Occipital, a San Francisco-based AR and VR startup, just unveiled its Bridge Virtual Reality headset that has been created to work exclusively with iPhones.
Bridge VR Headset
According to Hot Hardware, the Bridge VR headset packs in both 6DoF depth of field positionally-tracked virtual reality and mixed reality technologies. The device is capable of expanding the iPhone's capabilities significantly for mixed reality applications, coming with various camera enhancements built-in.
According to Occipital, the very reason they called their VR gadget "Bridge" is the fact that the device acts like a bridge between reality and fantasy. The Bridge VR headset allows virtual characters entering our world and interacting with our environment.
The gadget offers a realistic VR immersion experience as if the virtual reality characters were really there. The Bridge VR headset also allows its users to immerse in a virtual world, while still staying comfortably aware of their real world.
Bridge VR's Specs And Features
The headset includes inside-out 6DoF positional tracking capability and room-scale. It features a 326 PPI resolution, 60 fps refresh rate and a PMMA Optical-Grade Acrylic lens. According to Wired, the VR wearable gadget can work with iPhone 6/6s, as well as iPhone 7. It supports iOS 9 or higher.
Its software is the most impressive aspect of the Bridge VR device. The Bridge VR headset is powered by Occipital's Bridge Engine. The software is also compatible with Unity 3D that allows developers to create projects and upload them to their iPhone.
Virtual objects in Bridge mixed reality can interact with and respond to the real world. This includes lighting/shadows, physics and object occlusion. Occipital's mixed reality world includes a special has character called "Bridget." This is a little robot that provides its core functionality to developers as open source. Developers can use Bridget's components to expand its capabilities or in their own projects.
Occipital's Bridge VR headset will begin shipping in March 2017, but it can already be pre-ordered. The headset comes at a price tag of $279 USD without a sensor structure. For a bundle that include the sensor structure, the price tag is $399.
