I have been testing VR helmets for years, but before a recent trip from London to Miami, I never took one with me on a flight – and until key things change, I probably take it no longer with me, depending on my experience.
Normally, I love my meta quest 3 – I think everyone should have one, or a meta quest 3, given how superb these VR machines are superb for their price – and after seeing Meta success stories by offering them as entertainment in flight on Lufthansa Airlines, I thought I would have a great time to fly with one too.
However, my problems started before our takeoff – in fact, they started even before they left the house.
What do I downchais?
By checking the Meta App Store, I was surprised not to find any category “approved by the flight” which would easily provide me with software recommendations. And the search for film downloads was much more a challenge than what I expected.
While the quest supports streaming platforms like Netflix, the browser (rather than on the application) reveals its faults clearly. In this form, it is an online service only because it is impossible to download content to look later offline, as you can with the telephone application.
Finally, I provided a digital copy of Avengers: end of game In 3D, but it was not a process without hassle – far from it. I also found a mixed act of chess that I thought I was fun, without realizing that it was a title only online until I am in the air.
After my meal was served and the seat belt panel was turned off so that I can recover it from my stored bag, I put on my quest 3 and I plunged into the metavese, armed with my limited entertainment selection.
Avengers: end of game was superb. Not just the film itself (I haven’t watched it since the midnight release years ago and I forgot how great it was) but the global experience.
I had installed Bigscreen – A free application that transports you to different cinema screen environments to watch movies – but ended up using the Meta TV application in mixed reality mode.
I could decrease my environment and widen the screen so that I had the impression of being in my own private cinema, but I was not closed from my environment, so I could be careful if a on -board agent passed with food or drinks.
These were leagues in front of the dinky screen installed on my seat on which I should have counted for entertainment differently.
Not being in VR also helped during turbulence. Because I could see the real world tremble thanks to the flow of Mr Passhrough that I did not feel particularly nauseous during the test, something that I suspect would not be the case if I was in VR.
Now for my problems
Aside from software selection problems, my next concern was the battery life. I was able to look at an hour of End of game In mixed reality using just under 50% of the battery life of my quest 3.
With a load cable and a food bank, I could extend this time of use, but relying only on quest 3, because entertainment in flight for a long journey would clearly be a challenge.
You can mitigate this with a complementary module like that of the Kiwi design straps that I examined, but you would encounter the following problem: the bag space.
The luggage space on an airline is at a higher price, and filling your hand luggage with a fully equipped VR helmet configuration is a non-starter. So I replaced the bulky battery strap with the more compact (and less functional) elastic strap.
This reduced the space that quest 3 took considerably, but it was still not compact – in particular with the controllers.
With these problems of battery and space in mind, it seems that a VR helmet would be ideal for a shorter (travel less than its four hours) where you have trouble for the baggage space through the socket and the cabin, so the transport of the helmet would not be a problem.
I should also note that I was flying in the premium economic section of Virgin Atlantic, rather than in the standard economy, and the only seat next to me was vacant. In addition, I was sitting at the front of the section, in a seat with an additional leg room, so I had a lot of space to move.
In a more closely packed economic seat, I could see my annoying arm movements for any unlucky stranger to sit next to me, making virtual reality too impractical (and risky) to be viable outside of more premium lessons. The mixed reality would be more practical, but it is also more a battery well, as I discovered.
Despite these problems, I could see how close meta-investigation is and how the flight experience could be improved with some upgrades.
More subtle movement commands (such as those that the Apple Vision Pro uses) would eliminate the risk of rubbing an innocent passenger with my arms plagues.
A larger built battery would also be ideal, as is a easier way to find and download movies on the helmet.
The cinematographic experience on the big screen, especially with a 3D film, was really fantastic, and it is simply used to emphasize why Meta and others must do more to improve this aspect of virtual reality because even a 3D film was a major hassle.
And the use of the helmet, even in mixed reality, helped me forget that I was on a flight. I am not a particularly nervous leaflet, but I must admit that I feel a little tense in the air, and this tension was significantly absent when using my quest 3.
So, even if I do not take my meta helmet during my next long-haul flight, I can see a future where it becomes my essential travel gadget. For the moment, however, he will stay at home, and I will take my Glasses AR instead.
