Samsung's Galaxy VR is official; the barmy virtual reality headset was announced today at Samsung's Unpacked event at IFA in Berlin, and we were lucky enough to strap one on and take it for a spin ahead of time to bring you some hands-on first impressions. Samsung doesn't intend the Galaxy VR to compete with either Oculus Rift or Sony's Project Morpheus, and actually worked with the former to develop it.
The main reason it stands alone, rather than as an Oculus Rift rival is that you'll need to have a Galaxy Note 4 smartphone to use it. The phablet, also announced today, docks into the front of the unit securely with two clips, then covered with a plastic shield to stop light leaking in from outside.
The headset itself is fairly chunky, made from a combination of black and white plastics and with plenty of padding around the eye mask and nose bridge for comfort. It's held on your head with a series of adjustable elastic straps, which gave us a snug fit and easily supported the weight of the phone, letting us face forward with minimal pressure on our neck. It was surprisingly comfortable and lightweight, even with a 5.7in phabet docked in place, and we could see ourselves potentially watching entire films or playing games without having to take a break.
Once sealed in place, you control the handset using a touchpad and back button built into the right side of the unit. It's fairly intuitive once you work out exactly where the pad is, but we fumbled to find it when first strapping on the headset - which naturally obscures your vision of the outside world. You can also adjust the focus using a dial on the top of the unit, which moves the optics closer or further away from your face.
Galaxy VR can currently be used to watch video in either 2D or 3D, play games using motion controls and explore digital landmarks. We were shown a 360-degree video of a cirque de Soleil performance, where you could move your head freely around the stage while the performers moved around you, and got to play a space shooter where you controlled the viewpoint of the pilot; Games can be played using a combination of motion controls and the touchpad on the side of the headset, or using the bundled Samsung Gamepad controller.
We were impressed with the clarity of the image, which should come as no surprise seeing as the Galaxy Note 4 has a QHD resolution AMOLED display, and we had no trouble finding a comfortable focus. Head mapping is automatic, letting you move naturally in digital space as if you were standing in the room.
The virtual cinema where the only other occupants were the penguins from Madagascar was another highlight; each of the four turn to face you and interact with you whenever you turn your head to look at them rather than what's happening on-screen.
Samsung wasn't ready to talk about pricing or availability during our hands-on session, but with a Galaxy Note 4 being a requirement the barrier for entry is already around £550-600. It's steep, but so unlike anything you've experienced before it's likely to capture the imaginations of VR fans. We can't wait to see if the company can support the technology, get developers and content providers on board with apps and actually make it a success.
