I broke down and bought a Gear VR

**Wall of text warning**

I have really tried to stay away from the Gear VR, even though I have a Note 4. $200 is a little high for a toy that you will use once or twice, and then put it in a closet somewhere. Well, in a moment of weakness, I broke down and got one this weekend. First off, screen technology has a long ways to go before VR is ready for the masses. Blowing up the Note 4's display results in some very noticeable pixels, and I can only imagine what the Oculus DK2's look like with the Note 3 screens in them. The games right now are pretty basic. They have some cool concepts to them, but feel more like a tech demo than anything else, which is a limitation of the Gear VR using the phone as the brain. Many people have noted that even with a powerful computer, objects in the distance in proper Oculus VR are muddled and fuzzy. That is easy to believe, b/c even with the Note 4's screen, there is a noticeable screen door effect that really diminishes objects in the background. It is rumored that the Note 5 will have a 4K screen, which makes sense if that will be the screen in the Oculus consumer units. Even at 4K, I think they will still need a way to reduce/blur the area between the pixels on the display to make it viable for the masses. So basically the Gear VR is a $200 headset that requires you to already have a Note 4, has no inputs, no way to charge it while in the headset, has pretty bad pixelation issues... and is completely awesome.

VR in games, while novel, isn't something I would like too much outside of a hardcore simulation setting. You have to strap the thing on and align everything just right to enjoy it and if the phone rings, SO asks something, kid starts crying, etc. it is a bit of a bother taking it off and on. There is one thing that completely blew me away though, Oculus Cinema. It is just a run of the mill theatre, where you can look around and see all the empty seats. It was an interesting tech demo of how you can show off interiors and such and the scale that the headset can convey. Then I watched a movie. Movie theatres should be afraid of VR, very afraid. I watched Guardians of the Galaxy, on an IMAX sized screen, while sitting on my couch. Now, if I were to take the raw video I was looking at, put it on a regular TV with all the visible pixels it would be horrendous. But, while I was sitting there watching the movie, somehow I got lost, and the awkwardness of the pixels wasn't that noticeable anymore. You have to look up and move your head in order to fully see the whole screen if you sit up front. Light realistically reflects off the walls and seats around you. You can even turn around and see the projector beam shining out to the screen. As far as my brain was concerned, I was at the movies, and I enjoyed it as much as going to the theatre. The only thing missing was people, which some may be off put by sitting alone in an IMAX, but that didn't change the immersiveness for me. IMO, this is what is going to sell the VR headset. You can get the movie experience, without actually having to go to a theatre.

If you try VR knowing and accepting its current limitations, it is hard not to be impressed. I know that there are some that suffer from eye fatigue/nausea and that is really unfortunate, b/c they will be missing out on a helluva experience. The screen is grainy, the battery will only last for 3-4 hours tops and the games right now are basically nonexistent. Even with all these limitations, I still like it. If you have a Note 4 already or are strongly considering upgrading to one soon and enjoy tech or movies at the theatre, I think the Gear VR is a good buy.