Facebook Posts Strong Profit and Revenue Growth

Re:Facebook Posts Strong Profit and Revenue Growth by freyir on Wednesday July 27, 2016 @07:30PM (#12177291)

> I don't think consumer interest in VR was oversold.

Some companies and people had very unrealistic expectations about VR when they entered the space. 5-10 years seems like a realistic timeline for potential mass adoption.

> Only a few people had plasma/lcd screens when they first launched

Only a few people had 3D TVs and Segways when they first launched. Unlike the iPhone, only a few people ever had the EyePhone [1]. It remains a question whether a critical mass of people will want VR. I've witnessed many people experiencing VR where it's like "Wow, this is totally amazing" for the first five minutes, followed by complete disinterest after 15 minutes. I think that suggests that there's something there, but there are also some barriers that haven't been identified and addressed yet.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VPL_Research#The_EyePhone

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Re:Facebook Posts Strong Profit and Revenue Growth by JustSomeNobody on Thursday July 28, 2016 @04:00AM (#12178952)

The barrier is strapping something to one's face. People don't want that.

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Re:Facebook Posts Strong Profit and Revenue Growth by freyir on Thursday July 28, 2016 @01:02PM (#12181484)

I tend to agree. But why don't people want to strap something to their face? Is it the physical discomfort of the straps and the weight of the headset? That can be incrementally improved.

Is it the way the display cuts them off from the outside world? Some degree of immersion is desired -- people sit in dark theaters to watch movies -- but maybe VR is too much. I think it's fitting that Facebook/Zuckerberg thinks VR is the future of social networking. A "social" product that makes you feel more isolated.

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Re:Facebook Posts Strong Profit and Revenue Growth by JustSomeNobody on Friday July 29, 2016 @07:34AM (#12186139)

I think they would have to get to the point where they are similar to regular sunglasses[0]. And the set up would have to be as simple as picking up a remote and turning on the tv. IOW, when someone puts on the VR glasses, they auto connect and start up immediately with little user intervention. Anyone other than a geek/nerd/techie, doesn't want to 'fiddle' with something to use it. They want it TV remote easy.

[0] Though I still tend to think that even this would not be enough for most people - see 3D glasses/TVs.

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