Microsoft’s special Windows “Mixed Reality” event today saw the unveiling of its latest addition to the VR family, the Samsung HMD Odyssey, and also announced that all VR headsets slated to ship before holiday season are currently in pre-order. With a fresh advert, the company is delineating just how portable and easy to use their new class of VR headsets are in comparison to competing room-scale PC VR headsets like Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.
Topping out at $500, the same price as the Oculus Rift, Microsoft is drawing a pretty specific picture with their new Windows VR headset spot, and there’s really no subtext about it: Open up your laptop (almost any modern laptop will do for basic programs), turn on the wireless motion controllers, plug it the headset, and put it on.
While Rift and Vive require their own room calibration setup process, making you mark your playspace so you don’t smack straight into a wall, Microsoft’s line of headsets use inside-out positional tracking thanks to a set of wide-angle cameras on the front. This also allows the headset to track the motion controllers, making it truly a plug and play experience without the need of external sensors or basestations of any kind.
Noticeably, the new advert emphasizes travel and experiences instead of gaming, something that ought to attract non-gamers to the newest VR ecosytem.