How many years do we need to be told VR is the future before it actually takes off?
Virtual reality has been close to mainstream adoption for decades, yet it remains a niche technology. While promising developments and incremental improvements continue, the game-changing app that will propel VR into every home remains elusive despite the efforts of tech giants like Meta, Google, and Apple.
History is littered with VR failures, from the early Nintendo Virtual Boy to the pricey Apple Vision Pro, but the promise of immersive digital worlds keeps companies investing billions. The stakes are high, as whoever unlocks mass-market VR will shape the future of the user experience across gaming, fitness, productivity, and beyond.
I’m very sure that VR will be an amazing and immersive technology. I was only about a month a way from buying a Quest headset myself, when Meta bought them out, and I dropped that idea very quickly. I’ve clung onto my 3D TV because I’ve always enjoyed watching movies in 3D.
But, for me, VR really needs two things to happen:
- Pricing needs to be affordable (not Apple $3,500).
- It needs some killer apps that take it to the next level and are truly immersive and compelling to use (the apps need to pull users in).
I don’t even think it is about having the very highest of resolutions, as the 3D stereo effect will still reel people in. And there are some who seem to experience problems wearing VR headsets for longer periods, and we probably need to understand why that is.
