Live data from Hacker News

Oculus Quest 2

oculus.com

201–210 of 591 posts

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#201

I wonder how the FB leadership team thinks about this whole FB/Oculus integration. It is clear that they think adding a "social" component to Oculus is going to help the Quest gain traction. But the question is, why does that "social" component have to be Facebook? With all the negative baggage a FB account carries with it, maybe the easier option would've been to let Oculus build its own social model, à la Play Stat…

I have a Quest and I can tell you that for me (and at least for people like me) the real value is in social games/experiences. I have a hard time going through a solo game (although I haven't tried Half Life Alyx yet) but social stuff are amazing! Everyone should try to play settlers of Catan in VR (it was only available on the Go unfortunately) which was insane! At this point I just want more of my friends to get a…

try PokerStars VR if you haven't, it's a great and free social app.

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#202

Quest can't do VR titles. It will always be a niche mobile game market that can't give VR justice. If they would integrate h264 hardware decode and allowed the PC oculus software to stream to it, then we'd be in business. Wireless VR is a big problem right now, it's expensive, doesn't work well, and for it's price you might as well get better hardware. Oculus should ship quest with a cheap little 5Ghz USB broadcaster…

> Wireless VR is a big problem right now, it's expensive, doesn't work well, and for it's price you might as well get better hardware. There’s an app for the Quest called Virtual Desktop that allows streaming SteamVR over WiFi, which on a good network is almost indistinguishable from wired VR. Playing Half-Life: Alyx without being tethered to your computer is a pretty awesome experience.

and by "almost indistinguishable" you mean "nauseating lag every time you turn your head"

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#203
post #126

Pretty scathing review on Ars: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/09/review-we-do-not-reco...

As an owner of Q1 all I wanted from Q2 was: - Reduce or re-distributed weight (neck/upper back ache remains an issue) Instead, what we got in the Q2 is the same weight but a head-strap that's a substantial downgrade. That decision just compounds the Q1's most glaring weakness. Then throw in the mandatory Facebook account, downgraded eye adjustments, side-grade screen, downgrade battery life, and a bunch of cost-cutti…

Its good that Facebook is over-reaching. We are in too early for one headset to be the only player in town. This will give others a chance to move into the space, I think. Looking at you Nintendo :)

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#204
post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m skeptical the Facebook would bother to invest so many billions into VR just for the chance of being part of the competitive game console market. It makes sense to think about how it fits into the long-term strategy for their main cash cow, ads. If there’s a future where internet/app usage hours shift toward VR, Facebook doesn’t want to be left in the dust like Myspace when users switch to a new social network. Ev…

> being part of the competitive game console market You mean being part of the many billion dollar game industry by controlling the highest growth sector in that industry with vendor lock in and rent seeking for any game sold in that new market? Yeah...who would want that...

Sure, but that would also apply to other companies who could have bought Oculus. I think the way it fits into Facebook’s overall company strategy explains why they would bid the most.

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As an owner of Q1 all I wanted from Q2 was: - Reduce or re-distributed weight (neck/upper back ache remains an issue) Instead, what we got in the Q2 is the same weight but a head-strap that's a substantial downgrade. That decision just compounds the Q1's most glaring weakness. Then throw in the mandatory Facebook account, downgraded eye adjustments, side-grade screen, downgrade battery life, and a bunch of cost-cutti…

I just used black electrical tape to secure the DAS to my Quest :)

I've read many have had success with that strategy, particularly in the early days of the FrankenQuest.

But these days you can buy the adapter on etsy for under $5 ($20 full kit), which will keep your stuff from needing to get tape residue on it.

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rift S is being discontinued, if you want a dedicated PC headset now you'll want to look at an Index or an HP Reverb G2. But you can plug the Quest into a PC and use it as a PCVR headset. Oculus sells a 16 ft fiber optic cable for $80, but it works well over any good quality USB 3 cable (and even works over USB 2 now). The downside of this is that it's more front heavy than a PC headset without all the standalone gut…

Yes, but with 30 ms additional latency on top of base latency for doing the same with a normal head mounted display. You can see confused questions about this all over the oculusvr forums. So now you're tethered, your tether is more fragile, and you have significant extra latency.

Yes, serious PC VR gamers will probably want to look elsewhere, for me my gaming computer is mostly running flatscreen games and being able to enjoy games like HL: Alyx via Link is a bonus.

Standalone headsets are so much more convenient, and are affordable to people without a high powered gaming computer, so I see why Facebook is going in this direction.

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#207
post #165
post #6

We develop industrial training solutions using the rift S and quest. But the deep linking with FB, the battery downgrades on the quest, etc, all are going to push us away. For PC-based training sims, we'll probably get the HTC Vive. And the Pico for the quest equivalent.

Why do care about the Facebook link? You needed an Oculus account previously and a Facebook account now, but there's no forcing of Facebook on you.

You do need a FB account - and a real one at that. If you create a fake one and you get locked out and you can't prove you are that fake person FB will lock you out of the account (and all bought software).

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#208
I worry that Quest-2 will be the death of VR as the next UX frontier.

VR tech is still a few years away from being 'seamless'. Historically, such moonshot ideas have only worked when they develop as expensive hobbies for years, until the tech catches up and they can be offered at a reasonable price.

Facebook seems to want to skip that step. Give people a half-baked product before it is ready for the market.

It is a real shame, because all the tech needed for great VR getting better at a rapid pace in consumer products. Mobile processing, Tiny/curved displays, high refresh rate accommodations, low latency throughout the stack, battery efficiency are all getting better FAST.

With a few killer games and apps for VR, we could have had a killer consumer VR headset in 2-3 years. I worry that the Quest 2's half-bakedness will forever ruin the reputation of VR in the eyes of your average person.

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#209

Genuine question - if this was the perfect AR/VR device, would you use it even though it is a FB product? I have real concerns about privacy and the need to log in with FB credentials, but I am also very hopeful for devices that can continue to grow the market and help take it mainstream.

What's the privacy concern here ? Facebook knows what I do in VR ? I don't necessarily want that but TBH I don't really care about it either - I don't plan on using it for anything compromising anyway and I'm bombarded by advertisement spam everywhere to the point of immunity.

How about the scanning of your home in precise 3D?

Re: Oculus Quest 2

#210
post #126

Pretty scathing review on Ars: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/09/review-we-do-not-reco...

As an owner of Q1 all I wanted from Q2 was: - Reduce or re-distributed weight (neck/upper back ache remains an issue) Instead, what we got in the Q2 is the same weight but a head-strap that's a substantial downgrade. That decision just compounds the Q1's most glaring weakness. Then throw in the mandatory Facebook account, downgraded eye adjustments, side-grade screen, downgrade battery life, and a bunch of cost-cutti…

I disagree with almost everything you said. Firstly it's not the same weight; it's 10% lighter. If you want a better head strap then you can get the official upgraded one and combined it's still cheaper than Quest 1. Tested's review [1] says battery life is the same, plus there's now a battery strap you can buy to double it and balance the weight distribution. Tested also says the controller tracking is not worse, audio is better, and all things considered the screen is a significant improvement. Then of course there's the extra RAM and upgraded SoC.

The only serious downgrade here IMO is the IPD adjustment, but for the vast majority of people it's not an issue. In other ways it's a clear improvement. I won't be getting one as I have an Index, but this is going to sell more than any other headset. The tech and the price are both incredible.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x6lux6f_6g Tested's review is the one to trust. Norm knows his stuff.

Edit: Ah I see about the weight, you must have been talking about the weight combined with the upgraded headstrap, which does indeed make it heavier than Quest 1, by about 7%. I'll reserve judgement on comfort until I try it. Quest 1 wasn't exactly comfortable for me but it's about more than just the weight number.

Post reply on HN