Samsung Gear VR review: Is virtual reality worth your cash?

Samsung is the first company to launch a new-generation virtual reality headset, but is the Gear VR worth your money or should you wait for holograms?

Samsung's third Gear VR headset will deliver virtual reality games and films using one of the company's four latest phones.

THIS is the year virtual reality will become the new reality.

The technology, designed to make users feel like they’re surrounded by videos, photos, or interactive games, is widely tipped to go mainstream in 2016, and major technology companies hope the pundits are right.

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Microsoft will launch a developer version of its augmented reality, “holographic” headset, and HTC and PlayStation plan to release virtual reality gaming rivals this year.

But smartphone giant Samsung beat all three to launch, delivering its latest Oculus-powered headset just before the close of 2015.

Its new Gear VR is lighter, compatible with more smartphones, and delivers more content than before, but is it worth your dollars? It could depend on what phone you own.

The Gear VR unit looks like a simple device. Its plastic body weighs just 318g, and is held in place with two elasticated straps. The top strap can now be removed if you don’t want to mess up your fringe.

Inside its body are a host of sensors — an accelerometer, gyroscope, and proximity sensor — powered by a rechargeable battery. These help reduce motion delay to less than 20 milliseconds, cutting down on nausea-inducing blur.

Viewers look at their phone’s screen through two thick plastic lenses, and this headset offers thicker foam padding for comfort and to block out external light.

In addition to a slicker appearance, the newest Gear VR can use four times as many devices as before. One of the two front clips slides to one side to secure larger phones, letting this headset use a Samsung Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, Note 5, or S6 Edge+.

Virtual reality apps download automatically when you connect a phone to this headset, and the VR library has expanded considerably since its last outing.

There are more than 100 virtual reality apps in the Oculus store, from public speaking tutorials, to movie trailers that have you flying through Star Wars sets.

The Gear VR’s controls are easy to use and quick to master. You move your head to move the cursor, and tap the touch panel on the right to select an item. There’s a back button to escape an app, and holding it down brings you back to the main menu.

Even the most basic apps have the potential to amaze in this device. From my lounge chair, I visited the Louvre, watching sun shine through its glass pyramid. With a tap and two swipes, I travelled to a big-time boxing match, and then watched Coldplay in their practice room.

There are some curious additions to the virtual reality app store too.

Samsung’s Internet for VR beta app lets you open browser tabs around you, and surf the web inside the headset. It feels incredibly strange to enter a password by moving your head, and I’m not convinced virtual Facebook was any better than in real life.

You can also watch Netflix inside this headpiece, though it simply places you inside a virtual theatre while the shows appear up front.

New fit ... The clip at the front of the Samsung Gear VR accommodates larger phones.

With the right app, it’s easy to get lost inside this headset, and lose track of time. Samsung recommends you break every 30 minutes, and it’s wise. Even with minimal lag, the Gear VR can cause motion sickness after long sessions.

You will also notice this virtual reality doesn’t look completely real — the pixels are more obvious than when just looking at a phone screen. Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ users get a slightly better field of view in this headset, and a black interior would have been less distracting.

It’s also worth noting you cannot wear spectacles inside the Gear VR, though a focus wheel atop the unit goes a long way to accommodating the near-sighted, and the Gear VR will quickly drain your phone’s battery.

But it’s biggest deal breaker is its limited compatibility. If you already own one of Samsung’s flagship phones, this $159 investment is close to a no-brainer. If not, you’re looking at more than $1000 for the experience.

Galaxy owners who do invest in Samsung’s take on virtual reality are unlikely to be disappointed. And Paris looks lovely from the couch.

Samsung Gear VR

Samsung / 4/5 / $159 / samsung.com/au