Vuzix iWear Headset Puts You in the Game

Yes, Vuzix's iWear headset has the same little postage-stamp-size images you see in most video headsets, but the VR920 has an ace up its sleeve: Turn your head left, right, up, or down, and the perspective of the game moves with you.

I've written about the VR920 ($349) before, but here at CES I finally had the chance to try it for myself. For my demo, I tried the latest version of Microsoft Flight Simulator, and as I donned the typically goofy-looking headset, the image before my eyes wasn't anything special; my ultralight cockpit and the views of the tundra looked boxy, washed out, and a little fuzzy (par for the course in the land of gaming headsets).

Here's the cool part, though; thanks to a set of accelerometers and magnetic field sensors, the headset was able to sense the position of my head. When I turned my head to the right, my view smoothly turned to the right side of the cockpit; when I looked down, I saw the controls. I could even turn all the way around and see the view from behind. Uncanny. I can only imagine what gameplay would be like if the video display was wide-screen, vivid, and razor sharp.

For now, only the VR920 for the PC is available, but I'm told that a version for the Xbox 360 should be available in the first quarter of the year. The 360 headset (which should also retail for about $399) will tie in your head movements to the right "look" stick on the Xbox controller, meaning it'll work great with any first-person shooter. I can't wait to try it with Halo 3.

Related:
VuzixWeb site