Virtual reality seems to be everywhere these days. At least, everywhere in the news as reports on the platform are now coming through multiple times a day and this is in spite of the platform not really being accessible to everyone yet. In fact, in terms of its adoption, it is a platform which is still considered to be young and nowhere near the peak that it is likely to reach within the next few years and once the choice of products becomes more varied and prices more affordable.
Of course, at the more affordable side of the spectrum (compared to the likes of the HTC Vive or Oculus Rift), there is always the Samsung Gear VR. The latest version of which became available towards the close of last year as a ‘consumer version’ and priced at a respectable $99. Since its release, Samsung has pushed the Gear VR forward heavily thanks to the various promotions the company launched along with the release of the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, essentially offering early S7 and S7 Edge buyers the headset for free. A move which likely got the Gear VR into a considerable number of hands it might not have made it to otherwise.
Speaking of which, Oculus, who collaborate with Samsung on the Gear VR, has revealed today that last month alone saw one million people using the Gear VR. Unfortunately, the statement did not come with any hard numbers. so it is difficult to know for sure how that one million users breaks down. For instance, whether it relates to one million Gear VR consumer headsets or whether the figure relates to the consumer model as well as the predecessor models. While, it could also not directly be relevant to the headset at all and instead is a number which is more related towards the number of registered users who made use of a headset within the last month. Either way though, it is an impressive figure in its own right and however it is being counted, one million users in a single month for a platform which is not even nearly at its peak does highlight that the Gear VR, Samsung and Oculus are making an impact. Not to mention, further highlights how big this industry could become and especially considering the future VR ambitions from the likes of Samsung and Google.