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"We don't always use the cameras," said Oculus co-founder Palmer

Aug. 10, 2017 by Devin Jones

"We don't always use the cameras," said Oculus co-founder Palmer Luckey, referring to the small, lightweight camera systems that we had, but which are the best we've had in a while. "But we look for ways to use them, and that's a really important part of what we're trying to achieve with the Vive." (The Vive is the Oculus' most powerful headset yet—it's also the first consumer-ready headset capable of working with all three VR headsets combined, and it's also the most powerful Rift headset to date.)

According to a VR tech blog, Oculus's virtual assistant will have to be trained to respond to the presence or absence of the camera and sensors. It'll also have to know when the headset won't move, when the headset won't be moving, and whether the camera is still active or off. "If you use the camera, you're using the controller and it's already moving," Luckey said. "You're not using the headset and it isn't doing anything, and that's why you have to use it the right way. That's the whole challenge."

To be sure, the Vive's sensors aren't perfect. They can't use real-time video, or even the sort of dynamic and motion-capture-tracking technology that the Oculus Rift uses. "It's going to take time to do that," Luckey said. Oculus will have to do a better job at tracking motion, and even then it may not be able to make use of the 360 degree panorama, which can be tricky since the Rift's camera has such a limited range. The VR headset will also have to be less comfortable than it is—the Rift's front, middle and rear cameras are all too comfortable, and the headset's front facing camera is too wide.

But in theory, we can make use of the new sensors and technology without having to use a real-time, 360-degree panorama. It's a tiny bit more expensive than a traditional stereoscopic 3D headset. It will be available in a few months, but there will also be a large-scale rollout, which will involve buying the Rift and bringing it to a mass market, which could happen in the first quarter of 2018.

The headset will also have to be fully compatible, which requires a minimum of two external monitors. Oculus will also have to keep in mind that the VR headset requires a lot of