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you realize every single thing you said would have been true when talking about the first smartphones? The iPhone in 2007 was not a good general computing devi

you realize every single thing you said would have been true when talking about the first smartphones? The iPhone in 2007 was not a good general computing device, and people were made fun of for looking like dorks because they stared constantly at their screens. And yet here we are, in a future where smartphones diligently satisfy all of consumer's needs and zoning out by looking at your black slab is normalized.

rospaya 4y ago
We stared at our screens long before 2007, but started doing it more when big screen smartphones became popular. VR adoption is negligible - less than 10 million devices were sold last year, there's no precedent or proof the masses want it.
- AstixAndBelix 4y ago
  You didn't stare at your computer while you were on a date in a coffee shop or while you were hiking in the woods. Also there is a precedent: decade of successful science fiction that has made people drool about the thought of VR
acdha 4y ago
I don’t think the comparison makes the point you’re trying for: iPhones became part of people’s lives quickly – I remember executives suddenly pushing for mobile websites – and people who had them used them heavily & inspired other people to buy them. VR costs more and has been on the opposite trajectory: the only thing you ever hear people be excited by are a handful of games (and maybe VRChat for a few communities) and the way it requires dedicated space & excludes other people means that even the enthusiasts I know don’t really use it much. I think decades of sci-fi created some demand but I think it’s still in the Palm Pilot era, especially for the number of devices purchased by people who thought they’d use them more.
lancesells 4y ago
There's a pretty big difference. The iPhone came out and was a success the first year and just grew from there. The Oculus has been out since ~2016 or so. I don't think it's a rocketship ready to take off with the right hardware or software. I'm sure there's profit to be made, better days to come, etc., but it's not going to be a smartphone.
- cableshaft 4y ago
  The Oculus Quest 2 released at the same time as Xbox Series S/X and PS5. It's sold 15 million units, while the Xbox has sold 20 million and the PS5 has sold 30 million. While it's less than those two, it's still a very respectable number and incredibly high considering it doesn't have any of the major studios releasing their AAA games on it.
  - peab 4y ago
    How accurate are these numbers? That's actually more than I expected - respectable and incredibly high, I agree
    - cableshaft 4y ago
      It seems to be based mostly on an analyst company's announcement back in June of 2022, and doesn't look like Meta has released actual numbers. But there's corroborating data that suggests those numbers could be fairly accurate, such as Qualcomm saying way back in November 2021 that they shipped 10 million units of the chips that power the Quest 2[2]. And also seems to be the only number that's being reported anywhere. [1]: https://80.lv/articles/meta-s-quest-2-has-reportedly-sold-nearly-15-million-units/ https://80.lv/articles/meta-s-quest-2-has-reportedly-sold-ne... [2]: https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/16/22785469/meta-oculus-quest-2-10-million-units-sold-qualcomm-xr2 https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/16/22785469/meta-oculus-que...

rospaya 4y ago

We stared at our screens long before 2007, but started doing it more when big screen smartphones became popular. VR adoption is negligible - less than 10 million devices were sold last year, there's no precedent or proof the masses want it.

AstixAndBelix 4y ago
You didn't stare at your computer while you were on a date in a coffee shop or while you were hiking in the woods. Also there is a precedent: decade of successful science fiction that has made people drool about the thought of VR

acdha 4y ago

I don’t think the comparison makes the point you’re trying for: iPhones became part of people’s lives quickly – I remember executives suddenly pushing for mobile websites – and people who had them used them heavily & inspired other people to buy them. VR costs more and has been on the opposite trajectory: the only thing you ever hear people be excited by are a handful of games (and maybe VRChat for a few communities) and the way it requires dedicated space & excludes other people means that even the enthusiasts I know don’t really use it much. I think decades of sci-fi created some demand but I think it’s still in the Palm Pilot era, especially for the number of devices purchased by people who thought they’d use them more.

lancesells 4y ago

There's a pretty big difference. The iPhone came out and was a success the first year and just grew from there. The Oculus has been out since ~2016 or so. I don't think it's a rocketship ready to take off with the right hardware or software. I'm sure there's profit to be made, better days to come, etc., but it's not going to be a smartphone.

cableshaft 4y ago
The Oculus Quest 2 released at the same time as Xbox Series S/X and PS5. It's sold 15 million units, while the Xbox has sold 20 million and the PS5 has sold 30 million. While it's less than those two, it's still a very respectable number and incredibly high considering it doesn't have any of the major studios releasing their AAA games on it.
- peab 4y ago
  How accurate are these numbers? That's actually more than I expected - respectable and incredibly high, I agree
  - cableshaft 4y ago
    It seems to be based mostly on an analyst company's announcement back in June of 2022, and doesn't look like Meta has released actual numbers. But there's corroborating data that suggests those numbers could be fairly accurate, such as Qualcomm saying way back in November 2021 that they shipped 10 million units of the chips that power the Quest 2[2]. And also seems to be the only number that's being reported anywhere. [1]: https://80.lv/articles/meta-s-quest-2-has-reportedly-sold-nearly-15-million-units/ https://80.lv/articles/meta-s-quest-2-has-reportedly-sold-ne... [2]: https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/16/22785469/meta-oculus-quest-2-10-million-units-sold-qualcomm-xr2 https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/16/22785469/meta-oculus-que...