Help before buying a Vive (or Rift) today

[super300]

Hello everyone!

So I am excited. I have finally the money to get either the Rift or the Vive.
After reading several impressions, and after finding a good deal for a lightly used Vive for 600$-
I decided to go for the Vive! (Or at least, I think so..)-
Before getting to my actual question, I would like to find out something that might be actually more important-

Did I make the right choice?
I love flight simulation (until now FSX) and I plan on utilizing the headset for that very often.
I am also very excited about the immersion and the possibility to crouch, to stand etc.- something that will not be available even with the touch controllers of the Rift.

Now, I am getting an i7 6600, GTX 1060 6GB computer this week-
and it will be located in an "open" room. By that I mean that it is a kind of a room with three walls, that in front of it there are the steps (It is immediately in front of the steps at the second floor).
This half room is crossed by a hallway. That means that when I get up the stairs I see the half room in front of me and it is open without a fourth wall or a door, and to my left and right there is a hallway.

Will the Vive be able to track normally without any problem in such a space?
This half room is 135cm between the two walls, and 250cm between the wall and the cross of the hallway.

Now, there is one room that can be used as a gaming space near the half room,
the matter is that the computer MUST be located in the half room. So that means that cables etc. will need to run from the half room to the room.
Now, how long of a distance does it require? how do the base stations connect?
and will it be comfortable to move the base stations for every new session from room to room, because this room next to the half room is not always free?

The other room is roughly 3 mx 2 m (I don't include the space of the bed).

What are your thoughts?
Please let me know.

Also, should I by any chance go for the Rift, if I will spend a lot of time on flight sims and racing (but not only)?

Will they offer roughly the same amount of content in the future?
What about picture quality?


And one last, very important question-
I buy the headset from the US, naturally-and I live in Israel and the voltage is different.
Will it provide any problem with the base stations?


Any tip would be highly appreciated.

Thank you so much!

 

[Sakkura]

You can crouch and stand just fine with the Rift, with or without the Touch controllers. And you can move around, turn around, all that, so long as you stay in the tracked area (just like with a Vive).

The Vive base stations are connected to power outlets; you'd need adapters to plug them in, but the different voltage shouldn't matter (they sell Vives in Europe, after all). Moving them around can be slightly tricky depending on what you have to mount them with (and where you have power outlets). They do have good range though, so covering those rooms shouldn't be a problem so long as you can work out the mounting. With a Rift, the cameras are easier to move around. They don't quite have the same range as the Vive base stations, but on the other hand you have more options for adapting where you put them, or adding more to have less occlusion issues etc. They plug into USB ports on the PC, so that's a different situation for wiring.

The Rift is more comfortable to wear, and has a variety of minor usability advantages. It also has a software feature called ASW that allows it to run on weaker hardware, or run at higher graphics settings. So if you were buying new I would probably recommend a Rift. But saving some money on a used Vive may outweigh that. The Vive will still serve you well.

The Rift has access to basically all the VR content on Steam. The Vive can run VR content from Oculus Home via an unofficial "hack" called Revive.

 

[super300]

Thank you for the detailed reply!

From what I understood the Vive is more comfortable for people with eyeglasses like me, is that right?
And is the bulkiness of the Vive with the thick cables etc. really noticeable? Does it always move behind your back etc., making everything noticeably awkward and uncomfortable? If you really feel the weight and wires significantly more than the Rift, then it would be a deal breaker for me, since I am sensitive to those things. Of course that I expect that it won't be a fluid experience, but still, if one could define the Rift as "comfortable" and the Vive as "irritating", that could be a deciding factor.

Could you know which one is expected to be more "open source", with the most apps etc. in the future, and not only now? I know it's hard to tell, but maybe Oculus with the cooperation with Facebook? Or do you imagine that there will be still the same content for both?

Do other people here think I should get the Rift or the Vive?
I can get them used for about 475$ for the Rift (without touch controllers) and 600$ for the Vive, complete of course.

The Vive tempts me because of the possibility to walk, and the 3D perception of the sensors in general, since they are two.

I will have to use the Vive a lot in the half open room (as explained before) which is 2.50 m X 1.35 (1.35 because of the computer table, but between the walls there's more.
Will it suffice?

Thank you again, and please-any opinion about the headset I should choose would be welcome! (I also heard that the Vive presents a sharper image BTW.. True? and what difference does it make compared to the rift?)

 

[larsv8]

I have a Vive and I really like it. The base stations and room scale seems to be very smart and tracks well, so I wouldn't worry about functionality. I will say this, the larger the room, the better the experience because you have to spend less time "reorienting your play space". I am not sure I can visualize your space, but if you have stairs adjacent to your play space, it could be dangerous, as the experience is very immersive and you can easily put yourself in danger if you are not cognisant of where the stairs are.

You can move the base stations, quite easily, especially if you get the popular tripod stands and adapters. They are wireless, and only need power.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L4YR0BS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01EFI8LOO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The headset is trickier, so you probably should figure out how far, in feet your comp will be from your play area, and make sure you have enough headset cord. I don't find the cords annoying, but the VR process is somewhat more tiring than normal gaming, so every 30 or minutes, I find myself taking off the headset, cooling off, straightening wires, etc.

I don't have and have never used a Rift, so I can't speak to that, but for me, the Room scale really makes the experience.

 

[Sakkura]

From what I understood the Vive is more comfortable for people with eyeglasses like me, is that right?
And is the bulkiness of the Vive with the thick cables etc. really noticeable? Does it always move behind your back etc., making everything noticeably awkward and uncomfortable? If you really feel the weight and wires significantly more than the Rift, then it would be a deal breaker for me, since I am sensitive to those things. Of course that I expect that it won't be a fluid experience, but still, if one could define the Rift as "comfortable" and the Vive as "irritating", that could be a deciding factor.

Could you know which one is expected to be more "open source", with the most apps etc. in the future, and not only now? I know it's hard to tell, but maybe Oculus with the cooperation with Facebook? Or do you imagine that there will be still the same content for both?

Do other people here think I should get the Rift or the Vive?
I can get them used for about 475$ for the Rift (without touch controllers) and 600$ for the Vive, complete of course.

The Vive tempts me because of the possibility to walk, and the 3D perception of the sensors in general, since they are two.

I will have to use the Vive a lot in the half open room (as explained before) which is 2.50 m X 1.35 (1.35 because of the computer table, but between the walls there's more.
Will it suffice?

Thank you again, and please-any opinion about the headset I should choose would be welcome! (I also heard that the Vive presents a sharper image BTW.. True? and what difference does it make compared to the rift?)

The Vive has a little more room for glasses, but it depends how large yours are. If they fit inside the Rift it's just as comfortable, it's just if they don't quite fit it becomes an issue.

The bulkier cable is one thing, but the headset itself is more important. The Vive weighs more, its center of mass is a little further out from the face, and the straps around the back of the head are flexible. That means it has to press more against the face to hold on and not have the strap slip to a less comfortable position.

I expect most content for the foreseeable future to be accessible with both headsets. It may be more awkward to access Oculus content with a Vive, since it currently requires an unofficial workaround.

Walking around and being tracked in 3D is just as feasible with the Rift as the Vive, especially once you have an extra camera (comes with the Touch kit, or can be bought separately).

In terms of image quality, the Rift display is a little sharper, and it has a larger sweetspot where things are in focus (so you can look around with your eyes without the image quality degrading as much). On the other hand, it also has more "god rays", a glare that is mostly seen coming off bright objects on a dark background, and the FOV is a little smaller.

 

[super300]

Thank you all for the very helpful input.

Now, I didn't think about it before, but there is an important factor-
I have a large nose with a large nose bridge which is around eye level.
From pictures, it seems like the Rift will be a much better choice in my case, since the Vive doesn't seem to offer space for the nose at eye level.
I know that the Vive has different face cushions, but the space for the nose bridge remains the same.
What do you think?
And is the space for the nose bridge on the Rift is flexible? It seems like it's made of soft foam and that there is no height limit for the nose space, while in the Vive it seems to be made of plastic and flat at eye level.

Or maybe-
Maybe I should just get the Vive for this hard to find price (used for 600$ including shipping to Israel)-
and at the worst case I can sell it in Israel where it is so rare to find for a profit..?
Do you think it is a good enough find in order to go for it without hesitation?

 

[Sakkura]

The Rift is mostly just empty space around the nose. There's some soft, stretchy fabric around the lenses, if your nose hits that you'd barely feel it (and it feels really nice anyway). It's only if your nose is huge enough to hit either the lenses or the lower front edge of the headset that there'd be a problem. Those are both hard. But I seriously doubt any human nose is that big.

All the way around the face where the Rift touches, it's a soft foam - around the nose, the foam goes away and just the underlying plastic bracket is left, creating extra open space around the nose.

$600 for a used Vive is a pretty good deal. $475 for a used Rift is alright too, but of course you're not saving quite as much. Can't say what the used market is like in Israel, and it is actually a really hard choice even just buying for yourself. Ultimately I think you would want to go with the headset you like best regardless of a bit of price difference this way or that; it's a big investment either way, and you'll hopefully be using it a lot, so more comfort or other advantages/disadvantages will make a big difference in the long run.

Being able to test which headset fits best with your glasses and nose and just general head shape would really help there. Unfortunately, demo opportunities are scarce. I mean I'm in one of the lucky countries where you can even buy a Rift, but we still don't have any official demonstration sites.

This is reminding me of how difficult of a decision it was for me earlier this year. I can say I'm happy I went with the Rift, but then there are also people happy they went with the Vive.

 

[super300]

I think I will go with the Vive.
I feel like that even though perhaps the Rift will fit me a bit better (and maybe not),
I have the rare chance to find someone who is willing to ship to Israel, and even more-at a great price (I say again-the price includes shipping from the US to Israel, which is a pretty sweet deal!)

And now I got the email-I can get a new in box Rift for 450$ shipped..
Now I am really confused, and now I don't have only one good deal that'll solve all of the dilemmas.

UPDATE-Just saw the SDE of the Vive vs the Rift, and it is much worse on the Vive. Also, I know it is not very "correct" to tell that by watching the video on youtube with my Vizio 4k TV, but the general color production and naturalism of the Rift seem to be significantly superior.

That already makes me want to go for the new in box Rift for 450$, and then in the near future to get the touch controllers and a third sensor.

But there are a few disadvantages:

1. The field of view on the Rift is smaller, and I have always dreamt of VR that completely immerses you. I don't want it to feel like I am watching from a window like some say-I want to be completely there and immersed.

2. The touch controllers are said to fit quite small hands, and my hands are very big.
They also say that the Vive controllers are very often feeling more "right", because i many (if not most games) you need to hold something and feel it (a gun etc.), and with the touch controllers it is not like that.

3. If I am not mistaken, I will need to buy an extra sensor so there will be three to do room scaling.
Is that possible with two (the one that come with the Rift and the one with the touch)?
And I think that I read that the tracking of the three Oculus sensors will be worse than the Vive. Is that true?
Will it be able to track all turning around, crouching, standing and jumping with two sensors on the rift, exactly like the Vive would and in the same precision? I guess that I must get a 3rd sensor for walking..?

Anyway, I have always been a visuals fanatic, and if the Rift provides better graphics, has a more comfortable design and can provide good roomscaling-I think it could be a good choice.

 

[Sakkura]

1. You do feel like you're inside the world. More FOV is always better, of course, but there's a tradeoff. The Vive and Rift have the same resolution, the Vive just spreads it across a larger FOV. That means the screen door effect gets worse and the angular resolution also drops. So text is that much harder to read etc. Which tradeoff is better is subjective, and they have advantages and disadvantages in different situations.

2. The Touch controllers represent your hands in VR, the Vive controllers represent objects. It's a different paradigm, and it depends what the game/app is designed for. As for fit... I still have to wait until Monday before I can tell you how they fit my hands (average guy size, I guess).

3. 2 cameras can do it, but the range is lower. The tracking with 3 cameras will be more resistant to occlusion problems (when you have the controllers near each other and/or near your body). With "only" 2 cameras it will be just like the Vive, allowing you to turn around, crouch etc. the same way, just in a noticeably smaller area. But it doesn't sound like you have a large area available anyway.

 

[super300]

I think that the Rift will be after all the one for me.
If it can do everything the Vive can do with the touch controllers and two sensors, I see no reason to get the Vive.
I saw though some people blaming the motion sickness they get on the lenses (without referring to the more obvious reason of being still). Since I am quite prone to motion sickness, I would like to ask if you think there is a reason that the Rift will still cause motion sickness when combined with the touch? Latency etc.?

As for the reasons why I think the Rift wins for me, here they are:

-It will have very soon more natural controllers than the Vive, and it immerses you more imo.
-The image quality is superior, as seen by myself from photos of SDE and from the opinions of many other people.
-the COMFORT. I think it is mandatory that a headset that sits on your face will be comfortable. This thing is for fun, and how can one enjoy when he is disturbed by weight, pressure on the nose and a thick cable on his back?

The only downside is the glasses that I wear, which are told to be less fitting for the Rift. Do you think it will indeed be less comfortable on the Rift?

 

[Sakkura]

Don't think there's anything particular that will cause more VR sickness with the Rift or Touch. Latency shouldn't be an issue. VR sickness can still hit you in certain types of content, probably regardless of how advanced the headset is. But it's very variable what triggers it and how sensitive people are.

I usually use contact lenses. I do have a pair of glasses I just tested out for a moment. Putting the headset on gets a little more tricky, but once it's on it felt alright. A little extra pressure on the nose perhaps, but it seemed to go away when the headset was sitting just right. Either way didn't seem uncomfortable, at least not within a few minutes.

The total width of my glasses is just shy of 140mm. Wider glasses could run into more issues, I guess?

 

[super300]

I also have a pair of 140mm glasses, so should I suppose that it all be fine?
I really lean towards the Rift now. I even contacted the seller again to express my sincere interest.
Well, I guess that one of you still have a few hours to convince me to go for the Vive

I think the comfort and better image of the Rift is the deciding factor now, because it will anyway have now great controllers and room scale with a third sensor like Oculus confirmed (I still didn't understand what will be the limit of movement with two?)
That said, I will have around 130$ on the Rift (NIB), touch controllers and a third sensor, than I would buying the slightly used Vive (I am buying both from private sellers).

Do you think that with that price it's justified?

 

[Sakkura]

Well, no guarantees, since shape and head size probably factors into how glasses fit too.

Oculus' official play area recommendations are pretty conservative. With 2 sensors they show a 1.5x1.5 meter area, and with 3 they show 2.5x2.5 meter.

I spent €700 on the Rift, plus €200 on Touch controllers, which combined is nearly $1000. So I can't exactly say the price you're paying isn't justified.