VR has been around for a couple years but it is very close to going mainstream. The kind of mainstream where people actually like it and use it. There are more and more developers making better applications for VR. Movie companies are taking it seriously and developing some very cool stuff. See Reel FX whom I just met today and is doing some great work. Marketers will still find it hard to utilize it right now, but rest assured they will find a way.
There are 3 main products and players on the market right now (with new ones every month).
Oculus
Facebook’s version that they paid 1 billion dollars
Samsung VR
Available at Best Buy right now for $200. You simply put your smartphone in al these models. (Not all smartphones work with each model)
Cardboard by Google
This is the poor mans version but I have it and it works. Its the gateway VR into more expensive systems.
I purchased the kit from DODO for @25 bucks, got all the tetchy nerds in a room, and in a 1/2 hr we were tripping on this new gizmo. You ca purchase it from many retailers right now. This is great for conventions because its cheap and can be handed out to multiple people. It can also be branded.
I recommend these Apps from Google Play to start your experience. I haven’t tried every single one but these are good taste of what it can do.
And this is the tip of the iceberg. There are better experiences with Samsung VR and Oculus. It is almost scary how the virtual world just swallows you up and puts your brain in another world. All the movies that have been made about VR are coming true. The Bruce Willis movie Surrogates, is about a world where people live in a state induced by VR and live in the real world through a surrogate robot.
Google Cardboard Assembly
Make your vision a reality.