4 ms·

I really believe in VR. I despise Facebook and advertising. We need an alternative.

by lwhi 5y ago

driverdan 5y ago
There are a bunch of other VR headsets. Buy a different one.
- shafyy 5y ago
  There is no real alternative to the Quest, unfortunately.
  - rijoja 5y ago
    Hopefully some Chinese company will manufacture a similar system somewhat compatible with android. WebXR exists however that is probably not as performant however.
- numpad0 5y ago
  That only works for someone belongs to hard anti-Facebook cluster like I am. The situation is similar to hobby drones, the alternatives to problematic ones are years behind for higher prices.
  - driverdan 5y ago
    They aren't years behind but are more expensive since they arne't being subsidized to eat up your data.
    - selfhoster11 5y ago
      Do you really think that data from the VR headset is worth $300 (or more)? I'm skeptical that it's worth that much unless they are jacked in every waking moment.
    - Mindwipe 5y ago
      > They aren't years behind but are more expensive since they arne't being subsidized to eat up your data. They are years behind. FB now has a significant patent library advantage, and nobody is even making standalone headsets with a strong software library.
- lwhi 5y ago
  There are a bunch of other independent social networks — join another one. There are a bunch of other independent online retailers — buy from another one. There are a bunch of other independent food delivery services — order from another one. -- When you really think about it, it's not really true though. Monopolies reduce choice.
neogodless 5y ago
https://www.cnet.com/news/best-vr-headsets-for-2021/ https://www.cnet.com/news/best-vr-headsets-for-2021/ Oculus Quest is the least expensive, competitive, standalone headset. Least expensive option often pairs with ad-supported. We bought a Quest before Facebook bought Oculus, and we're very disappointed with that turn of events. I think most people would be better off opting out of VR until there's a non-Facebook standalone headset under $400 (like the original Quest once was.) EDIT: Correction - we did not buy the Quest before it existed. We bought it a bit before the announcement that you'd eventually need to use a Facebook account with it.
- LeonenTheDK 5y ago
  I don't think the Quest existed before the Facebook purchase. The Quest was announced in 2018 but Facebook made the purchase in 2014. Unless you mean before the Facebook login was forced upon Oculus users.
  - neogodless 5y ago
    Well damn. That flew under my radar. Or I put up some mental blocks because our family really wanted one while some from the older generation could still experience it. Now that I think back, I think we knew that, but it was still an "Oculus" account at the time, before the "Facebook account" requirement was announced. That seems to have been announced August of 2020... just weeks after we bought our Quest.
    - LeonenTheDK 5y ago
      Honestly I didn't think the purchase was until like, 2017. I'm just as surprised. It kills me that Facebook owns the entry level and stand alone market as well (said as an Index owner). (in response to the edit) I can see that, my first VR headset was the CV1 Rift and my logic at the time was similar. Sure Facebook owned it but everything seemed to be still fairly separated. None of what happened after was particularly surprising.

I really believe in VR. I despise Facebook and advertising. We need an alternative.

by lwhi 5y ago

I really believe in VR. I despise Facebook and advertising. We need an alternative.

driverdan 5y ago

There are a bunch of other VR headsets. Buy a different one.

shafyy 5y ago
There is no real alternative to the Quest, unfortunately.
- rijoja 5y ago
  Hopefully some Chinese company will manufacture a similar system somewhat compatible with android. WebXR exists however that is probably not as performant however.
numpad0 5y ago
That only works for someone belongs to hard anti-Facebook cluster like I am. The situation is similar to hobby drones, the alternatives to problematic ones are years behind for higher prices.
- driverdan 5y ago
  They aren't years behind but are more expensive since they arne't being subsidized to eat up your data.
  - selfhoster11 5y ago
    Do you really think that data from the VR headset is worth $300 (or more)? I'm skeptical that it's worth that much unless they are jacked in every waking moment.
  - Mindwipe 5y ago
    > They aren't years behind but are more expensive since they arne't being subsidized to eat up your data. They are years behind. FB now has a significant patent library advantage, and nobody is even making standalone headsets with a strong software library.
lwhi 5y ago
There are a bunch of other independent social networks — join another one. There are a bunch of other independent online retailers — buy from another one. There are a bunch of other independent food delivery services — order from another one. -- When you really think about it, it's not really true though. Monopolies reduce choice.

neogodless 5y ago

https://www.cnet.com/news/best-vr-headsets-for-2021/ https://www.cnet.com/news/best-vr-headsets-for-2021/ Oculus Quest is the least expensive, competitive, standalone headset. Least expensive option often pairs with ad-supported. We bought a Quest before Facebook bought Oculus, and we're very disappointed with that turn of events. I think most people would be better off opting out of VR until there's a non-Facebook standalone headset under $400 (like the original Quest once was.) EDIT: Correction - we did not buy the Quest before it existed. We bought it a bit before the announcement that you'd eventually need to use a Facebook account with it.

LeonenTheDK 5y ago
I don't think the Quest existed before the Facebook purchase. The Quest was announced in 2018 but Facebook made the purchase in 2014. Unless you mean before the Facebook login was forced upon Oculus users.
- neogodless 5y ago
  Well damn. That flew under my radar. Or I put up some mental blocks because our family really wanted one while some from the older generation could still experience it. Now that I think back, I think we knew that, but it was still an "Oculus" account at the time, before the "Facebook account" requirement was announced. That seems to have been announced August of 2020... just weeks after we bought our Quest.
  - LeonenTheDK 5y ago
    Honestly I didn't think the purchase was until like, 2017. I'm just as surprised. It kills me that Facebook owns the entry level and stand alone market as well (said as an Index owner). (in response to the edit) I can see that, my first VR headset was the CV1 Rift and my logic at the time was similar. Sure Facebook owned it but everything seemed to be still fairly separated. None of what happened after was particularly surprising.