Category Archives: Virtual Reality

Time machines dont exist, but this exhibit might be the next-best thing. War Remains, an immersive virtual reality experience at The National World War I Museum and Memorial, takes visitors back to the bloody trenches of World War I during the 1917 Battle of Passchendaele, where about 450,000 Allied and German soldiers were killed, wounded or went missing outside the Belgian city of Ypres.

After putting on the VR goggles, visitors walk through a network of trenches lit by distant fires, explosions and an occasional flare overhead. The scene is apocalyptic: the earth around you is cratered by artillery fire, there are limbs hanging into the trench, and the fiery night sky gives the whole experience a horror-movie atmosphere. That feeling of horror is exactly the note exhibit producers wanted to hit.

What VR can do is fool your lizard brain, said podcast producer Dan Carlin, who helped create War Remains and who narrates the experience. It can make the hair on the back of your neck stand up even though your conscious brain knows that this isnt real. The combination of all those things together seemed like a likely place to recreate a nightmare.

Carlin is a great choice to narrate: his podcast Hardcore History, which has a series of episodes on WWI, is one of the easiest ways to learn about the complicated conflict. But hes only one member of a team of experts who helped create War Remains. Others include Skywalker Sound, the famous sound effect studio that did the effects for Star Wars and Indiana Jones, and the overall director, Brandon Oldenburg, whose animated short film The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore won an Academy Award in 2012.

We designed this experience to use technology to provide an added layer of what wed like to call empathy amplification, a chance to get a little deeper into the story than the previous tools available to most of us [such as books, movies, podcasts, etc.] have allowed for, Carlin said in a statement for reporters during a media preview of the exhibit on Monday.

Unlike a movie or a video game, War Remains offers more than just sights and sounds. At the museum in Kansas City, Missouri visitors walk through a physical recreation of the World War I trench system seen through their VR headsets. They can reach out and touch the artifacts they see inside the VR goggles, such as a radio in a bunker or the rosary clutched by a dead hand hanging into the trench. There is also a rubber coating under the floorboards to simulate the feeling of mud beneath them, and there are sub-bass transducers in the wall to make visitors feel the vibrations of exploding artillery shells in their body.

Shell shock was a real thing, and, as we all know, concussions are a real thing, Oldenburg told reporters on Monday. Those sorts of things had lasting, dramatically tragic effects on those who survived the war. That vibration simulates what it was like being adjacent to an explosion that was happening all around you.

Taking visitors back to the trenches like never before is the main draw for War Remains, but there was a fine line between showing the brutality of the Western Front on the one hand, and traumatizing visitors on the other.

It is taken to the extremities and limits of gore, but that is doing honor to those who experienced it, Oldenburg said. Had there been a WWI veteran that we could have put through this, I would have been embarrassed, because I know we still didnt reach the levels of extremities of how horrific it was. But we got it as close as we could without people leaving this thing fully traumatized.

Oldenburg reminded reporters that, unlike for the people who lived through the trenches, visitors always have the option to take off their goggles and go home. For that purpose, the exhibit includes warnings outside the exhibit for those with post-traumatic stress disorder and certain medical conditions. Some visitors reach their limit a lot sooner than others.

There have been times with press and others where weve observed people go through and the moment they see a rat theyre like Im done, Im leaving, Oldenburg said.

Whatever your appetite for realism may be, War Remains seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revisit a century-old war that still shapes our world today. Details to visit the exhibit in person can be found on the museum website. The exhibit opens on May 27. For those who cant visit in person, there is also a home edition of War Remains that viewers can use with a VR headset. The home edition doesnt come with the real-life trench set which makes the museum experience that much more real, but reviewers on the online retailer Steam still enjoyed it.

My grandfather had a phrase: never judge a man until youve walked a mile in his moccasins, Carlin said in a video promoting War Remains. This is farther than youve ever been able to get before.

Related: 7 visceral WWI movies and shows to watch after you experience 1917

Excerpt from:

This VR tour takes you into the trenches of WWI, but stops short of leaving you fully traumatized - Task & Purpose

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Excerpt from:

Virtual Reality SDK Software Market Size and Share, Key Players, Applications, Industry Growth, Forecast 2021-2028 KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper - KSU...

As I watched the Prime Minister urge chief ministers last week to not slow down the pace of vaccinations, I wondered if living in virtual reality has made him lose touch with reality. This virtual meeting was where we had the first sighting of the Home Minister since the defeat in West Bengal. The Home Ministry is directly in charge when there is a national disaster and yet for the past two months, Amit Shah has been sighted only at election rallies in Bengal.

He was so certain that the BJP would snatch this state from Mamata Banerjee that he boasted publicly about winning at least 200 seats. He gave many televised interviews about Bengal after it became clear that this second Covid wave was catastrophic, and that he should have been in the Home Ministry directing operations. When asked about reducing the length of the Bengal campaign, he smiled and said, There are no elections in Maharashtra so why is the virus spreading there? In another interview, he said that the only reason why Opposition leaders were asking for a shorter campaign in Bengal was because the BJP was winning. India was left to fend for herself while our two most important leaders concentrated on winning Bengal.

It is good to know that they are back, at least virtually, but so much time has been wasted that India is now on a ventilator. Modis atmanirbharta dream has been thrown in a garbage bin and we are begging for help from anyone ready to give it to us. Many countries have closed their doors to Indians because they see images of the pyres that burn all night in our cremation grounds and people gasping for oxygen in our hospitals, and they fear that we have a horrific new mutation that travellers will bring with them. Things are so bad that our Foreign Minister seems for now to have given up his silly efforts to counter the bad press the Supreme Leader is getting internationally.

The Prime Ministers image has taken a huge hit. May I humbly suggest that it could be improved considerably if he stopped work on the Central Vista project. Images of the mounds of debris and dirt that lie scattered where once there were elegant streetlamps and manicured lawns have travelled all over the world and most people are horrified at what they think of as vandalism. We Indians know that the Prime Minister believes that this project is an assertion of nationalism and that his favourite architect will do a much better job than Edwin Lutyens or Herbert Baker. His faith in Bimal Patel is extraordinary. He was tasked with tearing down parts of the old city of Varanasi to build a corridor from the Ganga to the Vishwanath Mandir, and to redesign the Sabarmati river front in Ahmedabad.

In any case the Central Vista redevelopment must stop. The money being spent on it is needed to build the infrastructure for modern healthcare. Since the pandemic, we continue to report that our healthcare system has been overwhelmed. The truth is that it never really existed. Most Indians were using private hospitals and clinics because in states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, they said that politicians usually built hospitals only to make money out of construction. Some years ago, I did a series for this newspaper on hospitals in small towns in UP and saw hospitals whose roofs had blown away and whose wards had wild grass growing in them. It should surprise no Indian that our hospitals have been crushed by this pandemic.

Now is a chance to rebuild public healthcare from scratch. But, this cannot happen if the Prime Minister and his Covid team remain in denial about the horrific realities ordinary people are dealing with. It is very bad in the cities, but it is going to get much worse in rural India. Already reports are coming in from villages in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar of people dying of breathlessness before they can be taken to the nearest district hospital. This is just the beginning.

The Prime Minister needs to urgently put together a new team in which there should be chief ministers of every political party along with scientists and doctors, so that a national policy can be made to deal with what is the worst crisis India has ever faced. But, first he needs to acknowledge that his old team has failed abysmally.

Modi has always boasted of his image as a strong and decisive leader. This is the time for him to prove that he is. For now, every time he appears virtually on our screens and gives one of his speeches, he sounds as if he has been fooled by his admirers and his social media army to believe that the horror stories are lies. Is this why he has shown more empathy for BJP workers in Bengal than for people dying without oxygen in hospitals? Is this why he has not ordered his ministers and MPs to go into their constituencies and help those who are in desperate need?

Is the Prime Minister privately tormented by the disease and death that has spread across the country on his watch? Does he see that we have come to this pass because of mistakes made by his government? He shows no sign that he does, and he really needs to.

This column first appeared in the print edition on May 9, 2021 under the title Virtual realities.

Excerpt from:

Is PM Modi privately tormented by the disease and death that has spread across India on his watch? - The Indian Express

With the pandemic still limiting personal contact, people strive to stay connected with friends and family by turning to virtual platforms like Zoom, Skype and social media to stave off isolation and loneliness.

But what about virtual reality?

The next level in virtual togetherness, according to two research papers recently published by a team of School of Journalism and Communication faculty members, may be virtual reality technology if the cost comes down enough to be more widely accessible.

VR, or virtual reality, is a place to explore and create the unimaginable, said associate professor Donna Davis, director of the strategic communication master's program.

The first paper, which has been two years in the making, was written by Davis and assistant professors Maxwell Foxman and David Markowitz. In the paper, they compare how virtual reality is framed in both academia and popular culture.

The authors argue that a more common understanding of how to measure and communicate about empathy is needed because of major gaps in public and academic perceptions of how VR can address such topics.

In the press, virtual reality was touted, particularly from 2016 through 2018, as being this kind of empathy machine, Foxman said. You put on a headset and you could walk in the shoes of another person, and that would make you empathize with their experience.

While people have been curious about the potential benefits virtual reality offers, its often associated with single-player gaming. With headsets ranging from $300 to more than $1,000, its also inaccessible to most people.

Assistant professor Daniel Pimentel joined Davis, Foxman and Markowitz to write a second paper exploring the limits and potential of virtual reality during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Virtual reality is often used for entertainment, but it can be a mental health tool as well. For example, people with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder can use virtual reality to practice mindfulness or meditation in a relaxing environment they usually wouldnt have access to, such as on a beach in New Zealand or a hike in the Redwood National Forest in California.

One of the big issues we outlined in the paper is the idea that during the pandemic, we were very isolated, Pimentel said. Virtual reality is particularly interesting because it gives you that illusion of being close to other people, or social presence, that are otherwise not next to you.

The second paper focuses on five primary themes that will continue to influence adoption of virtual reality technology during the pandemic: sociocultural, content, affordability, supply chain and equitable design.

The problem with headset-based virtual reality, as we discussed in both of our papers, is the technology is still evolving, Davis said. Headsets are still expensive a $300 headset used to maybe cost $30,000. The technology it takes to also run the software is a higher-end computer, which automatically eliminates a large majority of the population.

Pimentel, who started at the School of Journalism and Communications Portland campus in September, was able to get to know his colleagues a little more by working over Zoom with them on the paper. The team worked to combine their individual expertise with virtual reality technology to write engaging and unique papers meant to help ensure VR is accessible for people who want to use it.

VR provides an unprecedented amount of nonverbal data, like posture that can be used to tailor experiences to meet the needs of each individual. However, ethically collecting and using that data does come with risks.

The COVID-19 pandemic has given us the opportunity to dive into these technologies, Davis said. With all the promise, we also recognize there are risks involved that must be mitigated. As researchers, we need to be aware of what those are and how to help industry, researchers and consumers prepare for them. I believe that people are going to discover virtual reality to be an incredibly powerful tool.

By Alli Weseman, School of Journalism and Communication

Excerpt from:

Virtual reality could help put the empathy back in pandemic life - AroundtheO

Yaw VR is taking virtual reality gaming to a whole new level with its next-generation motion simulatorYaw2. Its the companys most compact and affordable VR motion simulator. Also, it has the highest motion range by far.

Merely a week from launching its Kickstarter campaign, Yaw VR surpassed its initial funding goal of $100,000. Its raised more than $1 million in crowdfunding with a few more weeks to spare.

Yaw2 gives gamers realistic virtual reality experiences without sacrificing comfort. It has a 40-degree roll motion range, while it has a 70-degree pitch motion range. By adding the Yaw Platform, gamers can enjoy a full 360-degree rotation.

The Yaw Platform is an optional module. When added to your Yaw2 simulator, it unlocks the rotational movement.

After its successful Kickstarter campaign in 2018, Yaw VR was able to identify the most indispensable features and functionalities for motion simulation. Comfort, foldable gaming plate, and hassle-free setup were some of the factors that have been carried over to the Yaw2.

The Yaw VR Game Engine 2.0 is a free tool, which you can use to connect games to your simulator. From there, you can adjust everything, from LED lights and motion compensation to axes and vibration.

Aside from these, Yaw2 is equipped with advanced features that improve the virtual gaming experience. This includes ultra-low latency, high motion speed, powerful motors, built-in vibration, and gameplay time tracker.

Moreover, Yaw VR added new features for the Pro version, such as a 3.5mm jack and a USB hub. It also has Buttkicker mounting support and a 110/220 V outlet.

See Also: VR Gaming for Adults

Since Yaw2 operates independently from VR headsets, it is compatible with major VR headsets such as Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, Oculus Rift-S, HTC VIVE, HTC VIVE Pro, Valve Index, PSVR, Windows Mixed Reality headsets and Pimax.

The cost of virtual reality equipment has dropped significantly over the years due to advances in technology. However, most of them are expensive for the average consumer.

Still, Yaw2 brings us a step closer to affordable virtual reality gaming experiences, as its lowest funding tier costs a reasonable $1,090. However, the base pledge only comes with the base equipment. It includes the Yaw2 motion simulator and smart chair, excluding the seat.

For $1,470, you get the Yaw2 motion simulator, the smart chair (again without the seat), and Yaw Platform for Yaw2. The seat is available as an add-on for $100.

However, since the seat is replaceable, if you have a particular seat that you find more comfortable, you can attach it to the simulator. Its platform is compatible with most flat-bottom office and gaming seats.

Perhaps the best thing about the Yaw2 simulator is that its suitable for home and work use too. It has a wide ergonomic desk, which fits a laptop, keyboard, and mouse.

Its chair features posture correcting assistance. That means it automatically adjusts the chair to an ideal position to keep the muscles and joints healthy.

As mentioned, it also comes with a built-in timer. Besides keeping track of your game time, you can use it to track your work time and boost productivity.

Yaw2 is the future of virtual reality gaming. This motion simulator is stylish, functional, and somewhat affordable.

Yaw2 will still be on Kickstarter for a few more weeks.

The rest is here:

Yaw2 Ushers In The Next Generation Of Virtual Reality Gaming | ARPost - ARPost

Virtual reality will be used to help some military veterans visit war memorials in the Nation's Capital from their homes.

With the help of wireless provider T-Mobile and augmented reality and VR channel Healium, the Honor Flight Network will bring to veterans' homes the virtual experience of visiting the World War II Memorial and other Washington, D.C., memorials during May, which is Military Appreciation Month.

Volunteers with the Honor Flight Network, anon-profit organization that flies veterans to Washington, D.C., to see war memorials honoring veterans' service and sacrifices, will be equipped with VR headsets and hotspots that connectto T-Mobile's 5G network. The network will travel to small, rural towns across the U.S. to veterans' homes and give them thevirtual tours.

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World War II veteran JD Sinclair experiencing a VR visit to war memorials in the Nation's Capital. The rural Missouri man was a Seaman 2nd Class during WWII stationed aboard the USS Columbia in the North Atlantic.(Photo: T-Mobile/Healium/Honor Flight Network)

The VR experience includes theChanging of the Guardat Arlington National Cemetery, and video and sound from the World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Women in Military Service For America Memorial. Theres also a virtual tour of the USS Nimitz in the Pacific Ocean.

We are losing our World War II Veterans at a rate of hundreds a day, and sadly many may not live long enough to be able to see their memorials in person, said Healium CEO Sarah Hill in a a statement.While nothing is as good as a real, in-person Honor Flight trip, this is a beautiful way to take Veterans there if theyre not able to travel.

Last month, T-Mobile announced its 5G home internet service and competitor Verizon has an offering, too but you will want to check coverage maps for availability. 5G can providebroadband speeds that outperform cable-delivered connections.

Faster, more robust connections mean more will be able to experience VR applications that "can transport us to new places, giving us immersive experiences that better connect us to our world, said John Saw, executive vice president of advanced and emerging technologies at T-Mobile, in a statement. We are delighted to team up with Healium and Honor Flight Network to help give back to those who have served our country.

Follow Mike Snider on Twitter: @MikeSnider.

Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/gaming/2021/05/11/military-veterans-get-virtual-reality-tour-war-memorials-home/5037690001/

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Virtual reality for military veterans: T-Mobile teams with Honor Flight Network, VR to bring memorials to war vets - USA TODAY

The first details of Sony's upcoming virtual reality headset for the PlayStation 5 game console leaked out this week. Among expected improvements like 4K resolution, USB-C and haptic feedback, we felt one feature needed further explanation.

That feature is called foveated rendering. Don't worry if you haven't heard of it before; this isn't a case of a pre-existing technology making the leap from smartphones, televisions or computers to VR, but a new technology directly related to virtual and augmented reality.

Read More:

What is foveated rendering?

At its simplest foveated rendering seeks to produce a more realistic viewing experience while also reducing the graphical demands of a VR headset. This can also help save battery life for wireless headsets, but the next-generation PlayStation VR is expected to be powered via a USB-C cable, so battery efficiency isn't a factor in that application.

Foveated rendering is able to both improve the visual experience and lower the processing requirements by adjusting the resolution of a VR environment depending on where you are looking at any one moment. This requires eye-tracking another technology rumored to be featured on Sony's new headset so the VR system can see precisely where the wearer is looking.

Once their gaze is known, the system can dynamically adjust the resolution of the VR experience in real-time. The resolution of the user's periphery vision is decreased, while the resolution of where they are looking is increased. This means graphical processing power can be managed more efficiently, with fewer pixels used to create parts of the VR environment that the user isn't looking at.

A more lifelike VR experience

The VR headset by Varjo uses foveated renderingVarjo

As well as being more energy efficient, foveated rendering also promises to create a more lifelike VR experience, by blurring the edges of a user's peripheral vision instead of producing VR with a consistently sharp resolution across the entire environment. Just like how objects in your real-world peripheral vision aren't as clear as those you are looking at directly.

Foveated rendering was first seen in 2014, on a headset by a VR startup called Fove. This was also the first VR headset to feature eye-tracking. A couple of years later, Nvidia demonstrated its own method for creating foveated rendering, followed by Qualcomm in 2017.

HTC then revealed the Vive Pro Eye headset in January 2019, complete with eye-tracking and foveated rendering. This enterprise-grade VR headset works with Windows 10 computers and is currently priced at around $1,350 considerably more than the expected circa $400 to $500 for Sony's upgraded PlayStation VR.

The feature also appears in the VR headsets of Varjo. Addressing its customers, the Finnish company explains the technology as such: "Foveated rendering uses the eye tracking functionality built into your headset to improve the performance of applications and produce a better virtual experience.

"With foveated rendering, your headset can render fewer pixels in peripheral areas while maintaining the highest resolution in the center of your vision. The area with the highest resolution will follow your gaze so that you can experience the best possible image quality at all times."

The HTC Vive Pro Eye is an enterprise-grade VR headsetHTC

Foveated rendering without eye-tracking

This visual trick doesn't necessarily need eye-tracking technology. Facebook-owned Oculus added dynamic fixed foveated rendering to the software development kit (SDK) of the Oculus Quest in late-2019. Oculus explains to developers: "The effect lowers the fidelity of the scene in the viewer's peripheral vision and is nearly imperceptible. This reduces the GPU load due to the reduction in pixel shading requirements."

We don't know for sure yet if Sony's next VR headset will have eye-tracking and foveated rendering, but given the power of the PlayStation 5 we don't think this, and a 4K resolution, would be too much to ask. It should also lead to more realistic VR games and experiences, and hopefully pave the way for more growth in the consumer VR market.

HTC VIVE Pro Virtual Reality System

More here:

What is foveated rendering? Explaining the VR technology key to lifelike realism - Gearbrain

Sgt. Isaiah Ernst conducts a tense traffic stop as part of his training. (Tom Russo | Daily Reporter)

GREENFIELD Isaac Galbraith slowly lifted the Taser from his left pocket after demanding the man standing in front of him drop the baseball bat. When the man didnt and charged the Greenfield Police Department officer, Galbraith squeezed the trigger and dropped the attacker within seconds.

This was an exercise, not a real event. But with the help of virtual reality equipment, the training, held this week for GPD officers, came pretty close to the real thing.

When Galbraiths exercise was over, he slightly raised the virtual reality mask off his face and listened to the critique of his performance from instructors Lt. Jimmie Condra, Detective Jerami Summers and Capt. Chuck McMichael, who told the officer he handled the situation well.

Heading into the training, Galbraith noted he had not done any similar training previously. But he knew it was going to help him be better prepared the next time he is forced to make a quick decision.

The man with the baseball bat was just one of 13 scenarios Galbraith and all officers from the GPD went through earlier this week as part of a session of de-escalation training.

This is definitely different from the old kind of video games, Condra said. This is all about de-escalation when someone doesnt necessarily respond to your commands.

The training is designed to be a vital part of honing officers response and comes after the state has enacted a new law requiring de-escalation exercises. But the virtual reality aspect was unusual.

Were one of the first departments in this area to do this kind of training, McMichael said. Weve had a lot of good feedback from our officers.

The department conducted the two-day training at Evolution VR,1757 Melody Lane in Greenfield, owned and operated by Terry Longworth. The business is certified through the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy as a law enforcement provider, meaning any training the officers do at the facility goes toward required training hours.

While the instructors and operator watch a video screen of the program the officers go through during the training, the officer is immersed into the scenario. He or she can move around as if theyre actually in the environment, and theyget a real-life feel of how to react in tense and dangerous situations.

The program scenarios are so real an observer can watch an officer jumping out of the way of an oncoming vehicle or trying to dodge a person running at them.

McMichael noted this level of training is new to the department. The plan is to have officers go through a virtual reality program at least once a year.

Evolution VR officials reached out to the GPD in spring of 2020 to let them know software companies had created programs to help in police training scenarios. The pandemic kept the department from moving forward last year, but this year, with the business opening up and people getting out, the department jumped at the chance to do the training for a cost of about $1,000, which was a one-time price quoted for this test session of the software.

This is a great alternative to work in additional training, McMichael said. Its really cool.

He also went through the VR training and said it was much more than he had anticipated, noting how realistic the training weapons are, right down to the make and model officers carry.

While many law enforcement agencies take part in role-playing scenarios during field day programs, the virtual reality takes the experience to a new level. A large number of scenarios can be programmed, from a suicidal person to a bank robbery, an active shooter or a domestic violence situation. The program can be controlled by an operator who in a second can change a scenario and how it plays out based on an officers decisions.

During the training, each officer taking part gets a brief description of the scenario theyre thrust into, just like they would with a normal call. Once the scenario starts, the officer responds to what he or she is seeing, including moving about.

Were even putting officers into positions where they have to move themselves into a cover position, walk around a neighbor, or look into a car, McMichael said.

Brian Pryor, chief of the Shirley Police Department, had his officers take the training and said it was a worthwhile experience.

Our guys love it, Pryor said. Its about as close to being in the actual situation as can be.

Pryor, whos been in law enforcement for nearly 30 years, took part in the training himself and said he and his department appreciated the opportunity to have the full 360-degree experience.

Up, down, everything around you was just like it would be in a real-life dangerous situation, Pryor said, which he noted is normally hard to simulate in traditional training exercises. I really love the training and highly recommend it. It really raises your heart rate, and thats something officers need to experience working under the different stresses of the job.

Read the rest here:

TRUE TO LIFE: Virtual reality training puts officers in the middle of the action - Greenfield Daily Reporter

HTC Vive sets a new benchmark for business and consumer virtual reality (VR), bringing 5K resolution and a 120-degree field of view as standard to the two new VR headsets, the company announced at Vivecon 2021, HTCs global VR conference.

Vive Pro 2 pushes the boundaries of PC VR for incredible gaming, creating, and experiences, while Vive Focus 3 redefines business VR with a purpose-built All-in-One with no compromises. HTC also launched Vive Business, its comprehensive range of tools designed to support businesses of any size to get the most out of VR.

Cher Wang, HTC chairwoman and CEO, announces: Todays launch marks a major milestone in our strategy to create the very best immersive experiences. We have listened to our customers, from well-known global companies to smaller firms and professional users and have designed these premium headsets from the ground up to meet the challenges they face, adding a professional range of software, platform and services to make implementation as smooth and effective as possible.

Wang claims: In line with our mission, weve combined the latest technology with the needs and aspirations of our customers, enabling them to unleash their imagination to improve peoples lives and solve problems for business and society.

Furthermore, I am delighted to share this good news at our first global Vivecon event; a clear demonstration of how the virtual world has become mainstream over the last year, enabling people from all over the world to join us without leaving their homes, Wang continues. In this new normal, Vive is playing a greater role in bringing people closer together while creating a more sustainable world.

Vive Pro 2 Sharp, Precise, ImmersiveVive Pro 2 takes PC VR to the next level, taking into consideration every pixel and polygon, for high-end gaming or creating the impossible.

A 5K resolution display delivers 2.5K to each eye, coupled with a fluid 120 Hz refresh rate, and fast-switching panel with real RGB sub-pixels, for clear and smooth animations. Field of view increases to 120 degrees thanks to VIVE Pro 2s new bespoke dual stacked-lens design. According to HTC, these advances mean minimal motion blur and the screen door effect is virtually eliminated, giving people a more natural and immersive experience.

HTC Vive says it also worked closely with Nvidia and AMD to utilise Display Stream Compression, for the first time in a VR headset. Display Stream Compression ensures maximum visual quality and is also backwards compatible with DisplayPort 1.2, so even graphics cards which supported VIVE Pro will see a benefit with Vive Pro 2.

Vive Pro 2 features adjustable inter-pupillary distance (IPD), evenly distributed weight balance, adjustable head strap, and a quick-adjustable sizing dial. It also has 3D spatial sound with Hi-Res Audio Certified headphones and supports third party headphones.

All Vive SteamVR ecosystem accessories will work with Vive Pro 2Vive Trackers of any generation, including the new Vive Facial Tracker, and more. Vive Pro 2 will slot into an existing SteamVR setupwhether it's Base Station 1.0 or Base Station 2.0, Vive Wireless Adapter, controllers, or even controllers and gloves like Valves Index knuckle controllers.

Vive Focus 3 A New Era for Business VRHTC considers the new All-In-One Vive Focus 3 as the ultimate solution for business VR, combining visuals with a smarter ergonomic design, audio and next level inside-out tracking and controllers.

Vive Focus 3 has 5K resolution with class-leading dual 2.5K displays, a smooth 90Hz refresh rate and an ultra-wide 120-degree field of view, for exceptional immersion. The fast-switching display panel uses real RGB subpixels, practically eliminating the screen door effect. The new visuals mean fine details like writing and overall fidelity are dramatically clearer, allowing for software design and user interaction to be more natural.

Vive Focus 3 delivers comfort, with a new strap design, balanced weight distribution, and an intelligently designed curved battery pack which can be swapped. Vive Focus 3s battery pack can be changed in seconds and can last for a day. Quick charge gives you 50% battery from just 30 minutes of charging, and an L.E.D indicator notifies how much power you have left.

The magnesium alloy frame of Vive Focus 3 is 20% lighter and 500% stronger than traditional plastics. Vive Focus 3 has a wide range and fine-adjustable Inter Pupillary Distance range, as well as a quick-release button and easily removable magnetic front and rear face gasketsso its easy to swap in replacements or clean themespecially important on days when there are lots of different users.

Vive Focus 3 has new open-back speakers featuring a pair of dual drivers, delivering immersive and true-to-life audio. They are contact-free which means users can still maintain environmental awareness while staying immersed in VR. For peace of mind in VR meetings, a special audio privacy setting dramatically reduces the risk of sound being overheard by people nearby.

It is also powered by an AI inside-out tracking algorithm for precise tracking, with privacy at the forefront as all tracking data is stored in an encrypted format on the headset. The redesigned controllers are easy and intuitive to useone of the lightest 6dof controllers on the market that last for 15 hours on a single charge. Hand tracking support will be released in the future.

Vive BusinessVive Business is a complete suite of software and services, supporting the needs of businesses looking to get the best out of XR. No matter the organisations size, Vive Business is scalable and secure, making life easier for deployment, maintenance, remote support, training needs, and much more.

The Vive Business Device Management System is a simple and intuitive master data management (MDM) and is ISO certified, allowing IT to quickly and easily see the status of each Vive Focus 3 on the network, remotely install new business apps, update software, and more. Vive Focus 3 is designed to work with Android Enterprise MDM, so it can also slot into pre-existing MDM solutions already active in your environment.

Building on the success of the consumer Viveport store, the Vive Business AppStore is a curated collection of apps and tools, covering diverse areas like training, communication, visualisation, and more.

Vive Business Training, claims HTC, is perfect to support training sessions of any size. The training leader can observe the progress of each trainee, via an Android device, highlighting the next steps needed and talking the trainee through it, even in a class size of hundreds. Vive Business Streaming supports connecting Vive Focus 3 to a PC via a cable, with fully wireless streaming support coming in the future. Vive Business will see new tools and features added in the future, delivering a continuously updated powerful suite of business solutions.

Vive gives control back to businesses. Organisations can choose to take up Vive Business services, or they can simply pay a one-off cost for Vive Focus 3 and integrate it into their existing setup, with no recurring fees and the ability to use their hardware as they choose to.

Vive SyncMeet in VR with realistic avatars to discuss business, host presentations, examine 3D models and, teach a class with Vive Sync. Originally built as an internal communications tool to support collaboration on product design, Vive Sync was launched in Beta in June 2020.

Now, having been used in almost 100 countries around the world, HTC claims, Vive Sync is launching in Pro and Enterprise versions, offering different new environments, tools, and ways to interact. Bring everyday files into VR, from Microsoft PowerPoint presentations through to 3D formats. Vive Sync is perfect for groups of up to 30 people, and for larger groups, Vives XR Suite offers a range of different scenarios.

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HTC Vive takes virtual reality to the next level - iTWire

Virtual reality (VR) has been gaining popularity over the years as it offers an immersive experience wherein users can effectively envision the environment that they perhaps want to visit in real life or finalize the design of a product that they are working on. Notably, VR has been trending in the gaming industry for a while as gamers are able to interact more effectively with the video game that they are playing. In fact, players can virtually touch and interact with objects created within the simulation and use the motion control for movement, thereby experiencing an alternative to actually being part of that particular games world.

Nonetheless, the application of VR has been diversifying and has found considerable usage across different industries. Notably, the automotive industry is making use of VR to conceptualize and finalize the design of a vehicle before building a prototype. This allows manufacturers to save both time and money as they dont have to build multiple prototypes of a vehicle since the simulated 3D environment allows designers and engineers to iron out any errors from the design. Moreover, companies are showcasing their vehicles to customers with the help of VR, allowing them to interact fully with a vehicle per their requirements and customizations.

Meanwhile, the healthcare industry is also making use of VR to train medical practitioners by creating virtual models of the human body and allowing them to study minute details of areas within the human body that are otherwise difficult to reach. Moreover, VR helps patients in reducing their pain as it can distract them by creating a calming environment or tackle anxiety by creating scenarios that elicit difficulties and allow therapy to deal with them.

Moreover, the tourism industry is also making use of VR to boost its operations. Interestingly, VR allows potential tourists to get a taste of what the place is actually like before they visit it in person. Markedly, the COVID-19 pandemic last year helped in accelerating the demand for VR in tourism as an alternative to physical travel as people had to cancel their travel plans to avoid risking the spread of the virus. In fact, a report by analytics company GlobalData stated that the longer the pandemic impacts travel plans, the higher the chances that both consumers and organizations might adopt VR on a more permanent basis.

Meanwhile, the pandemic also led to increasing use of VR in the workplace as it allows for more efficient collaboration among employees while working remotely. Moreover, VR is becoming an effective way of training employees and acquire new skills without physical interaction or presence in the workplace.

Reflective of these positive developments that the VR experience is leading to in so many industries, the adoption of VR seems ready to increase in the future. Notably, a report by Grand View Research stated that the global VR market is estimated to witness a CAGR of 18% from 2021 to 2028.

The adoption of VR across various segments seems poised to grow going forward as it offers users the convenience of a simulated and immersive experience that can increase efficiency and deliver better results and services. Hence, this seems like an opportune moment to keep an eye on companies that stand to benefit from this continued uptick in demand for VR. Notably, we have selected three such stocks that carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Alphabet Inc.s (GOOGL Quick QuoteGOOGL - Free Report) Google has multiple offerings in the VR space including its Daydream platform and Daydream View headset, Google Earth VR and also Google Cardboard. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 27.3% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is nearly 50%.

Facebook, Inc. (FB Quick QuoteFB - Free Report) offers Facebook Horizon which is a VR gaming world and owns a VR headset company named Oculus. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 15.7% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the current year is 29.3%.

Sony Group Corporation (SONY Quick QuoteSONY - Free Report) offers its PlayStation VR which allows gamers an immersive experience while playing video games. The company currently has a Zacks Rank #3. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings increased 2.6% over the past 60 days. The companys expected earnings growth rate for the next five years is 11.6%.

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3 Stocks to Watch Amid the Continuing Virtual Reality Boom - Zacks.com