AR / VR Platform Comparison

After using four different AR/VR methods, I found there to be none that are one size fits all. They each seem to have certain strengths that appeal to certain kinds of people.

The Microsoft HoloLens was the first device I used. The program I used involved a superimposed image of a skeleton that could be interacted with by “air tapping” on certain body parts to be shown more information. Walking closer to the skeleton would zoom in and backing up would zoom out. There’s no controller which is pretty cool, just the headset, which has built in speakers for audio. The HoloLens is one person at a time and costs a few thousand dollars, so it’s meant more for developers than new to moderate users.

The HTC Vive I had used in both the EVL lab and in the classroom. In the classroom I used Google Earth VR. I used the controller to navigate around the planet’s surface and crouched to lower my elevation. I tried street view and that was one of the coolest things I’ve seen. With the headset completely covering my vision, I felt fully immersed. It really appeals to people like myself who like to travel and explore because I can walk the streets of any city in the world or visit any natural wonder and it’s a lot cheaper and quicker than doing so in reality. In the EVL lab I played a carnival game on the Vive called NVIDIA VR Funhouse. I played Whack-A-Mole and played darts with Octopi which was a lot of fun. There wasn’t a lot of room required to play the game, and a grid popped up to alert me to stop walking because there’s something close by which was handy. With the Vive there are 2 controllers, one for each hand, and is only meant for one person at a time. The Vive is a couple hundred dollars and falls mid-range pricewise.

The main attraction in the EVL is the CAVE2. TV monitors are stacked about 10 feet high and surround the user almost 360°. Or users I should say as the CAVE2 can give multiple people the same VR experience at the same time. I saw a historical Egyptian site, explored the surface of Mars and saw a 3D Iris. The gentleman demonstrating these was only using one controller, but I remember last semester there was a two-controller app and even a 2-player app that covered half of the cave for each player’s view. The CAVE2 costs an ungodly amount of money, so it’s not for any individual or small groups of people. CAVE-like setups are for Universities and researchers who can afford it and are at the very top pricewise.

Lastly, in the classroom I tested out a few apps on my phone. I used an AR app called Quiver which brought a self-colored pickup truck and an airplane to life and generated 3D models of pumpkins that I put custom faces on. With another AR app called Spacecraft 3D I was able to control different historical spacecrafts. The NYTVR and WithinVR apps I used to watch VR videos. The benefits of using handheld devices / mobile phones is that you can do both AR and VR with a single device. Additionally, I would argue that this method is basically free for most people. We all already have cell phones. Almost any mobile device can run VR apps downloaded from their respective app stores and some Android devices like my Lenovo P2 has a VR mode to experience any app in VR.

Overall, I enjoyed the HTC Vive the most. Its immersion mixed with fun games and affordability put it at the top of my list. The best for most people overall though would be mobile phones. They allow people to test out AR and VR before buying a dedicated device.