Last year, VR made a comeback in a huge way. This year as well, we’ve seen a lot of games and applications on the platform too, each more incredible than the previous one. For those wondering what’s next for VR, here’s what some big names have to say about the technology’s future.
The Next Computing Platform
Right now, the hype about VR is the most in the gaming and entertainment industries, but Facebook CEO thinks the future is much bigger. In an interview with Bloomberg, he said that a good candidate to be the next major computing platform. He’s optimistic that soon enough, VR could be a primary form of communication.
“Photos are richer than text; video, much richer than photos. But that’s not the end, right? I mean, it’s like this indefinite continuum of getting closer and closer to being able to capture what a person’s natural experience and thought is, and just being able to immediately capture that and design it however you want and share it with whomever you want.”
A New Way of Seeing The World
According to Jessica Brillhart, a VR film maker at Google, could have an interesting way in how we record and view videos. This is what she had to say in an interview with MIT’s Technology Review, when asked if VR could eventually be used to capture home videos.
“Think of everything you forget about a birthday party when you’re a kid. But now the rig would capture everything. You could watch someone you loved respond the way she used to, or eat cake a certain way. It is going to be interesting to see what happens when we aren’t able to forget anything anymore.”
Now, that may sound like something straight out of a Black Mirror episode, but it will sure be fascinating to see how it plays out.
VR Could Potentially Impact All Senses
At present, VR is limited to the users’ visual and auditory senses, but that could soon change. In an interview with TIME magazine, Alienware’s General Manager Frank Azor said, “Once you begin catering to the rest of the senses, like what we feel body-wise, temperature-wise, and smell, the reality factor of virtual reality [becomes] stronger and the virtual piece begins to fade.” It’s likely that erasing the line between the physical and the virtual reality is the next major milestone, but there’s still improvements to be made before we get there.
A Huge Market Potential
Last year, the VR market was worth $1.9 billion, but that’s expected to go up to $22.4 billion by 2020, including both software and hardware sales. The combined AR and VR market could be worth around $121 billion, according to Digi-Capital.
There are more and more companies investing in AR and VR every day, so indeed, the potential is huge. Of course, there will be a few bumps along the road, but the future of virtual reality is bright.
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