You have a lot of options when it comes to broadcasting live video to the Internet. Google, Amazon, Facebook, and others want your content in their ecosystems. But you typically have to choose one because of bandwidth and processing limitations — unless you use Restream.io. Above: Restream.io cofounder Alexander Khuda. Image Credit: Restream.io In 2015, Alexander Khuda cofounded...
Author: ssvar
The tantalizing promise of augmented reality games
CES 2017, the big tech trade show in Las Vegas last week, was loaded with augmented reality smartglasses, which layer digital animations and information on top of the real world. They promise us wonderful connections between the digital and physical worlds, and games where we can chase cartoon characters through our own furniture. Mainstream venture...
Will Japanese VR sex simulation with dolls fly in the U.S.?
Simulated sex in virtual reality is popular both in the U.S. and Japan. And one Japanese company is hoping that its adult VR game will make the leap into the West. Let’s Play With Nanai is one of those weird young girlfriend erotic simulations where you can have VR sex on the Oculus Rift or...
‘Manastorm: Champions of G’nar’ Feels Like ‘Magic: The Gathering’ In Life-Sized VR
At this point in VR’s lifecycle we’ve seen a few different takes on the classic card-based gameplay format. Dragon Front was one of the first, from High Voltage, but it’s exclusive to the Rift and Gear VR’s Oculus Home platform. We’ve also got the likes of Ascension VR, which takes an existing game and adapts...
Exclusive: OTOY Is Bringing Lightfield Baking And More To Its Unity Integration
The road to photorealistic VR is long, but OTOY is helping to shorten it with the integration of its technology into the free version of Unity. The company announced last month that its Octane Renderer would be coming to the world’s most popular game development engine, allowing users to import its ORBX file format to...
‘Envelop VR Has Closed’: Virtual Reality Productivity App Shuts Down
In an understated message on its website, the virtual reality productivity application, Envelop VR, today announced that it is permanently closed. “Envelop VR has closed” is now the only thing interested parties will find on the website, along with an email address to reach out with questions. No further information about the closure was given and...
8i Appoints New CEO, hints at Holographic Telepresence Research in Seattle
8i is one of the most intriguing virtual reality companies operating today, but for the past several months it has also been one of the most quiet. The New Zealend-based company is working to pioneer new methodologies for creating volumetrically captured, photorealistic holographic humans. Today, the company peeking its head above water just long enough to...
ResearchVR Episode 29: Did Somebody Say Hand Interaction? Round-table With Alex Colgan
This week on ResearchVR we dig deep into Leap Motion with Alex Colgan, lead writer at the startup. This week’s episode is a little unusual. Considering Upload’s recent hands-on session with TPCAST and the ResearchVR episode on challenges of wireless VR, we start our discussion with a quick recap on this topic. Then we move on to...
Hands-on: Ximmerse Offers Mobile VR Tracking Starting At $99
By the time I reached my Ximmerse appointment at CES this year, I’d already been taught a lesson in skepticism. Kwik VR’s wireless add-on kit had underwhelmed me, and we’d seen one disappointing standalone demo from Intel. I won’t lie: I wasn’t expecting much from this meeting either, but the Chinese company’s tech actually ended...
Up Close With Sennheiser’s $1,700 VR Microphone
Here’s a close look at Sennheiser’s new AMBEO VR microphone in all its glory as demonstrated at last week’s CES 2017 in Las Vegas. It’s the company’s first step into VR audio and it’s just received wide release for a cool $1700. One of the most respected audio companies worldwide, Sennheiser is best known for its...
