VR brain training Enhance
Enhance by Virtuleap works with VR cognitive training for individuals and organizations. The company suggest to adjust healthy lifestyle patterns and include a 10-minute brain workout into your daily routine. It is assumed that the quality of cognitive processes will improve substantially as virtual reality has the potential to impact cognition and executive functioning in the brain positively. The application consists of the library of brain training games. A VR user can train memory, problem-solving skills, spatial orientation and motor control.
- A daily virtual workout in an HMD suggested by Virtulep:
- React when it is necessary to shift attention from one task to another;
- Memory Wall to work with working memory and spatial recall skills;
- Hide & Seek to localize the source of a sound in the immediate environment;
- Pizza Builder to train planning skills;
- Balance for motor control skills.
All the data on VR users’ performance is stored and is available in the form of user-friendly reports and charts. To guide the training process, Virtuleap created a virtual assistant PICO, a personal brain trainer.
Comparing Enhance with 2D screen-based brain training apps such as Elevate, Luminosity, it is essential to emphasize the benefits the virtual technology brings. The immersive digital experience assists in shaping and transforming not only the brain but how we live and experience the real world. Virtual reality allows activating the mind the way no other means can do.
The organization can enjoy the increase in the cognitive performance of the whole team when they choose to introduce Enhance. Virtuleap offers an excellent opportunity to enhance a human performance program and equip your employees with the tool that helps to understand better, test and train their cognitive capabilities.
The COVID -19 pandemic and VR market: a concise look at the forecast
How does the COVID-19 pandemic affect the VR industry? IDC and Strategy analytics mark the negative short-term impact on VR revenues. IDC reports that global spending on the development of VR technologies has decreased in 2020 compared to a similar forecast compared before the coronavirus pandemic. So, the worldwide AR/VR spending will fall to $10,7 billion. But IDC finds the long-term outlook still promising with a five-year compound annual growth rate in AR/VR spending of 76.9% worldwide in 2019–2024 to reach $136.9 billion by 2024.
Strategy Analytics expects AR/VR hardware market to find a role in the “new normal”. With the identified key factors which will lead to long-term growth, Strategy Analytics forecasts XR hardware market to reach $27 Billion by 2025.
And what is the future for VR for enterprises? Significant spending in 2020 is expected in training reaching up to $1.3 billion for virtual reality according to IDC forecast. VR games will continue to lead the VR consumer market with spending up to $3.0 billion, followed VR feature viewing with $1.2 billion spendings.
VR HMD statistics insight
More and more information is floating around the Internet concerning Oculus further product line extension. So far, Facebook has not provided any official statements or announcements regarding Quest 2.0. Still, the appearance of new pictures online marks the stage when Oculus Oculus is preparing the community for the introduction of a new product. In this situation, we suggest to consider VR headsets worldwide and analyze the Oculus product position in the overall industry sales.
First of all, what is important to mention here is the VR market size. According to Statista report at the end of 2019, the sales of VR hardware amounted to 4,7 million units. The market leader is still Sony with its PlayStation VR amounting to 2,2 million. The second goes Oculus with its products Oculus Go, Quest and Rift line. VR fans had been waiting for the launch of the new key player Valve index, and luckily it made its breakthrough in the Q2, 2019. As we’ve managed to find the data concerning the sales in Q4,2019, this VR kit shows stable growth, reaching to 103K units sales. We’ve been expecting higher sales but the HMD price is high, with the price tag more than 1 800 USD at amazon, targeting at a high-end segment. Still, its technical specifications allow competing with the established niche leader HTC. Coronavirus pandemic made global spending on the development of VR technologies decrease in 2020 compared to a similar forecast compared before the coronavirus pandemic according to the IDC report. Still, we need to keep an eye on Valve app Half-Life: Alyx and its impact on Valve Index VR kit sales in the long run. At this moment we can see Oculus Quest is the leading product from all Oculus product lines. Its simplicity and insight tracking with beyond-room scale appealed to a mass market, and it is reflected in its sales for Q4,2019 amounting to 317K units.
‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’ is going to be available at one VR headset this fall
VR technology continues to penetrate the market. One of the examples is ‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’ project that was not initially planned for immersive experience back in October 2019. The company stays attuned to their customers’ feedback. They’re preparing to pull it off for launch this fall. Microsoft Flight Simulator is going to support HP reverb G2 VR kit, a result of the joint work of Microsoft, Valve, and HP. Its release date is set for this fall 2020. Now it is possible to pre-order the headset at the price of $600.
As for the ‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’, the VR version will be free for those who own the game. In the future, the company is planning to bring the simulator to other VR devices.
‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’ is feature-packed at the moment with AI, photogrammetry, real-time weather and air traffic data, and many other functionalities. It is a perfect fit for VR, so adding the immersive technology only enhances the simulation effectiveness.
Virtual Reality continues paving the way for broad usage in our everyday lives. Microsoft is releasing a game in VR this fall. But it shows that even if immersive technologies do not come at the initial stage of ‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’ development, VR benefits and immersive experiences still prove to be worthy of trying. Let’s wait for the first game reviews and the time when it is available for the mass-market HMDs.
KAT WALK C hits more than $1,5 million in funding
Have you ever tripped into the real-life objects while you are in the middle of a VR scene? KAT WALK C puts an end to this issue. A low-friction parabola and equally slippy footwear, making for a slick surface that simulates walking while in VR is compact and intended for at-home usage. A rear-mounted vertical harness allows you to stand and crouch at the same time keeps you in place while running, walking, strafing. A VR user is going to experience the whole world of artificial locomotion. KAT VR launched an official Kickstarter campaign back in June. Within a day, the company managed to raise over $1 million in funding, and recently they’ve ended the campaign by reaching $ 1,66 million in funding. What does this show? It indicates the increase of public interest in VR. At the same time, it is a sign of dedication to further development of this industry.
