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So were electric vehicles but we are getting there now.

• perilunar 6y ago
  No, electric vehicles were 'the past'. See: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26422912 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26422912 Hydrogen fuel-cell powered cars were 'the future'.
  • TeMPOraL 6y ago
    That's almost like someone in the 18th century saying steam engines were the past, because Hero of Alexandria built them in 1AD [0]. Nothing new to see here, Mr. Watt. Much like with steam engines in ancient Rome, the technological and economical context at the turn of 20th century wasn't right for the mass adoption of electric cars. Technological environment stayed wrong until the turn of 21th century, and the economical environment stayed wrong until Tesla single-handedly dragged the market, kicking and screaming, into accepting electric cars as a viable product. Similarly, we had VR since at least the 90s, but the technological environment was bad then. It's right now, and it's the Oculus Quest line that made a pivotal change in the market acceptance. -- [0] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeolipile https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeolipile
  • numlock86 6y ago
    > No, electric vehicles were 'the past'. Meh, by that same argument you could say VR is the past. The point of the discussion is that VR is now at a point were it will most likely get adopted, instead of just being a feat. Hence the comparison with electric vehicles. And no, hydrogen fuel-cell for mobility won't be the future. A niche in some sectors for sure, but that's it. The efficiency is just as bad (~40%) as with combustion engines. And that's not even taking production and transport into account. Sure, it's cleaner, but the whole "hydrogen is the future for everyday use" is lobbyism from people who want to keep their current infrastructure (especially transport and production) running ...