9 Yuan VR Headset: First Thoughts

I bought a 9-yuan VR headset.

Honestly, this thing is way better than what 9 yuan should get you:

First off, it’s a lot better than the Cardboard I’d played around with before. For one, you can actually wear it on your head, and the phone holder pulls out and clamps down tight — my Nexus 6P fits with no problem. But that’s not the real issue here. The real issue is that this thing doesn’t have NFC like Cardboard does, which means you have to get your phone positioned just right before shoving it in.

For watching YouTube 360° videos, though, it’s fine.

It’s got a fair few advantages over Cardboard: adjustable interpupillary distance, and the glass lenses seem noticeably better. Wearing it isn’t comfortable for a big-headed guy like me — it kind of pinches my nose — but it’s tolerable.

On to the actual experience. YouTube 360° videos look good, and if you pair it with binaural audio it works surprisingly well. The two people doing binaural ASMR videos reasonably well on YouTube right now are Maria and old Dmitri — and honestly, Dmitri’s production and content are both better than Maria’s. But Maria’s a woman, so…

Maria has already put out a 360° ASMR video. Wearing this thing, it felt pretty good, though her equipment really isn’t up to much — there are some dead spots in the video — but the experience still lands.

Put simply, this thing is definitely better than 9 yuan’s worth of quality, but as a video viewer it’s still just a slightly fancier Cardboard box. It still depends on phone apps, and it’s not suited to long sessions.

All in all, no regrets on this purchase.