Virtual Reality Goes Mobile, As Oculus-Powered Gear VR Headset Now Available
"Innovator Edition" aimed at developers and tech enthusiasts now available to buy for $200.
Following its announcement in September, a developer-focused "Innovator Edition" version of the Oculus-powered Samsung Gear VR headset is now available to buy from the Samsung web store for $200.
While anyone can buy the Gear VR headset, Oculus head of mobile, Max Cohen, says the device--which requires a Note 4 to function as the screen--is not quite a mass-market proposition just yet.
"This product is intended for developers and early adopting tech enthusiasts," Cohen told GameSpot, adding, however, that he believes its launch is an important first step for mobile VR.
"What this really does [is] it shows the promise of portable VR," Cohen said.
The types of content Gear VR users will find, games and other media offerings, are more in line with demos than full experiences, Cohen explained. However, you'll start to see the content pipeline ramp up in 2015, he said.
Cohen also maintains that Gear VR will, eventually, appeal to a global audience, even if the product is first geared more towards people in the United States and Europe.
"This is going to be a worldwide product; it's just going to be a little bit of a deliberate rollout," he said. "We're rolling out a brand new store, a brand new platform, we're not trying to rush it too fast, so we're being a little bit deliberate about it. The goal is to make this as accessible as possible. Does that mean it's going to be in every country? No, but Samsung is an international company, and so we'll be working with them over the upcoming months--and years--to make sure that we get it as wide as possible."
Oculus VP of product Nate Mitchell added: "We're just taking our time and really trying to get it right in each region before we take that next step forward."
For lots more on Samsung Gear VR, check out GameSpot sister site CNET's in-depth coverage.
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