360 rumors

LG's press conference focused on advances in its TV technology, including its new 2.57mm-thin "W" OLED TV, and innovations for home and auto, such as its Hub robot assistant that can control connected appliances such as a vacuum cleaner. For 360 and VR, LG announced that its premium TVs with WebOS 3.5 will have built-in 360-degree VR viewing capabilities .  You will be able to view both 360 photos as well as 360 videos from your TV, and you will be able to change the view using the remote control.  I don't know yet if they have a demo of this new feature available on the show floor, but I will check out their booth. I will also inquire about whether they have any follow-up products for the LG 360 Cam or their 360 VR headset.  LG is also a Google Daydream partner, and I will inquire about their Daydream products.

Qualcomm's new Snapdragon 835 mobile processor has many features such as a better battery life, and better support for dual camera phones.  However, its most impressive feature is its support for VR and AR. The Snapdragon 835 has several features for VR and AR: - 25% faster graphics rendering - support for foveated rendering - support for 360 audio - positional tracking with 6 degrees of freedom - 20% less latency than its predecessor - support for Google Tango AR. You might be wondering how a processor can add positional tracking.  In the case of the Snapdragon 835, it is through visual inertial odometry (VIO).  The processor takes information from inertial sensors and from a camera to determine its position in 3D space without an external sensor. The Snapdragon 835 will be demo'd at CES 2017 .  If I'm able to get a demo, I will post about how well it actually works in comparison to desktop VR (the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift or Playstation VR).

Oculus has been adamant that the Oculus Rift requires three USB 3.0 ports and one USB 2.0 port.  However, it appears not only that the Rift and Touch can work with just USB 2.0, but that it may even perform better for some PCs!  (In my case, it solved missing sound from the headphones and random disconnections.) Oculus has always maintained that the Rift and Touch require three USB 3.0 ports and one USB 2.0 port: - one USB 3.0 for the headset - one USB 3.0 for the sensor that is included with the Rift - one USB 3.0 for the additional sensor included with the Touch - one USB 2.0 for the wireless adapter for the Xbox controller. For users who don't have a USB 3.0 port, Oculus recommends getting a PCI-E card with a Fresco Logic FL1100EX chipset.  I got one called Inateck, which was recommended by Oculus. THE PROBLEM However, ever since I got the Oculus Rift, I have had a couple of issues:  First, there would often be no sound from the headphones, even if I specified t...

​ A couple of days ago, NVidia announced that they were making VR-ready desktop GPUs available for notebooks.  Specifically, NVidia would put the VR-Ready GTX 1060, GTX 1070, and GTX 1080 in notebooks.  These aren't watered-down M versions, but nearly identical to their desktop counterparts.  This achievement was made possible by the efficient Pascal architecture.  See the official announcement here . I wondered how long it would take for the actual products to show up.  To my surprise, they're actually now available and in stock at B&H , starting at $1499. Please note that these notebooks have VR-ready graphics cards, but you'll also need to make sure the USB ports are compatible.  In that regard: - Oculus Rift requires three USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0 port .  When the Oculus Touch comes out, it will add a second sensor, which I believe will require another USB 3.0 port .  One of the USB 3.0 ports will be for the upcoming Oculus Touch,...

The cost of a VR-ready PC is steadily decreasing, thanks largely to lower cost VR-ready graphics cards, like the GTX 1060.  In my case, I've been able to get a VR-ready PC for around $540.   I got an old Dell T3500 workstation from eBay for $270, which worked surprisingly very well for stitching 360 videos .  I then added a GTX 1060 graphics card .  The previous card I got was the NVidia Founders Edition, but it wouldn't fit my case.  I then ordered the smaller Zotac GTX 1060 Mini.  I got mine from B&H Photo for $270. Compared to the Founders Edition, the Zotac looks very simple, almost spartan.  But it's also much more compact, which is what I need. Here it is, next to my previous EVGA GTX 750 Ti card. I was relieved to find that it did indeed fit the case -- just barely. I ran the HTC Vive VR Readiness test.  As with the Founders Edition, it's rated "high," although the score is a little lower than with the Founders Edition (7.9 vs. 8.1). Z...

The iBuypower AM690 is a VR-ready PC for $749, with free Amazon Prime shipping .  It comes with a VR-ready AMD RX480 graphics card. Specifications : - Intel Core i5-6402P Quad Core 2.8GHz Processor (3.4GHz with Turbo) | B150M Chipset - AMD RX-480 8GB graphics card - 8GB DDR4 Memory - 1TB 7200RPM HDD - USB 3.0 x 2 and USB 2.0 x 4. - 802.11ac Wireless Adapter - Windows 10 Home - iBUYPOWER Gaming Keyboard and Mouse Please note that the Oculus Rift requires three USB 3.0 ports (possibly four with the Oculus Touch ), so you'll have to add a USB 3.0 card to the AM690 if you want to use the Rift.  The HTC Vive uses one USB 2.0 port. The AM690 is similar in price and specs as the CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR ($720) , except that the AM690's graphics card has 8GB of RAM while the Xtreme VR's card has 4GB of RAM.  On the other hand, the AM690 has only two USB 3.0 ports, while the Xtreme VR has six USB 3.0 ports. You can buy the AM690 from Amazon here .  Update: it's seems t...

​ You can get a brand new Cyberpower Gamer Xtreme VR , a VR-ready PC, for the incredible price of just $684   only this weekend using the coupon code CPAMD5 .  Regularly $720 (already an incredible deal), the coupon code gives you an additional 5% off. The Gamer Xtreme VR comes with: -  Intel i5-6402P 2.8GHz Quad-Core - 8GB DDR4 RAM - 1TB HDD - AMD Radeon RX 480 4GB VR-Ready graphics card - Genuine Windows 10 Home 64-bit - 6 x USB 3.0 | 4 x USB 2.0 - includes Keyboard and Mouse - free lifetime tech support I would love to get this system myself, if I didn't already have the GTX 1060!  At the time of this writing, there's also a "like new" unit for $659.33. The Gamer Xtreme VR is an Amazon exclusive and is not available elsewhere. Thanks to @tipatat for sharing this coupon code!

The VR-ready GTX 1060 graphics card is in stock at Amazon for $255 (just $5 over MSRP), with Prime shipping!  By comparison, the street price for the GTX 1060 has been around $300 to $350. This deal is not going to last! Update : yup, it didn't last.  Sold out at $250.  Now back to $292.39 + $9.63 shipping. RELATED POSTS: VR-ready PC for under $600 with GTX 1060 Brand new VR-Ready PC for $720

​ NVidia offered to settle the GTX 970 class action lawsuit by giving buyers a $30 rebate. In February 2015, NVidia was sued for false advertising in connection with its GTX 970 VR-ready graphics card.  Users noticed that although the GTX 970 was advertised as having 4GB of RAM, its performance dropped when the RAM usage exceeded 3.5GB.  It turned out that the GTX 970's RAM was made up of two components: a 3.5 GB component and a much slower 512MB component.  The GTX 970 also had only 56 render output processors (ROPs) instead of the advertised 64. The GTX 970 average retail price was around $350 in February 2015.  NVidia's settlement offer is not final until approved by the court.

You can now get a brand new, complete VR-ready PC for $720 with free shipping!  The CyberPowerPC Gamer Xtreme VR GXiVR8020A has the following: -  Intel i5-6402P 2.8GHz Quad-Core - 8GB DDR4 RAM - 1TB HDD - AMD Radeon RX 480 4GB VR-Ready graphics card - Genuine Windows 10 Home 64-bit - 6 x USB 3.0 | 4 x USB 2.0 - includes Keyboard and Mouse - free lifetime tech support This is the most affordable brand new VR-ready PC I've seen so far, by a significant margin!  The 8020 been tested with both the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.  The 8020 is an Amazon exclusive and is not available elsewhere. Update: CyberPower also a similar VR-ready PC but with an AMD processor, also for $720: The CyberPowerPC Gamer Ultra GUA4400 features the following: - AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz Six-Core - 8GB DDR3 RAM - 1TB HDD - Windows 10 home 64-bit -  AMD RX 480 4GB VR-ready graphics card - 6x USB 2.0 - keyboard and mouse - free lifetime tech support The advantage of the...

One of the obstacles to using a desktop VR system such as the Oculus Rift (previewed here) or HTC Vive is the high cost of a VR-ready PC, which is generally at least $1,000.   However, I was able to cobble together a VR-ready PC for $600, thanks to the new NVidia GTX 1060.  Hit the jump to see its performance! I got an old Dell T3500 workstation powered by an Intel Xeon W3565 quad-core processor.  I got mine for just $270 (with 15GB RAM).   It performs very well for 4k video rendering .  You can get one on eBay for around $250. Then I got a new graphics card, the new NVidia GTX 1060.  The one I got was the Founders' Edition ($299 + tax).  It came in a handsome reinforced cardboard box. It looks really high-tech, like a piece of alien technology! It is quite heavy -- heavier than my DSLR, for example -- although I've never bought a high-end graphics card before, so I don't have much frame of reference. Here is the top part, which has the logo and ...

​ The VR-ready Radeon RX 480 will be available at B&H tomorrow for $249.99 .  (You can preorder it now.)  The Radeon RX 480 is a VR-ready graphics card that is designed to be more affordable, while providing similar performance to the NVidia GTX 980.  The RX 480 is positioned against the NVidia GTX 1060 which also provides similar performance to the GTX 980.  However, the RX 480's MSRP is $200, while the GTX 1060's MSRP is $250.  Due to demand, the street price for the RX 480 is around $250 or more, while the GTX 1060 is selling for around $300.  Even at $250, the RX 480 is not easy to find in stock. Meanwhile, the GTX 1060 will be available at B&H on August 6 for $269.99  (you can also preorder now).

Just a friendly reminder that the Kickstarter campaign for the Superbook begins today at 830AM Pacific Time.  UPDATE: it started early. Here is the link . Superbook (previewed here) is a laptop shell for your Android smartphone, allowing your phone to act much like a Windows laptop.  Superbook will also recharge your phone. Because Superbook has no processor of its own and relies completely on your smartphone, it will be as low as $99 (plus shipping), which includes a Micro USB to USB cord and a charger.  There's also a higher-end package with Type C cord. UPDATE :  Superbook's Kickstarter campaign is a success!  Within the first hour, it was 300% funded (i.e., 3x its funding goal) and still going strong.

The NVidia GTX 1060 is a VR-ready graphics card that offers performance similar to the NVidia GTX 980, but at a lower price of $249 MSRP compared to the approximately $400 current street price of the GTX 980. The regular version of the GTX 1060 is available for preorder from retailers such as B&H Photo , however the GTX 1060 Founders Edition is now available direct from NVidia for $299 (see here) . Compared to the regular version of the GTX 1060, the Founders Edition has premium construction and has cooling enhancements ( see here - this one is for the GTX 1080 but the same enhancements are in the Founders Edition of the GTX 1060 ). Moreover, although the GTX 1060 has an MSRP of $249, the price of the regular GTX 1060 on B&H Photo is also $299, like the Founders Edition.

Many people have both a smartphone and a laptop.  We use smartphones for a lot of things but when it comes to doing work - with lots of typing and editing - a smartphone is hard to use, so we still need to use a laptop.  Nonetheless, people want to have only one device.  In an attempt to fill that need, we've had tablets, phablets, and laptops that convert to tablets.  But none of those are perfect solutions. An innovative solution to this problem is to use the phone as a laptop.  With all your data in one device, you won't have to worry about syncing.  Similar solutions have been attempted in the past using laptops with built-in docks for phones.  However, they were too expensive and they failed commercially. Now the idea is becoming practical again, thanks to the increasing processing power of smartphones.  Motivated by consumers' desire to use their smartphones for ever-expanding applications, smartphone manufacturers have...

​ One of the most expensive components for a VR-ready PC is the graphics card.  NVidia is targeting more budget-conscious users with the GeForce GTX 1060.  At an MSRP of $250, it costs almost 1/3 less than the recently-released GTX 1070 ($380 MSRP).  At the same time, because of its advanced Pascal architecture, it offers better slightly performance than the Maxwell-based GTX 980, at a lower price (the GTX 980 is currently over $400 street). The GTX 1060 is scheduled for release on July 19.

So you might recall the old workstation that I got recently, a Dell T3500, which performed very well for rendering 4k video - 12x faster than my ~4-yr old i5 Sandy Bridge laptop ( see here ).  However, it could not stitch the photos or videos from the Samsung Gear 360 because its graphics card (Radeon X300) was very old and had no Windows 10 driver. I decided to get a decent graphics card for it.  I wanted to get the new Radeon RX 480 VR-ready graphics card so that I could use it in a future PC but I was worried about compatibility with the Dell T3500, plus it was selling around $50 more than the list price due to demand.  I opted instead to get a more modestly-priced graphics card, the NVidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti (around $120), which I had read was compatible with the T3500.  Moreover, it had low power consumption and a lower operating temperature.  And it didn't even need external power. I was tempted to get the FTW version with two huge fans but it would not ...

Rendering 4k video, whether 360-degrees or not, is incredibly processor-intensive.  For example, Samsung recommends these specs for editing 360 4k video: Processor: Intel Core i7 or AMD FX or faster Graphics card: ATI / AMD: Radeon HD R5 series or above; NVIDIA: GeForcce GTS / GT series or above; Intel HD Graphics 5500 or above; 2 GB DDR RAM or above RAM:  6 GB or above At the time of this writing, a computer with specs like these is not cheap.  Videomaker's recommended PC build for a 4k editing PC costs about $4,000 as of February 2016. But what if you could get pretty fast rendering speeds for a fraction of the cost? I was slogging through with my laptop (i5-2450M, 8GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 3000), taking as long as 8 minutes to render just 15 seconds of 4k 360 video.  Then I met  Hammad Iqbal  on Facebook, who told me about a fast but very inexpensive PC. In the tech world, "fast" and "inexpensive" are usually mutually exclusive and the figures he ...