OSVR

A New Desktop VR Viewer

This is a review of the OSVR HDK 2 from Razer. For those who have never seen that pair of acronyms, allow me to enlighten you. It stands for: Open Source Virtual Reality Hacker Development Kit 2. But I’m just going to refer to it as the OSVR. It was released in July 2016 and is nearly half the price of the two other desktop-class viewers that are in direct competition with it, namely the Oculus Rift & HTC’s VIVE. The OSVR undercuts its competitors with its jaw-droppingly low price, which is currently half that of the VIVE and a third less than the Oculus.

As its name suggests, this headset was made with the concept of open-source software in mind. For the non-software developers in the crowd, what that means is you’re not limited to only playing content that’s exclusive to your headset. Open source tech means there are no restrictions and in fact you’re encouraged to make and develop your own. It’s a pretty inspiring and democratic idea, taken from the best intentions of the information age. But I’m not a software developer - I watch porn. And what I’m going to discuss in this review is exactly this: How does the OSVR fare when it comes to watching adult content?

Comparing Specs & Capabilities

• First off, when comparing the OSVR to the Oculus and VIVE you should know that the display, resolution, refresh rate and field-of-view are identical. If anyone tells you differently, chances are they’re talking about the earlier OSVR HDK 1.
• There are, however, some differences between the OSVR and the other two devices. The most glaring of which is that the OSVR does not have built-in audio or a mic. But, then again, neither does the VIVE, so the Oculus wins that round.
• OSVR’s sensors are on par with the Oculus Rift and it has a 360-degree positional tracking, which the VIVE does not.
• The OSVR has no controllers, but can easily be paired with third-party devices.
• The last major consideration for all desktop-based viewers is the actual specs and capabilities of your desktop PC. For all intents and purposes the desktop requirements to run your OSVR are identical to what the other two devices require.

Watching Porn Scenes

Streaming

• If you want to stream easily, your best bet is to stick to sites with their own streaming apps
• The Virtual Real Network, which I’ve recently discovered and can attest to them making some of the best adult scenes on the Net today, has a made a point to advertise that their in-house player, the Virtual Real Player, is OSVR-compatible.
• There are actually other adult sites, like Pornhub and Mikandi, that have designed their own players and I have no doubt that number is going to grow. Lest people like me just stick to sites where watching porn is easy and not a chore riddled with technical hurdles.

Downloads

• You’re going to need a VR video player to watch downloaded scenes on your OSVR. I recommend Virtual Desktop. It’s a paid app from the Steam store, but it’s well worth the money. After you install it, it’s just a matter of clicking “play.”

Final Thoughts

It’s hard to argue with the facts when it comes to evaluating the OSVR. For our porn-watching purposes, you’re going to get the exact same virtual experience that the Oculus or VIVE would deliver and at a fraction of the cost. All you gotta do is get yourself a decent pair of headphones to get the binaural audio to work and you’ll be having immersive erotic experiences in no time!