As you may have heard, virtual reality is experiencing explosive growth from home gamers to corporate applications related to medical, manufacturing, human resources, and training. We often field calls from current and potential clients who are new to VR. Among the many questions we are frequently asked, a prominent one is “should I buy a used VR headset?
We empathize with the callers as there are many choices across the VR market when evaluating VR headsets, and decisions can be daunting.
Get Familiar With the VR Hardware Market
When researching VR options, you should look at them from both a hardware and software perspective. After all, without an application, there is little value in a VR headset.
Many virtual reality headsets are available; the two most popular brands are HTC and Oculus (purchased by Facebook). Our recommendation is to evaluate these two brands as there is a solid foundation for their technology. By all estimates, they should remain leaders in VR hardware for the foreseeable future.
Virtual Reality Software
As mentioned above, you should make VR hardware decisions based on the software or applications of interest; this is important because it will ensure that it is compatible with the hardware. You can break down VR software into three categories:
1. Industry-specific solutions. The last thing you want to do is to recreate the wheel. Google is your best source to determine if there might be a program that has been created for a specific purpose or to solve a particular challenge in your industry.
2. Create custom software. If you can’t find a commercially available program that will accomplish your goals, you may want to investigate creating a custom program. You can shoot a video with one or more 360 cameras to experience 3D inside a VR headset. There are many developers available to help you create the video as well as production.
3. Commercial software for games and experiences, There are many options in this area, and You can find most at the Steam or Oculus Store.
Buying New or Used Virtual Reality Headsets
Now that we have some guidance on software applications and know who the major players are in VR hardware, there is the option to buy a new or used virtual reality headset.
Depending on your budget and if you need to buy one headset or many for corporate use, buying one used headset might make sense.
There are many used headsets on the market. It is best to purchase from a site such as Amazon. Reviewing the reputation of the sellers before you are buying is always a good idea. Also, Amazon is a very consumer-friendly site. If there is something wrong with the headset or even if you don’t like it, you can count on Amazon to be on your side when processing the return.
Buying Vs. Renting a Headset
Another option is to rent a VR headset. If you have no virtual reality experience, it might be a good option to rent before you buy. Suppose you are interested in commercial games or experiences. In that case, the VR rental company should install the applications of interest for you so that when your headset arrives, it is loaded up and ready to go.
Another advantage of renting is that you should get help from the rental company on how the headsets operate. This assistance will reduce your learning curve and provide you with the best experience when evaluating the headset.
Virtual Reality is here to stay and will only continue to grow in the future. Perhaps, it is time to expand your horizons from 2d to 3d to see how this technology can benefit you? Perhaps you want to connect with employees in virtual reality. To learn more about virtual reality, visit the maverick VR blog to see many articles related to various VR topics.
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