Virtual Reality

Home VR is going to hit the mainstream big time this decade, and it'll be devices like this that get it over the line. Panasonic has demonstrated a set of lightweight, compact, ultra high-def VR goggles that actually look good.

A study is suggesting VR may inhibit effective formation of visual memories, and in some contexts could result in poor educational results. The study hypothesizes the enhanced cognitive demands of VR potentially disrupt visual memory formation.

Interactive 3D images that appear to float in the air, above a table that a group of people can stand around without needing any special headsets or glasses: that's what Australian company Voxon Photonics has built with its US$10,000 VX1 table.

Although VR tech may allow users to see and hear computer-generated environments, the extent to which people can feel those worlds is still quite limited. That could be about to change, though, thanks to what's being called an "epidermal VR" system.

Autron VR has just launched in Melbourne, Australia, with a range of shooting games, escape rooms and other VR experiences, all tailored for groups. New Atlas went hands on to check it out – and may have ruined regular escape rooms for ourselves.

In order for AR systems to recognize locations from a user's ground-level perspective, they first have to be "trained" using ground-level images of those same places. Sturfee's City AR system, however, works quicker by utilizing satellite photos.

If you're going to be using a "smart" eyewear device for long periods of time, then it had better be light and unobtrusive. Well, ThirdEye's X2 Glasses may fit the bill, as they're said to be the world's smallest mixed reality glasses.

Virtual reality headsets are increasingly being put to use at theme parks, in setups that move around in accordance to what wearers are experiencing in the VR world. A new headset is designed to make the experience more efficient and more hygienic.

If you're performing tasks such as design work, it's important that you be able to see the difference in textures of materials. Boasting what its makers call human-eye resolution, the Varjo VR-2 headset is designed with such applications in mind.

When you think of Lenovo, probably the first thing that comes to mind is computers. Last weekend at the VR/AR Global Summit, however, the company displayed its latest foray into the world of augmented reality headsets – the ThinkReality A6.

The Musée du Louvre in Paris has opened a new exhibition celebrating the life and work of Leonardo da Vinci, and the retrospective will play host to the museum's first virtual reality experience, which brings the story of the Mona Lisa to life.

Can a drug-induced psychedelic experience be replicated by virtual reality? Or, can VR induce its own unique altered state of consciousness?