Microsoft is following Google's lead and has announced a low-cost virtual reality headset that seems to be a competitor to Google Cardboard.
The headset is being used as a way to lure virtual reality developers into a hackathon, where participants with successful ideas will be given their own "set of Cardboard" on which to test their VR apps. The event itself will be held in Moscow on Oct. 17.
Virtual reality devices have traditionally been pretty expensive and have had dedicated hardware for things like motion tracking and 3D imagery. Google, however, didn't seem to see the need for expensive devices and released Google Cardboard last year. Google Cardboard is a flat-packed virtual reality headset that makes use of a smartphone for the display. The headset was simply made of cardboard, with glass lenses.
The idea behind Microsoft's new headset is similar, however, it is obviously built for Windows Phone-based devices rather than Android-based smartphones. It's not clear if the company plans on releasing its own Cardboard kit to the public.
Microsoft is simply the latest in a number of companies testing the virtual reality waters. Facebook, of course, has been very interested in virtual reality and bought Oculus VR for $1 billion. Samsung has also been working with Oculus, releasing the Oculus-developed Samsung Gear VR. It is largely expected that virtual reality is one of the next big movements when it comes to consumer technology.
Microsoft is already working on an augmented reality device, which takes the real world and lays digital information over real world images. This device is called HoloLens.
Even the companies at the cutting edge of virtual reality, however, suggest it won't blow up as quickly as some assume. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg issues a warning about VR, saying that it would grow slowly.
"If you think about the arrival of computers or smartphones, the first units shipped did not ship tens of millions in their first year. But they proved an idea and made it real," said Zuckerberg.
Via: Cnet
