Over the past couple of years, we’ve been told time and again that virtual reality hardware for consumer audiences is just on the horizon — and now we’re starting to see the fruits of that labor. Samsung has opened pre-orders for the consumer version of its Gear VR headset.
This new iteration of the device has been designed for use with Samsung’s current crop of smartphones; the Galaxy Note 5, the Galaxy S6 Edge+, the Galaxy S6, and the Galaxy S6 Edge. At a price of $99, it’s one of the most budget-friendly option for anyone looking to dip their toe in the VR pool — as long as you already have the Samsung phone.
The device has been designed in collaboration with Oculus, the company that helped encourage the current wave of VR interest with its groundbreaking work on the Rift. Samsung’s Peter Koo officially announced the headset at the Oculus Connect 2 keynote back in September of this year.
Samsung claims that the consumer version of its Gear VR headset is 19 percent lighter than the Innovator Edition that was distributed in 2014. User comfort can be a make-or-break factor in a device that’s intended to be worn on the user’s head, so keeping the weight light at just 318 grams bodes well for its success in that regard.
However, it’s becoming increasingly obvious that content is the key to many companies’ strategy for cornering the VR market. Samsung recently announced a partnership with WWE to produce experiences for use with VR hardware, adding to a selection of entertainment available to Gear VR users that already includes Netflix and the Oculus Video service.
The Gear VR is now available for pre-order from Amazon, Best Buy, and directly from Samsung. The device costs $99, and hardware is anticipated to start shipping on November 20.
The absolutely absurd idea of putting a touchscreen display on a mouse isn't exactly new. Turtle Beach already did it with its Command Series MC7, which features a 2.25-inch control screen. But apparently, even that wasn't ridiculous enough for Arctic Fox Technologies. Its new Super Mouse looks like someone took the chunky old Atari ST mouse, slapped a touchscreen and scroll wheel on it, and called it an upgrade.
The result is a rather unusual-looking mouse that is now on Kickstarter, starting at $199. And as ridiculous as it looks, some of its features are genuinely intriguing.
Apple is less than a day away from launching its highly anticipated OLED MacBook Pro with a touch-sensitive screen. But it appears that the upgrade is going to cost a pretty penny. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is reportedly eyeing a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch MacBook Pro, while the 16-inch version could start at $3,399 in the US.
"At $2,899, the 14-inch model would mark the highest starting price for a new MacBook Pro model, surpassing the $2,799 Apple charged for a 17-inch version introduced in 2006," says the report. The report claims that Apple is targeting a minimum price hike of $400 for its upcoming redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
I've spent a good amount of time digging into the spec sheet of the new M6 MacBook Pro (14-inch), and for all intents and purposes, this is a classic Apple "chip and connectivity" refresh. It's not a full redesign. The chassis, Liquid Retina XDR panel, speakers, ports, and battery, all of them carry over unchanged.
However, the M6 brings more cores, stronger on-device AI, higher memory bandwidth on the larger configs, and modern wireless. Here’s the practical rundown of what actually improved, and whether those gains are worth your money.