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Comment by bunabhucan | Hacker News Reader

>the home theater experience is one of the only things that VR indisputably

You can't watch unless you are alone, the surround sound is reduced to stereo and the resolution is sub-4k once the rendering is done.

Home theater VR is indisputably better than a phone/tablet/laptop and headphones.

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But it's perfect if you do want to watch alone. Depending on the app, 5.1 audio is spatialized. Resolution is effectively 1080p in terms of detail if you make the screen comfortably large.

And if you have the right app, you can lie back on your bed and watch your movie on a cinema screen that feels like it's floating above you in the sky. Incredibly relaxing, and amazing if you have any kind of back problems.

Also the best way to watch 3D movies -- no loss of brightness like in cinemas, and none of the ghosting you get using Bluetooth shutter glasses with a TV/projector.

Also worth noting that - while it's not ideal for sharing movies in person - it's fantastic for sharing movies online. I've been watching movies with friends from all over the globe in VRChat, and it's a fantastic experience. Looking forward to Apple spreading it with SharePlay in the Vision Pro!

Although my Elac speakers and SVS sub have an opinion of their own, but I agree generally regarding Oculus. Apple MacBook Pros are the best approximation for stereo-only. My Thinkpad T series has terrible speakers, so headphones are an improvement for almost any activity there. Quest Pro sound is pretty good, but it's nothing spectacular and good luck casting or viewing multichannel media there, i.e., there's no Plex or VLC for Oculus (this app doesn't work on Quest[0]). Without the encouragement and convincing of each major app vendor to get on another platform, they won't and can't justify the expense. This is one of catch-22's of platforms being double-ended marketplaces that must be addressed, or it will bomb.

0. https://www.meta.com/experiences/1779825005402730/

That’s a bit reductive. On VR you can also watch immersive videos and mainstream films in 3D.

From the comfort of your toilet no less. Let’s see a home theater do that.

You’re right, I’ve never seen a home theater built in a shitter.

But that doesn’t mean it can’t be done!

The "house of the future" in the Netherlands had this in the 80s.

It also had a non-blurred glass toilet door, clearly the future was imagined to be very exhibitionistic.

I've been to enough boutique hotels in the Netherlands with clear glass doors from bedroom to bathroom to say that probably wasn't a "future" thing, just a Dutch thing...

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