recproto.1

	--- Deals ---

If you find any post them and we'll keep things updated here.

[USA] $450 effective price for an Oculus Rift w/ Touch at Best Buy (may want to refresh page once after opening the link):
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/offer/229575/pcmcat1498142077671.c?id=pcmcat1498142077671

[DE] 450 EUR for a Rift w/ Touch at MediaMarkt
https://www.mydealz.de/deals/mediamarkt-bundesweit-oculus-rift-vr-brille-touch-controller-7-spiele-fur-449eur-1017241


	--- Should I really buy a headset today? ---

Look in our intro page. It should contain all the info you need to understand if VR is right for you yet or not.


        --- Which headset should I buy? ---

For high quality VR, there are currently three options to choose from: the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Sony PSVR. Here we will compare them. When you decide which one you want, check our resources paste to see some other essential things you'll want to get to make things work (like prescription glasses adapters).


  --- Oculus Rift: $598 ($499 w/o motion controllers) ---

Pros:
    *Arguably the most comfortable while staying stable on your head in most situations
    *Integrated audio with good sound quality (no need to fiddle with headphones worn on top of the VR headset)
    *Currently has the best motion controllers (Oculus Touch) which are more ergonomic, and let you see and use your hands naturally, rather than seeing a floating wand or object without hands
    *Includes free with every Touch purchase some high quality titles and software (that otherwise aren't free): Robo Recall (Recommended shooter), Dead and Buried (western shooting gallery), Oculus Medium (3D sculpting app), and Oculus Quill (3D drawing app)
    *Good quality roomscale tracking for smaller spaces
    *Least expensive way to get into high quality PC VR with the option to pay a bit more to enable larger tracking areas

Cons:
    *Tracking area can not go beyond 4.5 x 4.5m for 3 sensors, and 2.7 x 2.7m for 2 sensors, when set up properly
    *More difficult to setup for roomscale, and sensors need to be mounted in the room for optimal motion tracking, with USB cables snaking back to your PC, so it's not pretty
    *Cables a bit short for roomscale operation, so you may want to purchase some cable extensions (around $30 for 1 HDMI and 2 USB, one for the headset, one for a sensor, which should be all you need)

Notes:
    *Included in the Rift package is the headset itself, a sensor, a wireless XB1 controller (nice extra to have), 2 AA batteries, and a small remote control
    *Included in the Touch package is the controllers themselves, a sensor, 2 AA batteries, and a Rockband guitar adapter
    *Extra sensors increase the tracking area possible and can be bought for $59, with the package including the sensor itself, and a 5m USB extension
    *SteamVR applications designed for the Vive are operational with the Rift if you install SteamVR using Steam (Valve has implemented software to make things compatible for you)


  --- HTC Vive: $799 (includes motion controllers and can't be bought without them) ---

Pros:
    *Tracking is more robust, and there is virtually no limit on what size your room has to be
    *Easier setup, but you still need to mount two objects they call "base stations" in your room for tracking
    *Longer cables so no cable extensions needed for most roomscale setups
    *Ealier support for third-party peripherals like gun controllers and wireless connection add-ons (costs $200+ and releasing later in the year)
    *Will be compatible with the Knuckles controller by Valve which actually improves upon Oculus Touch's design (unknown cost and release date)

Cons:
    *No integrated audio by default (have plug in your own headphones and wear them on top of putting on the headset straps)
    *Least comfortable headset by default, requires more uncomfortable clamping from strap to stay stable while playing roomscale titles
    *Packaged motion controllers are just badly designed and don't give much hand representation if at all, though not worse than Playstation Move controllers
    *The better controllers will release later on an unknown date, and will probably cost another $100-200
    *Most expensive

Notes:
    *The package includes the headset, motion controllers, two base stations, and some cheap earbuds to plug in
    *An easily installed compatibility mod can let you run Oculus games
    *The HTC Deluxe Audio Strap accessory improves comfort a lot and gives you integrated audio ($99 extra)
    *There is a chance Knuckles will release at the end of the year
    *Accessories that give the Vive a wireless connection should come to other headsets later


  --- PlayStation VR: $499 ($399 w/o motion controllers) ---

Pros:
    *Cheapest option if you own a PS4
    *Some great exclusive games you won't find on Rift/Vive
    *Surprisingly good for a console headset
    *Most comfortable with a loose fit
    *Great official support for their gun peripheral called the PS Aim

Cons:
    *No integrated audio by default (have plug in your own headphones and wear them on top of putting on the headset straps)
    *Worst tracking system by far
    *No room-scale VR
    *Games will look blurry (due to low resolution) if you don't have a PS4 Pro


	--- The PC Required ---

If you don't have a gaming PC, you can build a VR-capable rig for $600. The current recommended specs is a GTX 1060 / GTX 970 / RX 480 / R9 290 or greater, an i5-4590 or greater, and 8GB+ RAM.


        --- Mobile headsets? ---

Mobile VR is not the same experience as Rift/Vive/PSVR. There is no positional tracking, most of the content is not interactive, and the difference in graphics is comparable to PlayStation 2 vs PlayStation 4. Still, if you want a mobile headset, there are two decent options.


  --- Samsung Gear VR: $130 ---

If you have one of these compatible phones, it's extremely worth buying if you're interested in VR: Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+, S7, S7 edge, Note5, S6 edge+, S6, S6 edge


  --- Google Daydream: $79 ---

Only Pixel and Pixel XL are compatible right now. Other high-end phones will support it later.
https://www.androidcentral.com/these-are-daydream-ready-phones-so-far


Both of these are only recommended if you already have or are planning to get the required $700 phones. If you just want the cheapest VR possible, an original PS4 ($249) and a PSVR is both cheaper and better.


        --- Should I wait a year? ---

Next-gen VR headsets won't be out until at least 2019. The upcoming Windows "Mixed Reality" VR headsets will be cheaper ($300-400) and have inside-out tracking (so no requirement for mounting parts in your room), but the overall experience will be similar to the Rift/Vive and may be worse in some aspects. The LG headset has too many unknowns currently but it may be wise to wait a few months until they announce something as they could take advantage of some newer tech being developed, although it will be more expensive.

Overall next gen in 2019 looks to be much better in both features and cost than these 1.5 gen releases. If you can afford VR today, there's no reason to wait for better hardware.

If you want to know just a bit more about future hardware, look in our intro guide.


        --- What about other headsets? ---
If it's not on this list, it's probably shit. Cardboard is shit. Chinese 4K headsets are shit.