For the month of March, I tried the Utopia 360° virtual reality 3D headset. This is a product that I purchased independently due to the lack of feedback from other companies. This product is something that I have mixed feelings about, and I will express all of those feelings in this review. For each category, with categories including packaging, instructions, personal experience, practical use, and pros and cons, I will rate the category with either “yay” (meaning very good), “boo” (meaning very bad), or “narf” (meaning neutral). I hope that this review is helpful to you. Now let’s get on with the show!
The first thing that I will discuss is the packaging of this product. It came nicely packaged; all edges of the box were taped shut. Once inside the box, another box appeared. This box was all black, and this is where the product actually was found. The box included the headset, a bluetooth controller that goes along with the headset, instructions, extra foam squares, and a breaking warning. All of it was packaged well, and everything was easy to locate. The only thing that was slightly disappointing was that the batteries for the bluetooth controller were not included, which required me to leave the comfort of my bedroom to locate the AAA batteries. But other than this slight downfall, the packaging and contents of the box were easy to locate and neatly placed. For this category, I would give it a “yay”.
Next, I will discuss the instructions. Let me be the first to say that I am absolutely terrible at setting things up alone. When I first unboxed the headset, I COULD NOT FIND THE INSTRUCTIONS! *insert dramatic dun dun DUN*. So, me being the youtube wizard that I am looked up a tutorial, and successfully found one. This video was very enlightening because when I saw the boy in the video’s instructions, it was TINY. I don’t think I have ever seen an instruction book smaller than this one. With the help of the youtube boy, I located the instruction book. The usefulness of the instructions balanced out the fact that they were so small. I can truthfully say that these were some of the most thorough instructions that I have ever had to use. So because of the concise instructions, I guess that tipped my vote for this category to “yay”.
Next, I will discuss my personal experience with the product. I have one thing to say… THIS IS AMAZING! Fun fact, this is the first virtual reality device I have ever tried, and I was blown away. This headset uses the Google Cardboard app to make the VR experience interactive and fun. You can fly, talk to animals, create worlds, and so much more. I am so glad I decided to purchase this product. It literally takes you on a whole new journey. It is an out of this world… ha ha…. experience, and I cannot wait to try all of the features the headset has to offer. Something that the headset allows you to do is adjust the lenses that you look through to adjust the focus of the image. This category is a massive “yay”.
Practical use… you may be asking yourself, “Jessica, is there even a practical use for a virtual reality headset?” And the answer is yes! Something that this could be used for is for teaching purposes. With technology becoming and being a huge industry in this century, this would be something futuristic and fun to teach younger audiences about. The VR headset works as a simulator and makes you feel like you are in a different world. Something else that this could be used for is simply entertainment purposes. Imagine how many apps for VR devices exist right now. All of them are different. Now imagine how much time this could occupy. See my point? So for this reason, we have another “yay” category.
Lastly, I will be discussing the pros and cons of the VR headset. One obvious pro of the product would be, to reiterate, to occupy time. With endless possibilities, well, almost endless, anyone using this product will never become bored. Another pro would be that it is a lightweight device. So for pros, a “yay” rating is valid.
But now, we have the cons. One big one for me is how clunky this device is. Now, I know most of these devices are probably this way, but I personally feel like I have a huge box strapped to my face while using this product. Something else that would serve as a con was the fact my phone fit uncomfortably in the phone compartment. I had to use the extra foam pieces that were included so that the sides of the phone holder would not continuously shut my phone off. One last thing I would classify as a con were the adjustable head straps. They were very hard to move, and this was frustrating. So as expected, the con category gets a big, fat “boo”.
So, how were the ratings overall? Very good! I would for sure recommend this product to anyone who wants an out of this world virtual experience. The packaging and instructions and ease of use really influenced the enjoyment of this product. You should try it. It retails at $30 (seriously, only $30). It will be worth your time and money to try the Utopia 360° VR headset.
