Spec me

CaptainRAVE · 6 Jun 2018 at 14:27

I am looking to get some VR sets for my school - probably between 2-5 initially. Thinking of going Vive and then using some of the Google VR apps and some of the stuff on Steam. I guess a laptop for each set would be easiest - I guess I am asking to spec a good value laptop that I can buy to run each set. Any other equipment needed?

Thanks in advance!

CaptainRAVE · 6 Jun 2018 at 15:30

Slam said:
I think we need more information to make proper recommendations.

What applications do the teachers intend to run? Eg Google Expeditions?

Is the plan to do learning as a whole class group or take just a few pupils out of the classroom at a time?

What age range are the pupils?

Google Expeditions would be great, Tilt brush, Sharecare VR if I can get it. Not sure what other educational stuff is out there.

Probably 11-18 with the Vive.

Initially just a few pupils out of the class.

CaptainRAVE · 6 Jun 2018 at 18:52

melmac said:
For the amount of money you are going to spend on 4/5 Laptops and Vives, you would probably get 15-10 Oculus Go's and without all the hassle of cables etc.

Interesting! Are they any good? What do they connect to?

CaptainRAVE · 6 Jun 2018 at 19:20

I will take a look, thanks for the link!

CaptainRAVE · 7 Jun 2018 at 08:54

Can the Oculus Go run Tilt brush or a similar app? I guess with the Go you are limited to their app store and can't access Steam?

CaptainRAVE · 7 Jun 2018 at 16:01

ArmitageShanks said:
Oculus Go also only allows 3 degrees of freedom i.e. you can look around but you can't actually move physically within the virtual space, relying on virtual locomotion mechanics instead.

For a full VR experience you really want a PC-based solution, although this does typically come with a hefty performance requirement which most non-gaming laptops will simply not cope with.

While the Vive is certainly ideal, I suspect the Windowed Mixed Reality headsets might be more suitable, portable, and affordable for this use case.

Would a laptop like this be good enough for Vive? https://www.overclockers.co.uk/msi-...-intel-i5-7300hq-gaming-laptop-lt-26s-ms.html

CaptainRAVE · 15 Jun 2018 at 11:35

ale bro said:
i would go for desktop over a laptop because laptops are expensive and slow - for the same budget a desktop will give you better performance in VR.

Just thinking about the portability of a desktop over a laptop. I agree though, performance and value would be better with a desktop.

I have £6000 available initially, but won’t be in a position to purchase until next spring. So I guess hardware offerings might change by then.