Nimble Sense Nears End of Kickstarter Campaign, Reaches First $120,000 Stretch Goal

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Nimble-VR-2Nimble Sense, the hand tracking controller designed to work with head mounted displays, has surpassed its first stretch goal of $120,000, nearly doubling its base funding goal of $62,500. With only a few days left until the crowdfunding campaign closes, the team behind the mountable sensor are undoubtedly rubbing their virtual hands together in anticipation of what comes next after such a successful Kickstarter — and for backers, that means getting a few more dials to play with that could substantially widen the device’s functionality.

See Also: Nimble Sense Kickstarter Aims to Bring Time-of-Flight Depth-sensing Tech to VR on the Cheap

Nimble Sense, a device not much larger than a pack of gum, houses an IR (infrared) laser and IR depth camera that was originally designed to sense object movement at the default range of 2.3 ft (70c m), or about the distance from the DK2’s onboard sensor array to the hand of a fully extended arm.

Now that the Kickstarter campaign has eked past its stretch goal, Nimble VR is expanding the device’s functionality (without overclocking it) and opening up the camera’s settings up to make it “a hacker/developer/computer vision-friendly camera.”

nimble sense virtual reality input

To keep within a nominal operating levels however (i.e. not lighting your head on fire) they’ve opted to keep the same power settings. To accommodate this limiting factor, they’re exchanging a lower frame-rate for a longer camera exposure time which will effectively give the device a longer viewing range. The team plans on supporting three specific ranges; 2.3ft/70cm, 3.25ft/100cm, and 4.92ft/150cm — most likely pushing the little USB device’s capability to the very edge of usability.

Nimble Sense Stretch Goal

Nimble Sense Backer ChartAlong with increased range, they will be supporting low level camera controls with frame rates ranging from 1Hz to 45Hz, and shutter speed controls ranging from 0.1ms to 4ms exposures, potentially allowing developers to use the depth-sensing device for a wide variety of applications not limited to its main feature of VR-centric skeletal hand tracking. It’s an effort  by Nimble VR to coax potential developers into using Nimble Sense to do things like guide wheeled robots, track props, or even the user’s feet (because … feet… that’s why).

To send the Kickstarter even further into high gear, Nimble VR has added 250 more spots to their level 1 pledge tier which starts at $99 — getting you a Nimble Sense, 7ft USB cable, and A DK2 mount that cleverly utilizes the DK2’s native cable cover.

It does seem that, despite being a relative newcomer to the scene, Nimble Sense are all set to give Leap Motion a run for their money. All they need now is some sort of 3D Jam to find some killer content.

Samsung Gear VR Detailed Review: Part One – Design Comparison to Oculus Rift DK2

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We’ve been fortunate to get our hands on the highly anticipated Samsung Gear VR headset and we’ve got a full breakdown of the unit’s in’s and out’s. This is one you don’t want to miss.

Rev VR Podcast (Ep. 87): Gear VR Release with Ritchie D and Ben Lang

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Well, it’s finally here! After much anticipation, Samsung and Oculus have finally made their Gear VR headset available for purchase. I took the opportunity to sit down with Ben Lang, editor and chief of Road to VR, and Ritchie Djamhur, well-known gadget YouTuber, to talk about the release and the many facets of Gear VR.

Save up to $30 With These Gear VR Coupon Codes

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samsung gear vr note 4 black friday sale priceWell, the cat is out of the bag, Samsung Gear VR is now officially available to buy online and if you’re looking to buy , you can save a little money too.

Samsung Gear VR Unboxing, Handy Carry Case Included (video)

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gear vr photo set (8)

Today is the day that essentially the first consumer VR headset launched in the last decade becomes available. That headset is Samsung’s Gear VR, created in collaboration with Oculus. Join us for an unboxing of this impressive device.

Samsung Gear VR Now Officially Available in the US, Launches Internationally ‘Early 2015’

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gear vr photo set (19) After over months of rumours and an official unveiling at IFA 2014 just 3 months ago, Samsung’s Note 4 based VR Headset Gear VR is now finally available to buy.

Samsung Gear VR Appears for Order from AT&T and Samsung for $199

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samsung gear vr note 4 black friday sale priceIt seems Samsung were true to their word when they proclaimed that its first VR Headset would be available ‘Early December’ back at SDC this year. A Gear VR sales page is now online, allowing prospective owners to get their hands on the unit for $199.

Gear VR Preview: Installing and Using Apps in Oculus Home with Ritchie Djamhur

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Last week Ritchie Djamhur shared with us his thoughts on experiencing movies using Samsung’s soon-to-be-launched VR Headset, Gear VR. He’s back again, this time with a video walk-through on managing apps for the virtual reality headset as well as some settings and features of special note.

First ADR1FT Trailer Shows Dazzling Visuals, Tense Gameplay

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Developer Three One Zero has released the first trailer for its ‘astronaut in peril’ title ADR1FT, which also promises ground-up Oculus Rift support. Debuting at the Video Game Awards this year, it looks pretty special too.

New ‘Sightline: The Chair’ Gets ‘3DCeption’ Binaural Audio, Developer Discusses VR Audio

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Sightline developer Tomáš 'Frooxius' Mariančík - part of the new wave of VR 'bedroom coders'
One of the scenes from Sightline: The Chair
One of the scenes from Sightline: The Chair

One of the busiest developers on the scene right now, Tomáš Mariančík (aka Frooxius), has just released a new version of his hit VR experience ‘Sightline: The Chair’ with added integration with 3DCeption, a “real-time binaural synthesis engine”. We asked him for his thoughts on 3DCeption and the importance of convincing positional audio in VR.

New Apple Job Listing Seeks ‘VR/AR Programmer’ to “use VR and AR to… enable development of Apple’s next generation of products”

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Apple Logo GreyApple is investing in additional VR savvy, with more job postings trickling out of the multinational tech giant’s own internal job site. Although Apple hasn’t left us with many clues as to what they might be working on at their Santa Clara campus skunksworks, the particular position of ‘VR/AR Programmer’ may offer valuable insight into just how important the burgeoning technology is soon to become to the company.

Inside Look at 3DRudder, Feet-Controlled Navigation Device Headed to CES 2015

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A new PC peripheral company based in France is launching a feet-controlled 3D navigation and motion control device that wants to get the lower half of your body in the game, freeing up your hands for the more important things in virtual life, like hand tracking and eating nachos without getting the keyboard dirty (not necessarily in that order).

Jaunt Releases 3 New Cinematic VR Trailers for Oculus Rift and Android

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jaunt vr trailer preview virtual reality cinema

Jaunt has just released three trailers for its forthcoming cinematic VR content. The trailers, available for Oculus Rift on PC and Mac, and on Android, showing clips from The Mission, Kaiju Fury, and Black Mass.

Sixense STEM + Striker VR Brings Real Recoil to Virtual Weaponry (video)

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STEM motion input controller with three 'Packs'
STEM motion input controller with three ‘Packs’ for tracking anything your heart desires.

Sixense, creators of the STEM motion input controller, are showing off an experiment which combines their ‘STEM Pack’ with Striker VR’s weapon recoil system. The result is a weapon that feels real in both form and function, and carries beautifully into the virtual world.

Rev VR Podcast (Ep. 86): Evangelizing VR to the World with UploadVR

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Evangelizing virtual reality to the world is a difficult task. Each day, we creep closer to the consumer release of multiple VR devices that will disrupt technology as we know it, and the world needs to be prepared. Many of us are trying our best to spread the word of VR, one demonstration at a time. The team at UploadVR intends to take that notion on the road, touring cities around the world to inform and enlighten.

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