Virtual Reality Headsets - worth the money?

[moke123]

Happy Birthday @Jon

 

[moke123]

I'm still playing vr golf everyday. I started using the golf club attachment and actually got my golf swing back. I hadn't played in @ 15 years due to a shoulder problem. The VR practice fixed it! When I took my clubs out of the shed I found that some critter built a nest in the bag which left the grips kind of shitty. I went and bought a new set of clubs and a practice net for the backyard. Been to the range a few times too. Planning on playing my first round with my daughter next week.

 

[Jon]

You mean it fixed your shoulder? Loosened it up?

The translation from VR to real world has gotta be a thing. Some people dispute this with the table tennis game, but what you are doing is building up a) rapid decision making given a certain situation, b) skill muscle memory, c) fitness. For example, there is certain footwork that you are supposed to use for good maneuverability, but I never did it. I did my own bodged version. Why? Not much chance to drill it. When I go to a local club, the other participant doesn't want to help me work on my drills, they just want to play! If I had the space in my office I could easily drill that footwork at my leisure. Another example is I used to always return backspin with backspin, but in VR I managed to drill topspin returns against backspin for a more aggressive addition to my shot repertoire.

 

[moke123]

You mean it fixed your shoulder? Loosened it up?

It was a totally stubborn male thing, never went to the doctor. It was just painful raising my arm above my shoulder which lasted a couple years in varying degrees. End result was losing my swing and range of motion. Using the golf club attachment definitely helped me get my swing back, for better or worse.

My daughter is an avid golfer, plays at least once a week with her boyfriend for the last 2 years. She's been pushing me to play for quite some time. I'm not sure if it's to spend time with me or for me to pay the green fees.

 

[Jon]

I totally get the doctor thing. There always seem to be other things that are more important than a niggle. Get to it when it gets really bad.

WIth this VR stuff, perhaps it's a bit like marmite. As seen in previous discussions in this thread, OP bought and returned, whilst both you and I still use ours.

 

[moke123]

whilst both you and I still use ours.

I go back to the GearVR which I think came out in about 2014.

 

[Jon]

I'm not sure how good they are but I noticed a big improvement from the Oculus Go to the Oculus Quest 3. It is now usable.

 

[Gasman]

I do not think that would even help me.

 

[moke123]

That looks pretty cool. I looked for it but apparently that is only a concept video at the moment.
I did get the piano vision app which is fun.

PianoVision on Meta Quest | Quest VR Games

Become a PianoVisionary with the world's premiere VR Music Teacher. Use a MIDI keyboard or the Virtual Piano! Note: With the Virtual Piano, we recommend sticking to the 100 songs at Level 0 and avoiding freestyle. PianoVision Features - 1400+ songs and exercises, 13+ hours - MIDI/Virtual...

www.meta.com

 

[moke123]

I think i have an impulse problem. I thought things were bad with the Quest3.

A week ago my Brother in law bought a fancy drone. A DJI mini pro 3. We flew it around his house and up Beartown Mountain about a mile away. It has a range of something like 6 to 12 miles and uses satellites for navigation. He didn't have any micro sd cards installed so he couldn't take pictures or video. We could only watch the camera on the remote.

So I ordered him two 256gb micro sd cards on prime. After installing the cards I took it up over my neighborhood at about 200' and tested out the photo's and video. There was a Hawk that flew by and started to circle around the drone but we couldn't get pix or video of him.

Needless to say, I have no impulse control. Since it was my brother in law and I couldn't spare any expense to out do him, I bought the newer upgraded DJI Mini Pro 4.

This guys video covers all the features. The most incredible is the anti-collision avoidance system.

And they do have some sort of VR Goggles you can buy.

 

[Jon]

Just an update on VR use. Been playing some ping pong this week. Did 40 minutes on it yesterday evening, burning 230 calories. That is 230 calories more than me just sitting motionless on the sofa watching YouTube rubbish.

Used my VR headset the last 6 days in a row, after a bit of time out after various life events. It has been great value for money considering how much I have used it. I think I calculated the cost to be about £2 per hour so far, but I will be using for the years ahead. Probably end up costing me 50p per hour of use in the end. Curious how many hours @moke123 has clocked up on his Quest 3.

Out of everything, the ping pong game is my favourite, and that is something many regular uses find. It is so well done and realistic.

 

[moke123]

Which one should I get?

Quest3.

Curious how many hours @moke123 has clocked up on his Quest 3.

I would guess @ 450 hours + in the last 10 months. At least an hour of golf a day, every day since. I can't even count how many courses they have now. They've added like 4 courses in just the last month or so.

Next I've got to convince you to get a drone. Been having a blast with it. I actually signed up to get a commercial pilot license which relieves you from a lot of the FAA regulations concerning recreational use. I want to be able to use it at work which requires the commercial license. I may have to get back into the surveillance game.

 

[Jon]

Which one should I get?

Quest 3, and then get a third party headset to improve comfort.

 

[Jon]

I would guess @ 450 hours + in the last 10 months. At least an hour of golf a day, every day since. I can't even count how many courses they have now. They've added like 4 courses in just the last month or so.

Next I've got to convince you to get a drone. Been having a blast with it. I actually signed up to get a commercial pilot license which relieves you from a lot of the FAA regulations concerning recreational use. I want to be able to use it at work which requires the commercial license. I may have to get back into the surveillance game.

Ok, so you are down to about $1 per hour so far. What entertainment can you get for that price? Also, when you go out for your entertainment, it takes both time and money to get to the destination. With VR, no travelling time or costs.

I could get a drone and tell my date I am a pilot. I'm sure that would close the deal, instead of saying I own a database forum!

 

[moke123]

?

head strap.

 

[moke123]

I'm sure that would close the deal, instead of saying I own a database forum!

Until she asks "what's a database forum?" Better stick to your charm and good looks

 

[moke123]

I could get a drone

You should they're fun.
When I first bought it I thought I was just buying an expensive kid's toy. (I'm about $1600 into it now.)
I didn't know how highly regulated they are. With the recreational exception you can only go 400 feet high and have to keep it in line of sight, and a bunch of other things.

Mine has a range of 12 miles so you'd have to fly it by the camera view and map display on the controller, but to do so you need the commercial license. Doesn't seem like it'll be too hard to get. Needless to say I've been 1000 feet up and 5000 feet away. Oops.

Early in my career I used to do a lot of matrimonial and insurance fraud surveillance cases. This was before digital camera's , cellphones and laptops. I can't imagine what it would have been like with one of these drones. Mine has a feature where you can lock onto an object and it will follow it on its own. At 250 feet up it's a speck in the sky and completely silent.

 

[Jon]

I am always worried about them falling out of the sky and there being a lawsuit. How often does that happen?

 

[moke123]

Mine only weighs 249 grams. Wouldn't hurt anything.
No idea about how often it happens. hopefully never. I bought a year of insurance against damage, fly aways, etc.

 

[Jon]

Apparently, if you drop a frozen pea off the top of the Empire Estate building it will go through your head like a bullet.