The company's bowing out of the dedicated, tethered VR headset, though, discontinuing the Rift S in favor of focusing entirely on the standalone Quest 2.
The Oculus Rift was the first big name in the current wave of VR, and Oculus is still a major player in the category.
Either external sensors or outward-facing cameras provide full 6DOF (six degrees of freedom) movement tracking for both your head and your hands, thanks to motion-sensing controllers. The cable makes them a bit unwieldy, but putting all of the actual video processing in a box that you don't need to directly strap to your face means your VR experience can be a lot more complex.
Tethered headsets like the HTC Vive Pro 2, PlayStation VR, and Valve Index are physically connected to PCs (or in the case of the PS VR, a PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5). Modern VR headsets now fit under one of two categories: tethered or standalone. The Big Question: Which VR Headset Is the Best? Here's what you need to know about all of them. Even Microsoft is (sort of) supporting its Windows Mixed Reality platform with a scant few third-party headsets. Valve has its own expensive Index headset. Sony has the PS4-compatible PlayStation VR. HTC has the tethered Steam-friendly Vive Cosmos and Vive Pro 2, while HP has the more affordable Reverb G2. Oculus is focusing its efforts on a standalone VR headset, the Quest 2, but providing the option to connect it to a PC. We're tracking the best of what's currently on the market here. VR's been gaining traction in recent years thanks to compelling games and experiences, though it still seems very much in a state of flux, with headsets coming and going fairly rapidly. With a headset and motion tracking, VR lets you look around a virtual space as if you're actually there, or play a game as though you're in it. Virtual reality is a fascinating way to travel using nothing more than the power of technology. Since 1982, PCMag has tested and rated thousands of products to help you make better buying decisions. ( Read our editorial mission & see how we test.)
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