Based on my current experiences with the HTC Vive and Oculus Quest, my preference is definitely for non-tethered VR headsets since the cable easily get’s tangled up and is easy to trip over. Ideally I would also prefer the VR device to not have to be dependent on a high-end PC to run.

Hence my preferred VR device would be the Oculus Quest, given its relatively cheap price compared to other standalone VR devices which provide 6DOF.

However, I am very interested in the Pico Neo 2 Eye which has the function of eye tracking since the common methods for gaze inputs is to have rotate the headset for the center pointer to “look” at objects, and look forward to seeing how it can perform.

My pick for my preferred MR device would be the HoloLens2, it looks the most stylish and least clunky to put on. The hand gesture controls are also pretty cool.

As the world of AR/VR/MR is new to me (having only fiddled with HWs a few times), I naturally turned to Google in search of the latest HWs for 2020.

Based on pcmag, these are the latest VR HWs for 2020 and their respective specifications and reviews:

Link: https://sea.pcmag.com/consumer-electronics-reviews-ratings-comparisons/10991/the-best-vr-headsets

Based on my previous experiences, I have always found that VR HWs are either clunky, headache-inducing or just too expensive for the normal consumer. I guess that’s why despite owning a gaming laptop and a PlayStation that are perfectly capable of supporting VR games, I never really bought into the hype.

That is until I bought a Nintendo Switch last year and found this really cool addition that Nintendo has introduced to the VR world:

Behold the Nintendo Labo VR Kit made for the Nintendo Switch:

Before someone mocks the design and appeal of this product (I mean who has heard of a cardboard headset? Is this a copycat of the Google Cardboard VR?), hear me out on why this is one of my favourite VR HWs! However, we first need to understand Nintendo’s motivations behind creating such a product.

What Nintendo has done was truly bizarre at the time when this product was released. Like many gaming and PC companies, Nintendo wanted to enter the VR market, but it did not want to stand beside the slew of competitors such as Microsoft, Google, HTC, Sony, who were all more than capable of creating the best VRs HWs possible. Furthermore, Nintendo devices have always been geared towards a younger audience and its latest Nintendo Switch product doesn’t even have the graphical horsepower like most of its competition such as the Xbox and PlayStation counterparts. Thus, Nintendo did what it had to do, it created a VR headset that draws the users’ creativity at a much lower price point, geared towards its own unique target audience.

The Nintendo Labo VR is a cardboard VR headset that introduces features and accessories you think only a company such a DIY company such as IKEA would think of. There are a range of things to build and customize the VR headset with accessories such as a Blaster, an Elephant, and even a Bird! These accessories make the VR experience a truly unique one as they complement the cartoony and kid-friendly characteristics of a typical Nintendo game. With a battery life depending on the Switch console itself as well as graphic limitations, it is a good entry-point for experiencing the VR world without worrying about charging ever so often.

As such, this product taps on the creativity and imagination in you to experience a world of VR that is unlike many traditional VR headsets. Thus, it is one of my favourite VR HWs.

Now that we have covered a VR HW that is more for entry-level VR experiences, the next entry for my favourite MR HW will be more serious in terms of specifications in order to blur the lines between reality and virtual reality perfectly.

My favourite mixed-reality HW has to be the Asus Windows MR headset (HC102)

Looks like something from the future, doesn’t it?

At less than 400g (according to Asus’ website), it is by far one of the lighter MR headsets and it features a design that is ergonomic and elegant. One can simply just flip up the visor and take a short breather when required; a plus for usability and user safety. However, the best part of this headset is the fact that it is cheaper than most of its competitors such as Samsung as well as an easy setup that doesn’t require too much horsepower on your computer.

This makes it affordable and available to the average consumer who just wants to get in on the action whilst getting the same refresh rates and sufficient visuals that a MR headset needs.

As you can see from my choices, I am particularly fond of companies that go out of their way to create something unique, comfortable and affordable for consumers. Sure, my favourites don’t provide the most graphically intense visuals or the best possible experience. However, what is important to gamers and consumers is the illusion of a virtual/mixed world that seems real enough to get you in on the action.

Author: Darren Sim A0136233N

Images are sourced from Google or the products’ respective websites.

Back in 2016, the first few VR devices were clunky, unwieldy and restrictive. My first encounter with VR, Oculus Rift DK2 (on the left), was no exception. It has two wires sticking out of the console which made head movement restrictive. It (and its camera accessory) had to connect to a computer, which reduced its portability. It itself required a rather powerful graphic card to power it, which made the barrier of entry really high.

Now, in 2020, there are multiple VR devices out there in the market.

• HTC Vive Pro
• Oculus Rift
• Playstation VR
• Nintendo Labo (well…. it counts)
• And my personal favourite, Oculus Quest

Wires? Gone. Requirement of a high-end graphics card? Gone.

It’s hard to not love the advancement of VR technology with the release of Oculus Quest. VR experiences lie on the Immersion and Presence factors, and when motion is restrictive, the VR experience is dampened. The Oculus Quest solves that and a number of problems of its predecessors and even improves the immersion with the exclusion of controllers.

Yes, you heard it. Controllers? Gone.

With all those features packed in a portable headset, Oculus Quest is now my personal favourite (for now).

And while I never really encountered Mixed Reality devices in real life before, the current list of devices out there is pretty long for a niche technology

• Magic Leap One
• Samsung Odyssey
• Dimension NXG AjnaLens
• Nreal Light
• Zappar Zapbox
• And my personal favourite, Hololens 2 (and its predecessor, Hololens)

The Hololens 2 caught my eye for the same reasons as Oculus Quest.

Like the Oculus Quest, there is no need for a high-end PC to power it as it has its own mini processor. It’s portable, lightweight and it has hand tracking. While other MR devices may have similar functions, one edge the Hololens 2 has over its competitors is the amount of support it is given from its parent company (Microsoft), in terms of the UX/UI of the internal OS and developer support.

While the Hololens 2 also triumphs in price (Approx 3k, competitors price less), the technology of Hololens 2 makes every dollar count.

Seeing the step up from the Oculus Rift DK1 to the HTC Vive Pro, the visual quality hasn’t quite improved as much as I expected in 5 years. However, the industry has gone on ahead, with 6DoF, really decent tracking controls and higher refresh rates. More specifically, they have continued developing VR applications, with Valve even releasing a new Half-Life game. Who would’ve thought?

The most exciting trend to me is the development of a budget series of headsets, which definitely didn’t quite exist till recently. The Google Cardboard doesn’t quite count if we’re going to be talking full headsets with motion controls.

Much as cheap Android phones and televisions brought about the new medium to the mass market, it would be terribly safe to say that VR is going to be a thing in the next few years, and that’s why I would like to highlight one of the more prominent mid-range headsets, the Oculus Quest.

The Quest has entered the list of recommendations for the “VR-newbie”, partially offering the experience of the big boys like the Vive and Rift when connected to a PC, yet being an all-in-one package that is also wireless. It may not boast 90Hz+ refresh rates, but it sits squarely at the mid-range with its price. The PC link was a later update, coming in on November 2019, and likely helped boost the headset to its current status of entry-level king.

On the end of MR/AR, there are a few major points to me that I find important in an MR/AR experience. Firstly, as someone who does not wear glasses (weird flex, sorry), I absolutely can not stand the feeling of wearing glasses, and this makes products like the holo-lens and other smart-glasses extremely unappealing to me. Secondly, I currently do not see much value in having an always-on AR application as an average consumer who already spends most of his time looking at a screen anyway. This is not to discount the benefits to those who require assistance in their daily lives, for whom I feel MR/AR has the most use for.

With that in mind, I find the humble(?) smartphone of today to be my preferred way of augmenting reality. Of course, everyone has one these days, and most new smartphones offer multiple cameras which have been used for depth-sensing for selfies. Given that everyone walks around with their smartphones out anyway, I feel they are currently the best way to apply MR/AR applications and have good reach to users.