Virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift and Sony’s Project Morpheus have their own built-in displays, which is great as this means that the makers of the headsets have more control over their hardware. It also makes it more expensive, which is why we’ve seen companies such as Samsung, Google, and even Carl Zeiss unveil inexpensive alternatives.
These alternatives are cheaper because they require users to use their own smartphone as the display, meaning that you’re essentially purchasing a shell, with the bulk of the processing power coming from your phone. Well Archos wants in on the fun because they have recently unveiled their own virtual reality offering, the Archos VR Glasses.
However unlike the competition (save for Google’s Project Cardboard), the VR Glasses is much cheaper at $30. It will also use a the wearer’s smartphone as its display, with Archos stating that a device with a 5-inch Full HD display with a quad-core processor would be optimal, although it will play nicely with devices as big as 6-inches.
There will be accompanying apps that users can choose from, with Archos boasting more than 100 Virtual Reality apps at the moment. It is expected to be made available in November via Archos’ website and their retailers, so if you want an inexpensive way to take virtual reality for a spin, this could be it.
Filed in . Read more about Archos, Virtual Reality (VR) and Wearable Tech.