Both the iOS and Android App Stores have had more than a few “VR experience" style “games" (using some air quotes there) with the most recent example being the Just Cause 3 wingsuit experience we posted about not long ago. On iOS, playing the VR side of these things requires having one of the many different varieties of Google Cardboard. In the Android world, your options are a bit more varied and include the Samsung Gear VR. The Gear VR, if you’ve never heard of it, is effectively a much nicer version of Google Cardboard. You still stuff your phone in it to act as the screen (and brains) powering the whole thing, but the Gear VR is made of plastic, has some nice head straps and feels… Less cardboard-y, since it’s… obviously not made of cardboard.
The Gear VR came with the odd downside in that it originally launched at $199, which felt really expensive for what amounted to a piece of plastic and a couple lenses. Best Buy has it on sale this week for half off. I’m still not sure how great of a deal it is at $99, but that’s a hell of a lot easier to mentally rationalize than two hundred bucks. To use the Gear VR, you either need a Galaxy Note 4 or a Galaxy S6. Here’s the two different models:
- Samsung – Gear VR for Samsung Galaxy Note 4 Cell Phones
- Samsung – Gear VR Innovator Edition for Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 edge Cell Phones – White
Soooo… yeah. Like I said, I’m still not sure how strong of a purchase either of these are since they require very specific phones to work. However, if you’re curious about VR and want to get in on one the early popular ways to experience it, you can save $100 through Best Buy right now.
