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Vive owners waiting for Rift

rat8cheese
Protege
Are you keeping your Rift preorder?  I am a day 1 Rift preorder and was going to try both and sell the lesser of the 2.  I've had my Vive a few days now...and its freaking amazing and I love it.  Would you guys keep the Rift in my position?   $300-$400 markup on EBay which isn't earth shattering so perhaps not even worth the trouble.

Please only chime in if you own Vive and also Rift.  
30 REPLIES 30

blue-steel
Expert Protege




i'm going to flip my rift.  I don't want to do business with a company who doesn't give a crap about me.  Use the money I make to pay off the vive. 



I'm confused, you don't want to do business with a company, yet you're buying from them. Is that correct?



I will use the rift to make me money. But i'm not going to support their eco system or buy anything form them going forward. They would sell the rift I ordered regardless so I might as well profit from the months of bullshit they put me through

Anonymous
Not applicable
I have both. They are both interesting devices and I will probably keep both. That being said if I were to recommend one I would lean towards the Rift for most people. The Rift is the more consumer friendly of the two and to me the real breakthrough with the Vive is not room scale but the motion controls, which in theory will be coming to the Rift later this year with the Touch controllers.

The Vive is a far more complex setup. The base stations don't work so well just on a book shelf as they really need to be positioned on a mount at a downward angle and of course they require access to power. One really needs to pretty seriously configure your room for the best experience. By contrast drop the Oculus webcam on your table and you're done. The Vive comes with mountains of cables, 5 AC adapters, a breakout box, etc. The Vive headset is far less comfortable than the Rift. It's less breathable and weighs a lot more. The big 3 stranded cable coming out the back is also much more noticeable than on the Rift. The Vive comes with earbuds or you can use external headphones, both are far more awkward to put on than the built in headphones on the Rift.

The setup process on the Vive was a bit problematic for me involving SteamVR refusing to launch until I rebooted and some difficulty discovering all the components (eventually power cycling the link box and re-pairing the wands got things working). By contrast everything about the Rift setup just worked smoothly for me.

Optically the units are pretty close. I'd give the Oculus a slight edge in sharpness, but it's pretty close. The God Rays are pretty intense on CV1. It's definitely one of the biggest steps back on the CV1. The God Rays are less intense on the Vive, but when they appear they have a circular quality that feels far less natural than the Rift. FOV seems about the same, though the Vive does have the ability to move the lenses towards and away from your eyes allowing me to create a slightly larger FOV than on the Rift. This is a feature that DK1 and DK2 had and it's a bummer to lose it on the CV1 in my opinion.

The wands on the Vive are an awesome glimpse at the future. I have a Razer Hydra that I used on the DK1 and DK2, so I thought I knew what to expect but really the wireless 1:1 tracking and ubiquitous use make for a whole new experience. I imagine the Touch will provide a similar experience but right now only the Vive has it. It's pretty awesome to leave the wands on the desk, put the headset on, see the wands in VR and when you reach out to grab them they are exactly there in real space where your VR mind thinks they should be.

The Vive Chaperone system is so clearly the way to do room scale. Once it's setup you really don't worry about bumping into things. You have a lot of confidence that you are in a safe zone. The cable is a bit annoying. You probably aren't going to trip over it since you are generally moving slowly and will notice it tugging before a trip occurs. You get a sort of instinct for kicking it out of the way though it can get fairly twisted up overtime. Wireless would be a big improvement for room scale here though we all understand the challenges in that.  The Vive camera is fairly disappointing in my opinion. It's not a stereoscopic camera with a 1:1 mapping on reality. It's sort of 2D camera texture distorted and placed on the Chaperone wall. It sounds cool, but part of the genius of the chaperone system is that it's subtle. With the camera on the real world invades your VR experience a bit too much. The camera seems more like a gimmick than a useful feature at this stage. The ability however to see through the VR headset so that you can access the real world without taking the headset off is a laudable goal, but this camera is not that.

Room scale overall is interesting though I can't say I'm sold that this is how all VR will be one day. The space constraints in most homes is going to be an issue and I have trouble seeing the mass market running power wires through their walls to mount dedicated VR sensors. It is pretty awesome to walk around in some of these virtual worlds though you are obviously constrained by what is still a pretty small area. Ultimately in most games you want to move over a large play field. Being able to take a few steps before you are forced to use a controller to move your avatar further distances is okay but is it substantially better than the current largely stationary experience with the Rift? To be honest you can do some room scale stuff today with the Rift. The T-Rex demos and others that play when you first setup the Rift are standing experiences where you can take a couple steps. That's not totally unlike the Vive, though the Vive can handle larger spaces and is better designed for room scale with its Chaperone system and what not.

Finally, software. Oculus does have a number of exclusives and a seemingly more playable library at this point. Most of the room scale experiences on the Vive are pretty much demos. Add to that the fact that SteamVR supports Oculus (though experiences that require motion controls are a no-go) and the Rift is the more compatible device at the moment.

Anonymous
Not applicable


I have both and will keep both.  I use the Rift for all my seated VR and the Vive for room-scale and the more active VR.  The Vive is made of really durable plastic so it should hold up to the massive amount of sweat I been throwing at it.  The Rift always feels super comfy after playing a bunch of Vive apps.  Eventually I will get my backup PC upgraded so I can have a PC for both and switching between the two will be very easy.


I sweat too when I use my Vive. More from the intensity of the experience than any other reason, although this is a small room and heats up easily, which doesn't help!

zork2001
Heroic Explorer

I have Vive and day 1 pre-order on rift. I would like to
sell the Rift but I could not sell it until I tried it; if I use it I don’t see
how I can sell it as new, so screw it I will just keep it.

rat8cheese
Protege
@Oblongship - since you asked.  🙂   My experience with the Vive after 3 days of use is extremely positive.  I'd say 9/10.  Major issue at this time is when navigating menus the text can be difficult to read.  I've noticed there is a sweet spot in the center of the lense but if you move off to the peripherally things get blurry.  I'm not sure if the CV1 is like this too but again there is a "sweet spot" and things blur the further you deviate.  In a way you have to train yourself to not shift your eye gaze but rather turn you head.

As for for setup, I'm really baffled by why so much negativity is written on these forums regarding how hard it is to set up.  Perhaps compared to Rift the complexity is magnified?  I mean the Vive box literally has 4 compartments inside.  So when you open the base station "section" it's corresponding power cables are there.  When you open the controllers their chargers are there with it.  People who like to take everything out of their box when they buy stuff and line them up on a table might actually be making it harder on themselves.  I literally loaded up the software, it had a clock on top right corner telling me estimated time until completion (starts at 28mins) and walks you through it.  I couldn't have taken more than 25 mins to get this thing up and running and I'm a Mac guy.  I literally watched youtube in March on how to build a PC and just followed it step by step.  So again, not sure what the issue is with Vive setup.

Game-wise.  Has been workweek so time was limited.  I'm getting 1.5 hrs to 2hrs a day on average.  Today will be my first day to go buck wild in VR.  I've played TheBlu multiple times now and have unlocked exploration mode.  To me it's the ultimate relaxer when I get home from 12 hrs of work tired and stressed.  Walking around the bottom of the coral reef or grabbing a pillow and tricking my body into thinking it's laying on the bottom of the ocean has not gotten old.  Zombie Training Simulator is next.  I had Space Pirate lined up in my sights since ordering Vive but based on reviews I decided to buy Zombie.  This is a game I also keep coming back to the last few days trying to keep upping my kill count.  The precise tracking is put on full display here imo.  It is so fun I do recommend everyone with Vive take a look at it.  I only wish reloading wasn't with the touchpad as the gun is so detailed i want to use my off hand to actually reload.  It's also the game that's made me hit the wall with my controller in a frantic attempt to toss steak at the horde.  The Lab was my first load up after the very entering Tutorial.  I have not finished everything but the standouts thus far are Longbow (but only 8 waves?!?  finished it on my first attempt, why so short?) and Xortex.  I  actually unlocked the Xortex ship in the main Lab area and you can fly it around like a remote drone with the Wand...this flying a drone concept has huge potential in my opinion.  Last night I tried Tilt Brush.  I think this will be my demo for friends and family.  Mind blown moment.  I'm terrible at drawing and still loved this.  I could swear when I put my arm "into" a painting my arm feels warm...some sort of brain trick.  Just some early impressions.  I should probably have posted this separately as a review but too lazy.  

I have not even set up the sitting Vive yet.  I just did the Roomscale set up.  What do you guys recommend for a sitting experience...I'll probably get to it in a week or so bc I just want to walk around for the time being.  This really is what I'm looking for and in a way glad my Rift is delayed bc I wouldn't have the Vive if it wasn't.  I said in a previous post I got the Vive a few days after Rift showed off the 30 launch games.  To me more than half of them were 3rd person games where you were the camera or viewed the "world" in God mode like you're playing a board game or viewing a diorama.  That was a turn off for me bc RTS and that card game they showed made me feel they were better suited for augmented reality.  Speaking of AR, before getting my Vive I was thinking about the potential of AR with the camera.  But now that I have it, it's probably not happening.  Only one camera so can't even get 3D images, when I view my room in Tron mode it feels so weird bc there is no depth.  They probably won't be able to use it for AR.

Btw, how do I watch Netflix (can I even?) with the Vive.  Is there a theater mode? 

ThreeDeeVision
Superstar
@rat8cheese There is a virtual desktop built into SteamVR.  It might not be the best solution, but would probably work just fine.  I bet someone eventually makes a proper Netflix supported app though (maybe Netflix will).
i7 5960X @ 3.8 GHz | Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4 PC2800 | GTX Titan X Pascal | Win 10 64 bit | Asus ROG PG348Q | EVGA X99 Classified

Greyman
Superstar
I think the guy that produced Virtual Desktop might be a little upset that you don't think it is a "proper app",  From what I hear and backed up by most of the people that have bought it, it's a top piece of software.  

It's certainly on my shopping list......when the damn Rift arrives that is.  🙂

ThreeDeeVision
Superstar
@Greyman I wasn't talking about the 'Virtual Desktop' paid app, I was talking about the virtual desktop that is built into SteamVR.  I bet the paid app is a proper app that has way more options.  I haven't used it, so I wouldn't speculate.  

And when I said 'proper app' I was speaking more along the lines of one that supports Netflix to the fullest or is in Netflix itself.  I wasn't trying to put anyone down there.
i7 5960X @ 3.8 GHz | Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4 PC2800 | GTX Titan X Pascal | Win 10 64 bit | Asus ROG PG348Q | EVGA X99 Classified

Oblongship
Heroic Explorer


@Oblongship - since you asked.  🙂   My experience with the Vive after 3 days of use is extremely positive.  I'd say 9/10.  Major issue at this time is when navigating menus the text can be difficult to read.  I've noticed there is a sweet spot in the center of the lense but if you move off to the peripherally things get blurry.  I'm not sure if the CV1 is like this too but again there is a "sweet spot" and things blur the further you deviate.  In a way you have to train yourself to not shift your eye gaze but rather turn you head.

As for for setup, I'm really baffled by why so much negativity is written on these forums regarding how hard it is to set up.  Perhaps compared to Rift the complexity is magnified?  I mean the Vive box literally has 4 compartments inside.  So when you open the base station "section" it's corresponding power cables are there.  When you open the controllers their chargers are there with it.  People who like to take everything out of their box when they buy stuff and line them up on a table might actually be making it harder on themselves.  I literally loaded up the software, it had a clock on top right corner telling me estimated time until completion (starts at 28mins) and walks you through it.  I couldn't have taken more than 25 mins to get this thing up and running and I'm a Mac guy.  I literally watched youtube in March on how to build a PC and just followed it step by step.  So again, not sure what the issue is with Vive setup.

Game-wise.  Has been workweek so time was limited.  I'm getting 1.5 hrs to 2hrs a day on average.  Today will be my first day to go buck wild in VR.  I've played TheBlu multiple times now and have unlocked exploration mode.  To me it's the ultimate relaxer when I get home from 12 hrs of work tired and stressed.  Walking around the bottom of the coral reef or grabbing a pillow and tricking my body into thinking it's laying on the bottom of the ocean has not gotten old.  Zombie Training Simulator is next.  I had Space Pirate lined up in my sights since ordering Vive but based on reviews I decided to buy Zombie.  This is a game I also keep coming back to the last few days trying to keep upping my kill count.  The precise tracking is put on full display here imo.  It is so fun I do recommend everyone with Vive take a look at it.  I only wish reloading wasn't with the touchpad as the gun is so detailed i want to use my off hand to actually reload.  It's also the game that's made me hit the wall with my controller in a frantic attempt to toss steak at the horde.  The Lab was my first load up after the very entering Tutorial.  I have not finished everything but the standouts thus far are Longbow (but only 8 waves?!?  finished it on my first attempt, why so short?) and Xortex.  I  actually unlocked the Xortex ship in the main Lab area and you can fly it around like a remote drone with the Wand...this flying a drone concept has huge potential in my opinion.  Last night I tried Tilt Brush.  I think this will be my demo for friends and family.  Mind blown moment.  I'm terrible at drawing and still loved this.  I could swear when I put my arm "into" a painting my arm feels warm...some sort of brain trick.  Just some early impressions.  I should probably have posted this separately as a review but too lazy.  

I have not even set up the sitting Vive yet.  I just did the Roomscale set up.  What do you guys recommend for a sitting experience...I'll probably get to it in a week or so bc I just want to walk around for the time being.  This really is what I'm looking for and in a way glad my Rift is delayed bc I wouldn't have the Vive if it wasn't.  I said in a previous post I got the Vive a few days after Rift showed off the 30 launch games.  To me more than half of them were 3rd person games where you were the camera or viewed the "world" in God mode like you're playing a board game or viewing a diorama.  That was a turn off for me bc RTS and that card game they showed made me feel they were better suited for augmented reality.  Speaking of AR, before getting my Vive I was thinking about the potential of AR with the camera.  But now that I have it, it's probably not happening.  Only one camera so can't even get 3D images, when I view my room in Tron mode it feels so weird bc there is no depth.  They probably won't be able to use it for AR.

Btw, how do I watch Netflix (can I even?) with the Vive.  Is there a theater mode? 


Thank you for that awesome post!!

I read every word of it and really look forward to hearing more. I am on the fence about getting tilt brush, do you know what kind of sharing options there are for it? How can I share with people who don't have Vive? Any social aspects?

Greyman
Superstar
KK, Fair enough.  If I had my Rift, I might have discovered the "free" version for myself.  Did I mention it hadn't arrived yet?  😉