Oculus Rift

The Oculus Rift is a powerful, PC-tethered VR headset that's even more appealing now thanks a lower price and the inclusion of Oculus Touch motion controllers.

Oculus Rift isn't the all-encompassing 'future of entertainment' some may have expected, but we're optimistic that it might earn that title in the coming years.

After years of dev kits and prototypes and behind-closed-door demos, the Oculus Rift is finally ready for consumers. Welcome to VR.

The Oculus Rift is lightweight and comfortable to wear, and little extras like built-in headphones are a great touch. It boasts a high-resolution display, amazingly accurate tracking and a large library of VR games not available on other platforms. Essentially, it hits the sweet VR sweet spot; not too expensive, but still provides a high-end experience.

After spending many hours in virtual reality, I believe the launch of the Oculus Rift is the start of a new era. The first time you put it on is the closest thing to real magic you’re likely to experience anytime soon. It’s true that VR has a lot of maturing to do, but this amazing headset is a front-row seat to watch gaming history being made. Its current lack of motion controllers means these enticing experiences are mostly “look, don’t touch,” but even though it can’t live up to its full potential quite yet, the ability to so easily immerse ourselves in a game world or other virtual environment is worth every penny.

When the Oculus Rift first launched, it fell behind the HTC Vive for two crucial reasons: there were no motion controls and it couldn’t handle room scaling.

Which is the better option for you depends on your needs – if you want to experience VR casually, Google’s Daydream VR may be a better option for you. The experience is good, and as the library expands and more Daydream compatible phones are released in the coming months, the platform will pick up pace. However, if you’re a diehard gamer and want to experience the very best of virtual reality, we’d recommend going for the HTC Vive or Oculus Rift. It’s worth checking up on minimum specs for each headset before buying one though, as upgrading your PC/buying a new PC will be an extra expense on top of an already expensive headset.