HeadTracker
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Sony's HMZ-T1 headset gets a DIY VR upgrade (video)
Sony's new HMZ-T1 headset may look like the virtual reality headset you always dreamed of back in the 1990s, but it's not -- at least, not out of the box. It's simply a wearable 3D display, with none of the head-tracking capabilities necessary for a truly immersive experience. Of course, that little drawback isn't going to stop the more DIY-minded individuals among us, one of whom has now paired the headset with a TrackIR 5 head-tracking device and demonstrated the results on YouTube. Check out some VR-ified World of Warcraft and Skyrim after the break.
Apple applies for head tracking patent, Johnny Chung Lee says 'you're welcome'
Pablo Picasso is quoted as saying, "good artists copy and great artists steal." Good thing the quoter was Steve Jobs then, because the latest Apple patent application to go public looks very much like something Johnny Chung Lee pieced together with a Wiimote way back in 2007. Filed for in June 2008, the new patent is for a system tracking the location of the user's head and responding to his movements in a fashion that should generate a realistic three-dimensional viewing experience sans those pesky glasses. We've got video of Johnny's setup after the break, and as he himself describes it, the idea behind a "desktop VR" is to unbound imagery from the screen surface and to make your monitor or TV act like a window unto whatever is being displayed. That means Apple will need a new branding scheme should this application turn into a real product -- iWindow just might be the least likely product name in the history of consumer electronics.
