If you’re looking for the best rendering and visual experience for virtual reality (VR), that would still come via a PC-powered system, like on the HTC Vive. The downside is that you’re going to have to spend a lot more on PC-powered VR than on regular smartphone-powered VR systems. But the ZEISS VR ONE Connect aims to bridge this gap with a cheaper solution.
The ZEISS VR ONE Connect still uses a smartphone as your main visual portal for VR, but the images are rendered on a PC. The system uses a USB cable (hopefully a long one, at that), and an app to manage the rendering being sent to your phone for viewing. We’d recommend using a 2017 phone at that, to make sure your visuals are acceptable.
The ZEISS VR ONE Connect also pairs with two 3DoF (three-degrees-of-separation) inertial motion sensing controllers for your in-VR controls, paired with the motion data from your smartphone. The positional tracking is a bit limited, though, so you’ll be confined to a single position in the VR render.
The ZEISS VR ONE Connect will retail for USD$199 with the ZEISS ONE VR headset, or USD$129 just for the kit to be used with another VR headset. The problem is that it probably can’t be used with the Samsung Gear VR, since that system already utilizes the USB port on your phone.
SOURCE: ZEISS
