Is Your House Virtual Reality (VR) Ready?

Does Virtual Reality Fit in Your Home?

Chris Plante | April 16, 2016

In our review of the HTC Vive, we praised the room-scale feature, which allows a person to walk around their real room while being inside of virtual reality. We had less flattering things to say about the setup process of installing two cameras on opposite corners of the room, pairing two wireless controllers, adjusting the headset to your head, and tethering that headset to your PC. The idea of turning one of your rooms into a holodeck is more appealing before you consider the impracticality of it all.

Charlie VR Player FOR KIDS. Source: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.intellect.club.charlie

<more at http://www.theverge.com/2016/4/16/11434788/htc-vive-room-virtual-reality-vr; related articles and links: http://www.cnet.com/news/home-for-the-holidays-with-my-family-and-virtual-reality/ (VR's biggest challenge has nothing to do with technology. Commentary: To my family, no matter what their age, VR is magic... but it takes someone to put it on their heads in the first place. December 28, 2015) and http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25260510 (Use of virtual reality gaming systems for children who are critically ill. Y. Salem and A. Elokda. J Pediatr Rehabil Med. 2014;7(3):273-6. doi: 10.3233/PRM-140296. [Abstract: Children who are critically ill are frequently viewed as "too sick" to tolerate physical activity. As a result, these children often fail to develop strength or cardiovascular endurance as compared to typically developing children. Previous reports have shown that early participation in physical activity in is safe and feasible for patients who are critically ill and may result in a shorter length of stay and improved functional outcomes. The use of the virtual reality gaming systems has become a popular form of therapy for children with disabilities and has been supported by a growing body of evidence substantiating its effectiveness with this population. The use of the virtual reality gaming systems in pediatric rehabilitation provides the children with opportunity to participate in an exercise program that is fun, enjoyable, playful, and at the same time beneficial. The integration of those systems in rehabilitation of children who are critically ill is appealing and has the potential to offer the possibility of enhancing physical activities. The lack of training studies involving children who are critically ill makes it difficult to set guidelines on the recommended physical activities and virtual reality gaming systems that is needed to confer health benefits. Several considerations should be taken into account before recommended virtual reality gaming systems as a training program for children who are critically ill. This article highlighted guidelines, limitations and challenges that need to be considered when designing exercise program using virtual reality gaming systems for critically ill children. This information is helpful given the popular use of virtual reality gaming systems in rehabilitation, particularly in children who are critically ill.])>