Up until just now, like today, it seemed as though the humble smartwatch was set to be the reigning champ of wearable technology for the foreseeable future. I say up until today because today brought an absolute boatload of virtual reality headset news. First Sony announced their very own Rift-like device, called Project Morpheus. Then Oculus announced the forthcoming availability of an updated development kit for the Oculus Rift. As if those two monumental events weren’t big enough, there is now another player on the scene. Competition is good, so they say. In any event, sorry smartwatch. You had a good run.
Introducing Sulon Technologies and their appropriately named Cortex VR headset. The hook here is that its not just a headset. It’s also a backpack that is packed to the gills with microchips and other snazzy thingamabobbers to make the headset work. As you may have surmised, you don’t need a PC or a PS4 when operating the Cortex(although it can be used with a PC.) It works entirely on its own. What does it do? There is a camera on the external casing that maps your surroundings, thus ensuring correct placement of virtual objects. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? That’s right. This thing is basically a holodeck. The screen actually uses a smartphone as its display. There is room enough to slide in just about any Android phone. It’s an odd mixture of future tech and current tech.
The company has just announced their own development kit for the Cortex, which can be ordered for around $500. The holodeck can’t get here fast enough.
