mages Tale etc.). When it's losing tracking or you have tripped on a cable or your getting motion sick then you will quickly put it down for more traditional forms of entertainment."
Compatible with Windows 7 and up, as well as Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive, Oculus, and for use with thousands of controller-enabled games.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Everything else in the controller is wonderful I love the design it's a little bit of a PS4(joystick location) meets Xbox One(ge wrap design) controller."
"The second time I turned on the controller, it was recognized right away."
"The trigger problem is somewhat manageable and I’m not sure if this is a bug in all SteelSeries Stratus XL controllers, but if you’re looking for a RELIABLE controller for hardcore gaming, it’s probably not this one. Update: I actually did not return the controller yet but instead I fixed my stuck right trigger problem."
"All of the various buttons, sticks, and triggers are easy to find and where you would expect them, which is nice when you're playing with no sight of the controller at all."
"Works flawlessly so far."
"I've also used it on my laptop with some games and it seemed a bit clunkier with having to get the steelseries software for it, but again it performed fine."
"Got this item for my gear vr and it works great."
"After use this game controller for one week I think I need to write something, I am use this one for my nvidia shield K1 tablet, this one is campatible with my tablet, but when I use tincore keymapping to do some keymapping the software can not recognize this game controller, and then I switch to other software like game controller keymapping ( you can find it on google play store) the software can not find the R2 and L2 key even thought when I switch to usb mode it still can not be recognized from both software, and also there is some thing kind like strange the usb cable is hiding in the battery( on my third picture), if you want to connect to usb you need to take off the battery first."
Best PC Virtual Reality Headsets
Use the SteamVR Performance Test to check whether your system can handle the requirements of VR, and if not, whether its capabilities are bound by graphics card, CPU or both. FREE CONTENT WITH PURCHASE - On Viveport, HTC's global VR app store, get a free trial for Viveport Subscription plus Google's Tilt Brush, Everest VR, and Richie's Plank with your purchase.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"If you were like me, you might be a little hesitant about tech like this, because you tried a GEAR VR, or think 3d desktop gaming and 3d movies are kinda of cool, but certainly not worth this kind of investment. Kind of like that first time you picked up that wii controller and "bowled" and thought "hey, this is pretty cool." Once you complete the setup you'll enter the tutorial and blow up a balloon.. You'll (without instruction) think.. What happens if I try to hit this floating balloon.. Probably nothing.. but you'll immediately realize how intuitive and accurate this "new world" is when the balloon flies in the direction and velocity you would expect it to based on your hand movement. You separate when you realize you can (literally) walk underneath the balloon, look up at it, jump and swat it down to the floor. I can't imagine how silly it looks in real life with your hand just jerking up and down, left to right, ducking, spinning.. etc. But in the game it really feels like you're in a serious situation and your hand needs to dodge these incoming blobs at all costs. When I realized that I could walk closer to my boundary wall that the desktop was on at that time, and the text got closer/clearer, it was an additional level of "that's friggin cool." Once you've got a Steam account set up, be careful, it's easy to blow through 80 dollars (of real money) in a 4 minute virtual shopping spree. Plug in ear buds and "mirror" the sound so you can rock out hard to audioshield without waking the neighbors. So you can control the session for them (get them into a game, get them started, etc) without having to walk them through everything - but again, it is pretty intuitive and should be easy to pick up for 90 percent of people. There are several "full" games available, and I haven't even gotten to them, because The Lab, Zombie Trainer, The Brookhaven Experiment, and (especially) AudioShield have me completely satisfied for the time being. We're all still waiting on the "major" releases of Doom, Fallout 4, Serious Sam, Arizona Sunshine etc. The action of "teleporting" in large scale games seems to be the goto method for moving around in the world. I'm interested to see how games like "Don't stop talking and nobody explodes" work and bring a "crowd" together with one headset. When you feel like a freaking rockstar defending yourself from incoming musical notes, you won't be thinking about the slight pixilation, or how the graphics in the background aren't super detailed. Keep in mind.. That while the software is pretty polished and works well, this type of thing probably isn't for someone who isn't at least a moderate "power user." I've had some minor issues like weird Steam crashes, VR world disappearing if the CPU is under a lot of stress, computer not completing POST when the link box was plugged in. The mass population isn't exactly tech savvy so that excludes a major percentage of potential buyers. Honestly, I've got a lot of cool stuff but this is ABSOLUTELY and UNEQUIVOCALLY the coolest tech I've seen or played with in my entire life."
"Sitting in front of a desktop PC doesn't do my body any good at all. I feared that I would use the Vive as a form of escape and ignore my real world responsibilities and kill my social life. There are sensors to set up, a good amount of space needed, a LOT of cable management. It works best if you have an entire room dedicated to VR, but not all of us are fortunate enough to have that kind of space. The last thing you want to see when you return is a sink full of dishes, dirty laundry, clutter or anything that would cause you disappointment. I have a welcoming, clean open space complete with yoga mats. :) She used to be an avid scuba diver but can no longer dive due to health issues. My friend's wife was trying to plan a small surprise birthday for him but they're new in town and don't know many people. I'm planning on having people over most weekends to have fun and explore the possibilities the Vive offers. You will need a top of the line computer with a powerful graphics card in order to run the Vive properly. Being a big gamer, I already had the computer ($1100 about six months ago) but I still had to upgrade to a GeForce 1070, which currently runs just over $400."
Best PC Virtual Reality Controllers
Other features include 40+ hours of gameplay with two AA batteries (included), LED notification, clickable joysticks, and complete customization of your joystick sensitivity and trigger actuation. Compatible with Windows 7 and up, as well as Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive, Oculus, and for use with thousands of controller-enabled games.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Have had no issues with pairing to my S7 and works perfectly with my Gear VR."
"The second time I turned on the controller, it was recognized right away."
"Everything else in the controller is wonderful I love the design it's a little bit of a PS4(joystick location) meets Xbox One(ge wrap design) controller."
"The trigger problem is somewhat manageable and I’m not sure if this is a bug in all SteelSeries Stratus XL controllers, but if you’re looking for a RELIABLE controller for hardcore gaming, it’s probably not this one. Update: I actually did not return the controller yet but instead I fixed my stuck right trigger problem."
"All of the various buttons, sticks, and triggers are easy to find and where you would expect them, which is nice when you're playing with no sight of the controller at all."
"Works flawlessly so far."
"Thiis is a terrible controller and am going to go with the better reviewed controller that can be used on Windows 10, the Xbox One Controller."
"I bought the SteelSeries Stratus XL controller in hopes that it would be better than my Steam Controller while being used in my hands."
Best PC Virtual Reality Accessories
In-ear audio designed for your Rift headset. Enjoy fewer sound distractions with these passive noise isolating earphones.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Like these much better than the factory earphones."
"very comfortable good sound."
"Got it for my husband as a Christmas present, he absolutely LOVES IT!"
"I like the headphones better but these are ok. Something different."
"Sound is OK but not that "Great"."