RE resolution: I understand your skepticism, but people significantly underrate the quality of text that can be achieved in VR, even on today's hardware. Simula in particular has put in a lot of work in text resolution optimization (something that earlier VR Desktops failed completely at). This makes me able to use Simula for hours at a time, even on the old HTC Vive (2016 hardware). I won't lie and say it is equally impressive as a 4K monitor is today, but it's definitely usable and allows you to garner the other benefits of VR Desktop (10x more screens, 10x the size, 10x the focus/work immersions).
RE touch typing: agree that touch typing makes VR Desktop more productive; however, we have an escape hatch in Simula in the form of a live Keyboard & Mouse view: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5c3Hfp8Hcw
RE HMD comfort: Agreed that headsets need to get significantly lighter before they are usable for 16hr/day; however, I would argue that even today headsets are good enough to get serious work done in (on the order of 1hr/day, and perhaps as much as a few hours per day).
If you have an HTC Vive/Vive Pro/Valve Index, I can help you install Simula/give it a try. Contact me at george.w.singer [at] gmail [dot] com if you're interested.
- Low resolution. The best we have for consumers right now is the valve index, 1440x3200 resolution ~100 degree vertical FOV. A 24 inch display at a comfortable distance in such a headset would be at around 720x480 (480p), and a little blurry because of the projection.
- Fixed focus lens. You basically can't read anything close on today's headsets. Lens are focused so that they are sharp at infinity, which also mean they are blurry up close. Coding on virtual gigantic screens at a distance may be a good experience though.
- Touch typing is a must. In fact it is touch everything, because you will be blind to the real world.
- VR headsets can be uncomfortable when worn for hours at a time. Because of technical limitations (FOV and resolution), you tend to move your head a lot in VR, and doing so while wearing a heavy headset can make it even more uncomfortable.
Portability, for me, is the least of the problems, especially those that have "inside out" tracking. These things can fit in a small backpack.