Today only - Up to $200 off Microsoft Windows Mixed Reality headsets w/controllers

is it the general consensus that, besides the odyssey, these are all basically not worth the price for gamers and are poisoning the well overall?
 
is it the general consensus that, besides the odyssey, these are all basically not worth the price for gamers and are poisoning the well overall?

Why would they be not worth the price?

Higher resolution, far easier setup, portable (can be used outside/in large environments without sensors), lighter weight, more options for comfort (some people choose different brands because they fit their head better). WindowsMR HMDs are supported on all 3 platforms, SteamVR + Revive gets you Oculus, SteamVR gets you Steam, and then there's all the existing WindowsMR stuff. The main downside to the cheaper HMDs is the fixed IPD, so if you're outside of the normal range ~61-65mm, it's not going to look as good. And the other downside is the controller tracking gets degraded when it's outside of the FOV.

If you're playing competitive games in VR, then these probably aren't for you. But for everything else (single player especially) these would be great.
 
Why would they be not worth the price?
Because that's what the handful of hand-on reviewers that I've seen are saying. Loses tracking easily, wiggles around on your face even at the tightest setting, glare-y lenses, increased screen-door effect, driver problems (which of course will probably be solved in time)

for a gamer these can be hugely immersion breaking issues, and as it is the top-tier HMDs are only ok at best for many
 
I'd say try it for yourself instead of relying on a handful of random reviewers making decisions for you. I can say none of those things are true when I used them, but that's also just my experience. I had more issues with Rift/Vive than I did with WindowsMR, which is why I already sold them.

Microsoft store has a nice return policy this holiday, you can return anything until Jan 31st 2018. So try it out for a few weeks and if you hate it, return it and get your money back.

Or try it out in a local store, they're doing demos.
 
Because that's what the handful of hand-on reviewers that I've seen are saying. Loses tracking easily, wiggles around on your face even at the tightest setting, glare-y lenses, increased screen-door effect, driver problems (which of course will probably be solved in time)

for a gamer these can be hugely immersion breaking issues, and as it is the top-tier HMDs are only ok at best for many

I can tell you first hand from having an Odyssey since release:
-doesn't lose tracking
-doesn't wiggle around on my face
-lenses have a little glare just like other sets
-less screen door from much better resolution on same pentile OLED display tech
-no driver problems on steam games, instantly recognized and works great

-selling out for a reason ; )
 
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Because that's what the handful of hand-on reviewers that I've seen are saying. Loses tracking easily, wiggles around on your face even at the tightest setting, glare-y lenses, increased screen-door effect, driver problems (which of course will probably be solved in time)

for a gamer these can be hugely immersion breaking issues, and as it is the top-tier HMDs are only ok at best for many
I haven't heard any of that. Most of the reviews I've read/watched have said the the WMR headsets look, feel and track surprisingly well. Occasionally they will lose track of the controllers if you turn your head while dropping your hands out of view of the camera. But most of the time the tracking is not an issue. They run at a higher resolution than the Vive or Rift, have access to SteamVR and for only $200 for the HMD + controllers? I fail to see how you can possibly beat that for value.
 
I haven't heard any of that. Most of the reviews I've read/watched have said the the WMR headsets look, feel and track surprisingly well. Occasionally they will lose track of the controllers if you turn your head while dropping your hands out of view of the camera. But most of the time the tracking is not an issue. They run at a higher resolution than the Vive or Rift, have access to SteamVR and for only $200 for the HMD + controllers? I fail to see how you can possibly beat that for value.

At $400, get the Rift. A $200, though? It's a no-brainer if you're looking to get into VR. If I didn't already have a Rift I'd have gotten one. I almost did anyway just to have a portable setup, tbh.
 
I can tell you first hand from having an Odyssey since release
yea, I heard good things about the obyssey...

They run at a higher resolution than the Vive or Rift
perhaps the increased screen door effect is only present on the cheaper models? I heard this from a guy who tested the Acer side by side with his Vive/Rift
 
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Because that's what the handful of hand-on reviewers that I've seen are saying. Loses tracking easily, wiggles around on your face even at the tightest setting, glare-y lenses, increased screen-door effect, driver problems (which of course will probably be solved in time)

for a gamer these can be hugely immersion breaking issues, and as it is the top-tier HMDs are only ok at best for many

You are right. I've heard very mixed results from several reviews as well. Those saying that they work perfectly and that they have none of these issues are, in my book, a rarity and go against the grain...even compared to others here on the forums.

I haven't heard any of that. Most of the reviews I've read/watched have said the the WMR headsets look, feel and track surprisingly well. Occasionally they will lose track of the controllers if you turn your head while dropping your hands out of view of the camera. But most of the time the tracking is not an issue. They run at a higher resolution than the Vive or Rift, have access to SteamVR and for only $200 for the HMD + controllers? I fail to see how you can possibly beat that for value.

If you HAVEN'T heard any of what Youn said than you're either lying or you don't follow VR at all. What he said has been a pretty consistent and constant view on these since release...even the reviews on MS own website above reflect this! Come on man...
 
If you HAVEN'T heard any of what Youn said than you're either lying or you don't follow VR at all. What he said has been a pretty consistent and constant view on these since release...even the reviews on MS own website above reflect this! Come on man...

Oh really? It's pretty obvious that not all VR reviewers agree with you:

RoadToVR Acer WMR Headset Review
The inside-out head tracking is the best I’ve ever seen in practice; it’s impressively robust and precise, and at times that it does lose tracking, it does so without jumping or freaking out; instead you’ll see a little message which asks you to look around in order to reestablish tracking.
The controller tracking isn’t bad by any means. After I stress tested them with Racket: NX (which is quite near the worst-case scenario for this type of tracking) I came away impressed with how the tracking—though it can jump at times—didn’t majorly impact my play. For casual users of VR, the Windows Mixed Reality Controllers are likely to be satisfactory.
https://www.roadtovr.com/acer-windows-mixed-reality-vr-headset-review-ah101/2/

Tested: Projections, Episode 31: Windows Mixed Reality Review
All in all, the experience was good. You get 90% of the experiences of the Rift/Vive with the WMR and a little bit better pixel density and ease of setup.
If you're a portable VR person, this is hard to beat
http://www.tested.com/tech/799283-projections-episode-31-windows-mixed-reality-review/

Mixed Reality TV Lenovo Explorer Review
Now the exciting question is... how well does the inside-out tracking of the WMR headsets compare to the base station based one of the Rift and Vive. The answer is that the inside-out tracking works surprisingly well.
Actually, if compared to my three based station Rift setup, I could not tell if I was using the Rift or the Lenovo Explorer. It is just so good
And compared to a two based station front facing Rift setup, this would clearly win
The inside-out tracking truly impressed me here.
These controllers are all right. They do what they are supposed to do
Let me say so much first. Tracking of the windows WMR motion controllers works great.
During actual use of the controllers in the cliff house or while playing Space Pirate Trainer for example, the controllers were tracked accurately in space without a problem


And WMR headsets were available for $200 shipped! That's half the price of the Oculus Rift and 1/3 the cost of the HTC Vive. And WMR headsets run at a higher resolution than either one.
 
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Oh really? It's pretty obvious that not all VR reviewers agree with you

Oh really? Because the first review makes them seem, at most, "alright" and acceptable for some light VR but still doesn't compare to Oculus and the second reviewer still had issues and these MR headsets still just aren't as good at the end of the day. You know what happens when I put my hand behind me? I don't lose tracking. You know what happens when I play in a dark room? I don't lose tracking.

Just because a couple reviews make them out to seem OK doesn't = they're equal or better than Vive/Rift and I still stick by what I originally said as that appears to still be the case.
 
Oh really? Because the first review makes them seem, at most, "alright" and acceptable for some light VR but still doesn't compare to Oculus and the second reviewer still had issues and these MR headsets still just aren't as good at the end of the day. You know what happens when I put my hand behind me? I don't lose tracking. You know what happens when I play in a dark room? I don't lose tracking.

Just because a couple reviews make them out to seem OK doesn't = they're equal or better than Vive/Rift and I still stick by what I originally said as that appears to still be the case.
And where exactly did I say that WMR headsets track as well as Rift/Vive? I didn't. No, what YOU said was that I was either a liar or didn't follow VR for saying that the reviews I'd read/watched concluded that there were no major issues with the tracking of WMR headsets. And obviously others agree with me including people who review VR headsets and have used Rift/Vive. Just because it's not a Rift like you own doesn't mean it can't cost less and still work well.
 
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Linus Tech Tips was maybe the first one I saw review, and they gave a pretty bad impression of it... same with Tested... found this comparison, surprised he says "pixel for pixel they look awfully similar" comparing Vive and Oddysey...



still, it's cool to see good reviews of these things from others... I'm tempted to ask work to buy us a pair to play around with (I do arch-viz sometimes, and it'd be great for that)
 
Well, I picked up a set for my daughter as an X-mas present since the gaming PC I built her a few years ago still meets the WMR Ultra specs. I'm sure I'll get to try it at some point. For $200, I doubt she'll be too disappointed.
 
I think this week there is a promo on bestbuy.com and in store where if you buy certain qualified notebooks, like gaming notebooks, you can get one of the mixed reality headsets and controllers for free.

ex

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/msi-gs...gb-ssd-aluminum-black/5712735.p?skuId=5712735

It looks like the hp mixed reality headset/controllers bundles for free. It does it with the surfacebook 15 inch also. Just a heads up if someone is already planning to get a new notebook, you might be able to get one of these for free.
 
Well, I've had a chance to check out my daughter's HP mixed reality headset. As other people have said, it was a breeze to set up and tracking doesn't seem bad at all. Definitely worth the $200 I spent on it. It has to be one of the best portable HMD's available right now. And I definitely appreciate the way the combined HDMI/USB cable detaches from the HP HMD. As her desktop is usually set up in a common area in her shared house at college, she will be able to leave all the cables plugged into her computer and just unplug the HMD to put in her room when she's done with it. No need to crawl behind her computer with a flashlight to attach/detach cables.
 
Amazon has some great deals on Windows Mixed Reality Headsets:

Lenovo Explorer Mixed Reality Headset - $247 w/free Prime shipping
http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Explorer-Wireless-Controllers-G0A20002WW/dp/B0764GKZ15

Dell Visor Mixed Reality Headset - $213 w/free Prime shipping
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077R65C4D

Acer Mixed Reality Headset - $219 w/free Prime shipping
http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AH101-D8EY-Windows-Wireless-Controllers/dp/B075PVLN2P

HP Mixed Reality Headset - $199 w/free Prime shipping
http://www.amazon.com/HP-Mixed-Reality-Headset-Controllers/dp/B077MF8TQ7


At around $210, this is impulse purchase territory for people who want to try VR. And it's a good VR experience not too far removed from the $400 Oculus Rift or $600 HTC Vive.

Blunty video review
 
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I'm so tempted to grab one of those along with a gaming laptop - Asus has a 7700hq/1060 6gb for 999 right now. That'd make a pretty killer portable setup for 1200 all in.
 
I've used a Vive, dk2, and the Lenovo Windows MR. The Lenovo had a much better image, and I have to look for sde. I can't believe I'm saying this but I don't need higher than 1440x1440 for each for vr. Part of it might because it's lcd instead of oled. To me for vr pixel density is far more important than perfect blacks and color contrast. The controllers are fine for me.

I'm in a position to afford whatever I consider the best, and to me it's easily the lcd based Windows mr sets.
 
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The Oculus Rift and HTC Vive both use pentile OLED displays while the regular (non-Samsung) Mixed Reality Headsets use RGB LCD panels. Everybody seems so focused on OLED as the future that they forget sub-pixel arrangements and the resulting SDE.
 
Picked up the Dell with this sale last week. I don't have experience with any other headsets so I can't directly compare. I can say that I do notice the SDE but it's normally not very distracting. I've only played some of the freebies on Steam and Vanishing Realms (of course the headset went on sale after the Winter sale). In some games it's kind of meh while in others it's amazing. The Heart of the Emberstone door unlock puzzles were what really jumped out at me; moving your hand while looking at the pipes from different angles was fascinating. Star Trek Bridge Crew was a lot of fun with a friend also.

One problem I've had is that my roomscale area isn't large enough and the USB/HDMI cables are too short; my available area is about 4x7 and I'm constantly seeing the wireframe while looking around or punching shelves. Another issue is that games that require you to "sling" or throw objects (Disc golf in Rec Room or Waltz of the Wizard) don't seem to function well at all. The onboard Intel bluetooth would constantly drop connections to the controllers which required me to buy an external USB dongle. But the RX570 seems to be running everything just fine so far and I've yet to experience motion sickness.
 
I have enjoyed my HP WMR tremendously. Downloaded the steam beta for wmr and I have played a lot of games. Highly recommended superhot vr to anyone new with vr gaming.
 
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