Samsung VR or similar with AMD?

[silk186]

I was thinking I would like to try a bit of VR and see what games are like. If I enjoy it I will invest in a 2019/2020 VR headset.

I'm planning to pick up one of the cheap Chinese headsets and popping in my Samsung S8. After some reading, it seems that I can use Samsung gear VR with an NVidea shield to connect with my PC. This issue is, I have an AMD 280x and don't plan on switching to NVidea. Do any solutions exist for AMD cards?

 

[Supercharged_Z06]

I was thinking I would like to try a bit of VR and see what games are like. If I enjoy it I will invest in a 2019/2020 VR headset.

I'm planning to pick up one of the cheap Chinese headsets and popping in my Samsung S8. After some reading, it seems that I can use Samsung gear VR with an NVidea shield to connect with my PC. This issue is, I have an AMD 280x and don't plan on switching to NVidea. Do any solutions exist for AMD cards?

Just so you know, mobile VR is very weak sauce compared to the full blown PC VR experience. A cheap Chinese headset and your phone is like getting a cold big mac and a bottle of warm mad dog 20/20 as an entry sample into fine dining. 6 DOF with full high res tracking of both the HMD and hand controllers on a Rift or Vive is what you really want to experience to get a real taste as to what VR is all about. Find a friend that will demo it properly - or go to a Dave and Busters.

 

[Decibel]

To add to what Supercharged_Z06 said, a 280x isn't going to stream well through a Shield, at all.

What's a Shield cost? $200? Grab a refurb HP HMD for $160 https://www.amazon.com/HP-Reality-Controllers-Certified-Refurbished/dp/B07CSFYJKD/ and go. Your 280x will slow you down in games a bit, but it will be FAR better than trying to stream anything through your phone.

And still sub-par to a modern gaming PC with a Vive or Rift.

And yeah, mobile VR is like sex with a condom, on another dude's dick, and you don't even get to watch.

 

[silk186]

Just so you know, mobile VR is very weak sauce compared to the full blown PC VR experience. A cheap Chinese headset and your phone is like getting a cold big mac and a bottle of warm mad dog 20/20 as an entry sample into fine dining. 6 DOF with full high res tracking of both the HMD and hand controllers on a Rift or Vive is what you really want to experience to get a real taste as to what VR is all about. Find a friend that will demo it properly - or go to a Dave and Busters.

No Idea what a Dave and Busters is but I spotted some VR bars the last time I was in China.

To add to what Supercharged_Z06 said, a 280x isn't going to stream well through a Shield, at all.

What's a Shield cost? $200? Grab a refurb HP HMD for $160 https://www.amazon.com/HP-Reality-Controllers-Certified-Refurbished/dp/B07CSFYJKD/ and go. Your 280x will slow you down in games a bit, but it will be FAR better than trying to stream anything through your phone.

And still sub-par to a modern gaming PC with a Vive or Rift.

And yeah, mobile VR is like sex with a condom, on another dude's dick, and you don't even get to watch.

I had no interntions of going the Shield route. I had read that it was a hack to get it working with Nvidia cards.
The refurb HP is a lot cheaper than I expected. I didn't even know HP made VR kit.
I will look into the HP option.

 

[bobzdar]

I was thinking I would like to try a bit of VR and see what games are like. If I enjoy it I will invest in a 2019/2020 VR headset.

I'm planning to pick up one of the cheap Chinese headsets and popping in my Samsung S8. After some reading, it seems that I can use Samsung gear VR with an NVidea shield to connect with my PC. This issue is, I have an AMD 280x and don't plan on switching to NVidea. Do any solutions exist for AMD cards?

I played around with RIftCat on my Samsung s7, picked up an old Kinect for positional tracking and had a Leap Motion lying around for hand tracking. All in I spent around $140 not including cost of the phone or the Leap (both of which I already had) and countless hours trying to get all the software working.

Refurb HP is $150 and WAY better. Even a new one for $200 is well worth it. I picked up one new for backup for my Rift and as a portable, very pleased with it. Not as good as a Rift but at $150 it's a great entry point until the next gen stuff comes out. Don't bother with the phone based unit, for an extra $50 just get the HP and you'll get the full experience. It should work pretty well with that video card, you won't be able to really crank things up but good enough to get a good idea what it's like.

 

[Supercharged_Z06]

No Idea what a Dave and Busters is but I spotted some VR bars the last time I was in China.

FYI: It took you more effort to tell me that you have no idea what a Dave and Busters is than it would have taken you to google it.

I’ll cut you some slack though since it appears you are on the other side of the pond. Just post to one of the Reddit VR Subreddits like /r/oculus/ or r/vive and ask someone in London to hook you up with a VR demo in exchange for some beers.

 

[silk186]

FYI: It took you more effort to tell me that you have no idea what a Dave and Busters is than it would have taken you to google it.

I’ll cut you some slack though since it appears you are on the other side of the pond. Just post to one of the Reddit VR Subreddits like /r/oculus/ or r/vive and ask someone in London to hook you up with a VR demo in exchange for some beers.

Good suggestion!