INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Authors: JordanUpdate: Facebook's big developer conference came and went in early May without the Project Santa Cruz releasing into the
wild, however the week didn't end without a tease for the tetherless VR headset. Facebook CTO Mike Schroepfer revealed that the headset is
currently in the hands of third-party developers, and that the company will have "exciting updates" to share later this year. "Later this
year" likely refers to the Oculus Connect conference, which typically takes place in October. Is it then that the Project Santa Cruz
release date will be revealed It's looking like that could very well be the case. In the meantime, don't miss our hands on Project Santa
Cruz review!Read on for more on Project Santa CruzOculus isn't taking its foot off the gas when it comes to virtual reality (VR) innovations
The Facebook-owned company recently launched the standalone Oculus Go headset, and it appears to be gearing up for its next big product,
Project Santa Cruz, to release later this year.Project Santa Cruz looks to bring the experience of PC-quality virtual reality to an
untethered headset. That’s a pretty big deal for VR
While mobile virtual reality experiences like Google Daydream View and the Samsung Gear VR bring VR to the masses with smartphones, the
best-quality virtual reality remains tethered to a computer of some kind
Project Santa Cruz looks to change that.There’s some serious tech under the hood that enables for this untethered experience, like the
sensors and trackers. Project Santa Cruz boasts four wide-angle lenses that track both the controllers and your hands
It tracks everything around your head, and even some stuff behind you - which should allow for much more immersive content. Oculus has had
a long road in developing this headset, and it's actually not really a recently announced product
The company first announced it was working on an untethered headset in 2016, but it wasn’t until Oculus Connect in 2017 that Facebook CEO
Mark Zuckerberg took to the stage to show off a revised and apparently fully-functioning version of the headset.But, when can you get your
hands on the standalone headset for yourself And what should you expect it to be able to do Here’s everything you need to know about the
new Oculus Project Santa Cruz virtual reality headset.Cut to the chaseWhat is it A high-end standalone virtual reality headset from
OculusWhen is it out No firm release date yet, but Project Santa Cruz has shipped to third-party developersHow much does it cost No price
yet, but it will likely be more expensive than Oculus RiftProject Santa Cruz release date and priceUnfortunately, we still don't know the
Project Santa Cruz release date, though the good news is it appears not to be long now. The headset has already made its way to third-party
developers, Facebook's CTO revealed in May, which is a sure sign development is chugging along towards a final release. What's more,
Facebook teased we're in for "exciting updates" on Project Santa Cruz "later this year," with an Oculus Connect reveal in October seeming
Is this a guarantee the Project Santa Cruz release date is slated for late 2018 No, but it does bode well for those who want PC-tethered
quality VR without the annoyance of a wire. And what about price That’s something we don’t know yet
The also-new, also-standalone Oculus Go costs $199 in the US, while the Oculus Rift is $399. Given that Project Santa Cruz is the
company’s new flagship VR offering, it’s possible that it could simply replace the Rift at its former $499 price point. Because of all
the new tech, however, it’s also totally possible that Project Santa Cruz will be much more expensive than the Rift at launch - we’ll
just have to wait and see.Project Santa Cruz featuresProject Santa Cruz was first unveiled back in 2016, but at the time it was less refined
As you can see from the image below, it basically involved a tiny computer strapped to the back of your head
Now, all that tech has made its way into the headset itself. Perhaps the biggest new feature is inside-out tracking, which involves putting
all the sensors inside the headset rather than having to place cameras and sensors around you
That’s all thanks to the four wide-angle lenses and on-board processing, which can track your hand movements - and controller movements -
in real time. How does the headset track the controllers so accurately We’ll dive into the hardware inside the controllers in the next
section, but it essentially involves the use of tiny infrared LEDs, which is the point controlled by the camera. Those cameras can continue
to track even when the controllers are above the user’s head
This is a notable difference between this headset and Microsoft’s HoloLens design. The result of all of this tech is that magic six
degrees of freedom (6DOF), or the ability to move forward and back, side to side, and up and down in a virtual space
That’s something not all virtual reality headsets offer - especially mobile offerings like Daydream and Gear VR, which rely on smartphones
to work.A lot about Project Santa Cruz is still unknown
For starters, we don’t know the computing specs of the headset
It's basically a computer in and of itself, so it will need a processor, RAM, and storage,just like any other computer. Perhaps equally
important is battery life
Virtual reality can seriously tax a battery, but with a tethered headset that isn’t a concern
It would be surprising to see an untethered headset that can last more than a few hours, but we’ll obviously have to wait and see what
Santa Cruz has to offer.Project Santa Cruz controllersA big part of the Oculus Project Santa Cruz puzzle is the controllers, and while they
are similar to the current Touch controllers, there are a few notable differences
For starters, the controllers feature tiny infrared LEDs, which are tracked by the cameras in the headset. Apart from that, the Project
Santa Cruz controller experience remains much the same. The controllers still offer a pointer-accessible trigger button, along with a grip
That’s good news for those that are used to the existing Touch controllers, as it means that they won’t need to get acquainted with a
new layout.kjBchgvuN6kfZGTtRrgDdF.jpg#
