Oculus Rift S PC-Powered VR Gaming Headset

There isn't a real way to describe VR better than "You have to see it for yourself to believe it."I could go on about how Amazing VR is and how once you experience a virtual environment you'll realize how hard it will be to believe in 5-8 years people will still be looking at flat screen TVs for entertainment and that includes games. Yes, We are still early adopters meaning the technology is not perfect, the headset are still bulky, there is no good wireless PC powered option and the tech overall still has a way to go but experiencing only the tip of whats possible is still so overwhelming that it completely melts away any current flaws!3D movies look Amazing in VR even compared to a big screen 4K TV. Not since Avatar have I seen a good 3D movie but in VR the same 3D movies on a flat screen look dull look completely different in VR and all the content on the screen is coming out around you. VR made 3D movies look cool again!The Rift S is a great headset! I see a lot of *1Star* reviews with complaints about the lack of support for "HDMI" and there are two good reason for that reviews might not be picking up on why that is. First the situation is if your computer doesn't have new enough hardware to have a display port VR your computer probably isn't going run VR well and the device clearly states it requires a display port!With that being noted understand the system requirements for the Rift S are probably lower than they should be because there is already VR content to buy for the Rift S that go beyond what is printed on the Rift S box with some content requiring a GTX1070 or better. Now the 2ND reason for no HDMI support is how VR headsets work your computer is literally powering two separate lenses/ display screens at once and it takes a large amount of bandwidth that current USB 3.0/3.1 and HDMI 2.0B ports don't support. A good example here is the previously PC Free OCulus Quest now has the "Link" feature allowing the Quest to powered by a PC with a 3.0 USB port on your PC. There a lot complaints from users and other review sites about users experiencing headaches due to the USB bandwidth lag causing an even lower refresh rate around 74hz and slow response times to fast movements. I don't think that is the type of experience any user would be happy having.The Rift S headset feels comfortable and the controls feel great in my hands with excellent button placements. The installation was quick, easy and a lot fun while going through tutorial mode. I suggest every Rift S headset owner check out the latest games on Steam as the Oculus store doesn't have a fraction of the amount of content that steam does with many titles listed on Steam for free or at a low cost.The only negatives is I wish this device had more upgrades than the original Rift and not just what feels like a good refresh but don't believe rumors the original Rift is no where close to being the better than the new the Rift S in anyway. Bringing that issue up I wouldn't have mind spending a little more money for a true RIFT "2" instead of a Rift "S." I still believe is this headset is the best overall consumer based VR headset on the market. The only other consumer headset I might be able to call better than the Rift S but can't is the Valve Index but at $999 I can't call it a good value. On top of that the Valve Index software is rather buggy also brings forward last gen tech that gave VR a bad name by using lighthouses causing the need to run cables for tracking instead of inside out tracking built into the headset which the Rift S has making VR setup and use much easier.I did order two of these from two different places because the Rift S has mostly been sold out since December of 2019. The first one that came I'll need to return because one of the controller triggers is making a "squeak" sound and sticking sometimes but I won't knock a single star off for what is probably a fluke on what is otherwise an amazing product and experience.5 Star Product - Thumbs Up!

If you read most of the negative reviews. They seem to be from people who couldn’t figure out how to get the headset to work or didn’t actually bother to read the specs. You aren’t really offering a useful review because you didn’t do enough research to know you need a display port on your laptop. This headset doesn’t deserve 1 star because of your ignorance.That said, here is what I like and don’t like about the Rift S.What I like: Since I travel for work, lugging the old Rift and setting it up was tedious. After hooking up and aligning all the sensors and the laptop, I often didn’t even feel like playing a game anymore. The Rift S is a huge step in the right direction for this alone. No sensors. Just 2 cables. Put on the headset after your PC is booted up, the Oculus software will start automatically, and then your looking at a 3D correct view of your room. You set your floor height by touching it with your controller and then “paint” a line around your walls and furniture for your boundary.The lcd screen is very clear and the lenses are fantastic. It’s a big improvement over the original rift in visuals. I also like the halo head strap. It’s very comfortable and the foam lining feels super soft. The colors are more vibrant that the original rift. That isn’t saying a ton though because the original rift had bad colors and bad black levels for an Oled display. Apparently Oculus calibrated the panels this way to help with problems like black smear and godrays. Godrays are internal reflections from the Fresnel lenses. The Rift S minimizes these reflections considerably.The controller and headset tracking are fantastic. Leaps and bounds better than Windows MR and on par with a 3 sensor Rift set up. No complaints there. You should know that you need the room lights to be on for tracking with the Rift S though, just like WMR. Although I have seen people use infra red lamps to illuminate the room invisibly to humans that seems to work well. It’s your preference. Personally I have no problem with the room lights being on when I’m in VR.What I don’t like: I wish they had used the Oled panels from the Quest. The Quest oled panels are beautiful. Deep blacks, vibrant colors. Much better than the original rift. The LCD suffers in dark scenes. I’d still take the Rift S LCD over the original Rift oled, but the Quest oled would have been better.What I also don’t like: The audio is garbage. There is no way around this. I like not having attached headphones to deal with putting on the headset, but sadly the built in speakers are bad. Now I’m forced to use earbuds until my Mantis clip on headphones arrive from Amazon. I know I just said I didn’t like dealing with the attached headphones on the original rift, but that just shows how bad the Rift S audio truly is. I hope Oculus offers a deluxe audio strap solution at a later date. However, I’m not holding my breathe. They knew this audio was junk before they released the headset in the first place. Upselling an optional audio solution that is better won’t sit well with most consumers. It’s like selling a new car with a flawed gas pedal that only goes half throttle and then selling you an optional deluxe gas pedal that goes all the way to the floor. Wait, the auto industry does that sort of thing all the time(Tesla ludicrous mode). Maybe that’s a bad example.I’ve owned/own the original Rift, Samsung Odyssey, Oculus Go, Oculus Quest, and the Rift S. The Rift S is the best of the PC headsets and the Quest is a game changer that you’d have to pry from cold dead hands. If you are new to PC VR, the Rift S is a great headset. If you are fanatical about VR and have a large bank account, you’d have to buy the Valve Index. However, if you are fanatical, you already know all this and probably aren’t reading this review anyway.