It’s hard to imagine that only 18 months ago, I began my library's virtual reality program. VR is something that has simmered in mind since Google Cardboard. I could never quite figure out a way around needing a phone to power the device. Data is a precious commodity to a teenager, so most students were unwilling to use their personal devices for an educational 360 experience.
To learn more about Google Cardboard, please visit https://arvr.google.com/cardboard/.
I also considered a stand-alone system like the HTC Vive (https://www.vive.com/us/)or Oculus Rift (https://www.oculus.com/rift/). Again, I felt limited by the one user at time set up and the need for an expensive high powered PC to run the system. Not to mention, my school district only uses Apple products. What I needed was a VR experience that an entire class could simultaneously access. Finally, the technology gods answered my call. Hitting the market in May 2018, the Oculus Go, a standalone VR headset with built in wi-fi, offered the phone free, wireless solution I was seeking. This headset not only needed zero accessories , I could also use it with or without wi-fi since the Go allows users to download videos to the headset. The price tag of the original Go base model with 32GB of storage was $299. For an extra $50, the 64GB model seemed like a good choice for the extra storage. I ordered three 64GB headsets in January 2019 to pilot the use of the Go in a school library setting.
At the time of this posting, the Oculus Go is not longer sold by Oculus. It has been replaced with the Oculus Quest. The Go is still available for purchase on Amazon starting at $199.00. To learn more about the Oculus Go, please visit https://www.amazon.com/Oculus-Standalone-Virtual-Reality-Headset-pc/dp/B076CWS8C6