Metaverse progress update: Some VR headset prototypes nowhere near shipping Facebook owner Meta's pivot to the metaverse is drawing significant amounts of resources: not just billions in case, but time. The tech giant has demonstrated some prototype virtual-reality headsets that aren't close to shipping and highlight some of the challenges that must be overcome. The metaverse is CEO Mark Zuckerberg's …
What an epic waste, but I'm all for it. Let Meta self-destruct on R&D costs so the rest of the world can benefit.
Video games made money even when they were 4 bit 320x240 pixels because they delivered entertainment. For all this time that Meta has been working on premium headsets, they haven't demonstrated any revenue generating uses or a compelling reason to buy them. Virtual hangouts may be normal in the future but they're going to be too ordinary to make money. Recovering billions of investment needs unique and entertaining products.
Er no we won't.
Ok, some who are all in with FecalBook will but for the rest of us? Fat chance.
On the 'Snog, Marry, Avoid' scale, Facebook is for me in the 'Run like hell as fast as possible' category.
Once upon a time, FB was regarded as a cool place to hang out. That ship sailed years ago. now it is regarded as a place for oldies.
Perhaps that is why they target their communicator thing at....(drum roll)... old people.
Again, personally, the world will be a better place when FB closes down. The only people who won't like it will be the mental health professionals.
>Once upon a time, FB was regarded as a cool place to hang out.
Not amongst grownups.
>... regarded as a place for oldies.
>... they target their communicator thing at....(drum roll)... old people.
Listen, kid, oldies are just youngies who've grown up and acquired experience and brains.
Get back to your latest 'social' media toys...
Instead of a "good enough" headset that can be used with whatever software the User wants, develop an expensive over-engineered headset that 99% certainty will be tied to FB software only, and vice-versa because you can't conceive of separating one from the other.
So when only a tiny number of headsets get sold (after a h/w revision to block that trick that someone used to unlock the headset and attach it to a Wii, 'cos why not), declare the whole thing a bust, throw away all the dev work.
Round and round we go, never to have mass produced, "good enough" headsets that can be used for different purposes by different people (and, with luck, just quietly ignored by those who don't want to use 'em; that is the real fantasy, of course).
FWIW I do think of "playing games" as pretty much a single use, but I know that coding for consoles is open enough that "real world" applications have been found for the current crop of headsets.
I was really thinking about all the different headsets that appeared through the 90s onwards and which have either vanished completely or are only used in small numbers, either literally locked to a single application or so costly that no-one would bother (I was demoed a nice military unit quite a few years ago; not expecting to be able to afford to buy one of those for my little experiments and if they let me try it probably wasn't their best!).
The old "you know, we could have progressed so much further by now, I can't see why we haven't - oh, yes, I can now".
Such a title is more than a bit misleading.
It is a shame that whenever the Metaverse or AR/VR (whatever they may mean) are discussed, the main point of discussion quickly becomes FacebookMeta. There are many more initiatives which are much more promising and mature.
This being said, the point seems to be less about the headset themselves and more about the applications. They are pushing the concept of a Metaverse with nothing to back it up. If there was something compelling to actually do with it, people would likely live with almost whatever imperfection the headset had.
To me, it becomes apparent when compared to what e.g.. NVIDIA is setting up with the Omniverse: applications first >> perfect them >> integrate them >> eventually. expand to AR/VR.
Something similar could be said of Valve, although with an obviously different bent.
In the same vein, it'll be interesting to see how Nintendo leverages their previous experiences (motion control, Pokemon Go, Animal Crossing, Miiverse) to create something of their own.
Someone pointed out the lack of a "universal headset" that could be used with any application. There are, however, attempts at developing cross-headset applications. Virtual desktops are a good example https://www.roadtovr.com/virtual-reality-desktop-compared-oculus-rift-htc-vive/
They offer an interesting glimpse of "cross-platform" development in the VR space.
Let's also not forget that not all VR headsets are price constrained consumer models, e.g. HTC has a business line of VR headsets with a 1000EUR price tag.
Apples with apples: generic terms like AR/VR, Metaverse on one hand, The Sims 1984/FacebookMeta on the other, Zuckerberg himself in this year's earnings call has made it clear that VR is just a way to sell its "new" social platform. They will likely sell the headset at a loss to increase adoption of a product they have little to show for. Let's put things into context.
Metaverse. Coined by Neal Stephenson. His latest novel, Termination Shock, portrays AR goggles as being used much more as virtual whiteboards, desktop space, conferencing with multimedia, controlling drones... much like Apple's rumoured AR plans.
Mr Stephenson was an early adopter of first the standing desk, and then the treadmill desk - because the scientific literature is fairly clear on the health risks of prolonged sitting. Ditto the ways our posture and movement effect our cognitive abilities.
"Metaverse progress update: Some VR headset prototypes nowhere near shipping"
Captain pedantic here. Surely, by definition, all prototypes are nowhere near shipping? The first definition Google gives for "prototype" is "a first or preliminary version of a device or vehicle from which other forms are developed.", which says to me that a prototype has significant outstanding development, and thus is far from shipping.
That's a bit of a cock up on the old R&D front.
"Look boss, we've managed to build one that does everything you asked for. It's only 2 metres in diameter and weighs about the same as a small car, but we're pretty sure that a clever winch system will prevent any broken necks."
Less of a cockup of R&D per se, and more of a milestone on many an R&D path.
Many successful products today had prototypes that were too bulky or heavy to be viable products, especially when parts suppliers have provided roadmaps such as "in 18 months our component X will be 50% smaller". Similarly, some bulk and mass savings are only possible if custom parts are used - viable for production but not prototyping.
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