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The New York Times Virtual Reality app won the Mobile Grand Prix at Cannes Wednesday night. The newspaper has given away 1.3 million free Google VR headsets to subscribers to the Times’ Sunday edition since last November. Around 500,000 then downloaded the NYT app for Android or iOS, which generated a total of 1.5Read More →

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The other mini headset that I ordered recently has arrived, the Shinecon Mini from AliExpress, which cost me $13.50. Since it came at about the same time as the Leji VR Mini that I reviewed yesterday, I was able to compare the two mini headsets. They have a lot in commonRead More →

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Update: In August, I bought a FiiT VR 2S, and that is now my new favorite. Another headset I’m recommending is the BoboVR Z4 headset, which has a 120-degree field of view, built-in headphones, and a built-in control button. The Leji VR Mini that I ordered from AliExpress for $11 has just arrived,Read More →

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The Dlodlo Glass V1 headset looks like a pair of sunglasses and weighs just 78 grams, or less than three ounces. It has a field of view of 100 degrees — a little higher than the Gear VR’s 96 degrees, and almost as good as the 100 degrees of theRead More →

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Lucasfilm’s ILMxLAB has teamed up with secretive augmented reality startup Magic Leap to develop mixed reality content. To give a little taste of what it may look like, the companies released a video in which holograms of R2D2 and C3PO interact with one another and with real objects in a real living room. ReadRead More →

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Update: In August, I bought a FiiT VR 2S, and that is now my new favorite. But I’m also still recommending the BoboVR Z4 headset, because of its 120-degree field of view, built-in headphones, and built-in control button. Last month, I received a free review copy of the Virtoba X5 headset from GeekBuying, and a coupleRead More →

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Motion sickness is one of the big usability problems plaguing virtual reality today, and if you don’t want to attach electrodes to your head, there might be a simpler, easier solution — narrowing the field of view. Researchers at Columbia University discovered subtly making the image smaller during in-world motion wouldRead More →

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Last Sunday’s Adult VR Festa had so many attendees that hundreds were forced to wait outside until police were called in to break up the crowd. The event, which was held at a venue in Tokyo’s high-tech Akihabara neighborhood, featured adult VR applications and devices. Read full story at RocketNews24.Read More →

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I just received my free Loop VR headset from OnePlus. The company gave away thousands of headsets to promote the release of their new OnePlus 3 smartphone, and while it’s definitely an upgrade from the cardboard headset they sent out last year, it lacks many of the features that have recently becomeRead More →

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The total land area of OpenSim’s public grids increased by almost 3,000 regions, but active users dropped by 405. The total number of standard region equivalents on the public grids is now 59,339, up by 2,821 compared to last month, the largest single-month increase in almost two years. The total includesRead More →

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The Kitely Market is now delivering content to 138 different OpenSim grids and mini-grids and merchants are continuing to increase the amount of exportable content available on the platform. There are currently 7,486 product listings in Kitely Market containing 14,134 variations, of which 9,237 are sold with the Export permission.Read More →

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Game studio Ubisoft and developer Red Storm Entertainment is working on a Star Trek game that allows four players to cooperatively fly a spaceship in virtual reality. The game, called “Bridge Crew,” is scheduled to launch this fall on the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR. Read full story at the AssociatedRead More →

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Director Steven Spielberg is working on a family-oriented virtual reality project for The Virtual Reality Company, where he is also one of the advisors, the company announced yesterday. That’s only a couple of weeks after Spielberg called virtual reality “a dangerous medium” at the Cannes film festival. The Virtual RealityRead More →

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Fruit Ninja VR will launch for the HTC Vive later this month, with versions for the Oculus Rift, Playstation VR and Google Daydream planned for later this year, the company announced this week. Based on the video the company released, the game involves using gesture-based controllers to slice fruit. Only theRead More →

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Avi-Labs, the OpenSim hosting company that grew out of the AviWorlds grid, has added OSgrid region rentals and OAR sales to its previous set of grid hosting services and managed server rentals. OSgrid regions go for $5 per month for 15,000 prims, with no setup fee, one of the lowest prices available. Two-by-twoRead More →

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Medical software development company Vedavi has its virtual reality anatomy app all set and ready to go for the Oculus Rift, but the lack of a controller with six degrees of freedom is holding it up. The company also plans to port its VR Human Anatomy software to the GearRead More →

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OSgrid residents who plan to exhibit at next month’s anniversary celebration can now claim their parcels on the OSG9BW, OSG9BN and OSG9BE regions, grid president Dan Banner announced today. The exhibits can be constructed off-site and brought over or built right on location, he said. There is a limit of 676Read More →

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Did you just get a Cardboard-compatible virtual reality headset? You can tell if you have a mobile headset by the fact that it weighs very little, costs very little, and does not plug in to your computer. Instead, it has a place where you put in your smartphone. Then, if theRead More →

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The latest version of the YouTube app can play any video in virtual reality mode, on both Android smartphones and iPhones. Just open up the app on your smartphone, and pull up any video. Take, for example, this  Cirque du Soleil virtual reality video. Notice the little Cardboard outline at bottomRead More →

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The Great Canadian Grid is continuing to suffer from on-going distributed denial of service attacks. DigiWorldz grid founder Terry Ford, whose company also provides hosting services, has been working on securing the Great Canadian Grid’s infrastructure since the attacks first began about a month ago. His company does not host theRead More →

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In general, I believe that marketing is advertising is great for promoting virtual reality.  Marketing experiences tend to short, well-produced, and, of course, well marketed. Plus, no company wants to make potential customers sick, so they pay attention to making their virtual experiences induce as little nausea as possible. And,Read More →

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Baofeng Mojing, the world’s leading virtual headset manufacturer, has released a new viewer that incorporates Leap Motion gesture control. The Baofeng Mojing 5 Plus was announced at a press conference in Beijing yesterday, along with the Baofeng Mojing 5, which does not have the Leap Motion controller. Both headsets haveRead More →

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Open-sided virtual reality headsets are small, fold flat, and can be easily carried in a pocket or purse. Since most don’t have head straps, they are typically suited for quick, on-the-go VR experiences or demonstrations. The open sides allow easy access to the phone screen for interactivity, or switching apps. However,Read More →

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The second OpenSim Treasure Hunt concluded on May 25 with 122 participating regions, up from just 86 in the first hunt. The number of participating grids increased as well, from 22 to 26, Tangle Grid co-founder and hunt organizer Leslie Kling told Hypergrid Business. There were also many returning participants, sheRead More →

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Nicole Kidman stars in a just-released ad campaign by Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates. The commercial is a five-minute 360-degree virtual reality film that showcases the new Airbus A380. The commercial is available as a Google Cardboard-compatible app for the iPhone and Android. A Gear VR versionRead More →

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Blockchain is a hot enterprise technology topic right now. It’s the tech that makes Bitcoin possible, and allows companies or industry groups to set up distributed transaction records that can’t be repudiated, taking out the middlemen that normally keep these transaction databases. Now July’s D10e conference in San Francisco willRead More →

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AvayaLive Engage, one of the three major enterprise-focused virtual environment platforms, is shutting down the company announced. Avaya is no longer accepting new customers, and service for existing customers will end when their current contracts expire. The platform is shutting down because the browser are no longer supporting the requiredRead More →

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The New York Times has released an 8-minute virtual reality documentary based on footage from NASA’s New Horizons fly-by of Pluto. The video includes views from space as well as views from the surface of the planet and was produced in collaboration with the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the Universities Space Research Association.Read More →

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According to researchers at UK’s Staffordshire University, virtual reality could be used to transport jurors to crime scenes to help them better understand what occurred. Simon Tweats, head of justice services at Staffordshire Police, told the BBC that the technology could make a significant difference with regard to how evidence was presentedRead More →

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I just received a review copy of the Pico 1 headset in the mail. Disclosure: It was provided free by GeekBuying. But even though it was free, it still wasn’t worth the money. Was I disappointed? Absolutely! From the pictures and early descriptions I had this fantasy that the PicoRead More →

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Since it first launched in early 2011, Kitely has been the only major grid not to publish its stats, instead providing them by email to Hypergrid Business on request. That changed today, as the grid began publishing its land area and total registered users on its login page. This isRead More →

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China-based smartphone manufacturer OnePlus gave away 30,000 free OnePlus Loop VR headsets today, manufactured in partnership with AntVR. The Cardboard-compatible headset is reminiscent of the Gear VR in its design, and is a significant upgrade from last year’s giveway, which was a Cardboard-compatible headset made of actual cardboard. Like lastRead More →

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A Brazilian team has launched a new grid and OpenSim hosting company, offering local payment and support options. OpenSim Brasil offers hosting for full grids, starting at 230 Reals, or about US$64, with a 100 Real setup fee, for an eight-region grid. The AllCity grid, currently has 25 regions andRead More →

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StubHub competitor Rukkus, which sells tickets to concerts and sports events, has released a virtual reality app that shows the view from any seat. The app, Seat360, is available for both iOS and Android, and works with Cardboard-compatible headsets. The company told UploadVR that it’s generated $350,000 through the app thus far,Read More →

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Update: In August, I bought a FiiT VR 2S, and that is now my new favorite. But I’m also still recommending the BoboVR Z4 headset, because of its 120-degree field of view, built-in headphones, and built-in control button. I would not recommend that anyone go rush out and buy a virtual reality headset rightRead More →

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With this week’s Daydream announcement, Google is cementing its strong early lead in the virtual reality platform race. Although some virtual reality proponents don’t consider mobile-based headsets to be “real” virtual reality, this platform is adequate for watching traditional movies on virtual screens, and for experiencing virtual videos. This is currentlyRead More →

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Pornhub’s March launch of a channel dedicated to virtual reality content put a big stamp of approval on the technology, since it’s the most popular site for adult content on the Web. But there only had a handful of content providers to start with. That’s changing quickly. Last month, PornqueenVR launched withRead More →

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Music streaming service Rhapsody released a virtual reality application this week, Rhapsody VR, for Cardboard-compatible headsets. “We’re excited to unveil the latest project we’ve launched — Rhapsody VR, a virtual reality app that immerses you in a live concert experience by dropping you onstage with the artists,” the company saidRead More →

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If you are located near Northampton, Massachusetts, or plan to swing by, Northampton Community Television is offering free public virtual reality demos using the HTC Vive and Gear VR headsets. Stop by the NCTV facilities at 380 Elm St. on Tuesdays from 6 to 7 p.m. and on Wednesdays and Fridays from 2 to 3 p.m. It’sRead More →

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Google Expeditions, the virtual reality version of the 1990’s TV series The Magic Schoolbus, has reached over one million students, Google announced today. Google Expeditions was launched last spring, and is now in eleven countries. There are more than 200 virtual trips available to such destinations as Buckingham Palace and the Great Barrier Reef. TheRead More →

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EBay has launched the world’s first virtual reality store, in partnership with Australian retailer Myer. It works with all Google Cardboard devices, and the company is also giving away Shopticals, a branded headset made out of Cardboard. You can download the app for iPhones and for Android devices — but onlyRead More →

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Google announced a new operating system for virtual reality that will run on new, compatible Android phones, the company announced at its annual developers conference today. The platform is called Daydream and seems to include some of the features of the Samsung Gear VR platform, including a virtual environment thatRead More →

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The crowdfunding campaign for a Virtual Lisbon grid is up and running again, asking OpenSim users to contribute just $1 each to the project. The founder, Carlos Loff is an experienced virtual worlds builder and community manager, and has been active in Second Life since 2007. This is his fourth tryRead More →

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The Virtual Life Grid has turned on hypergrid connectivity, the grid announced in a press release today and on Twitter. The grid’s hypergrid address is now virtuallifegrid.com:8002. For those interested in learning more, the grid will be holding a general meeting for residents on May 28 at 2 p.m. Pacific at the Virtual LifeRead More →

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If there was any doubt, two new reports out this week confirm that we have the first killer app for virtual reality, and it’s watching videos. That might come as a surprise to people who expected immersive, first-person games to be more attractive, or virtual meetings and socializing. However, watching videosRead More →

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Virtual reality trailblazer Oculus VR has launched its VR for Good program, offering support to students, filmmakers, and nonprofit organizations looking to create immersive films. The first part, aimed at high school students in the San Francisco area, is a six-week program designed to help students explore careers in the sciencesRead More →