I spent a week working in VR. It was mostly terrible, however… – Cointelegraph Magazine

I just spent a full week working in virtual reality with the new Meta Quest 3. While the experience is still terrible, I have some renewed optimism about VR in the workplace.

As I took Ron’s extended virtual hand for a handshake, my real hand (in the real world) bumped awkwardly against the side of my desk.

Ron started laughing, and thanks to the device’s eye and face tracking technology, his avatar’s animated facial expressions mimicked his real face.

Ron, a project manager at Microsoft, told me this was something I would get used to. He has been working in Metaverse for more than a year.

A few days later, I met Heather, a mother who had been working in virtual reality for several months. She likes to jump into the virtual world and work when the kids are in school and the house is quiet.

Then there’s Netflix recruiter Miguel, an “OG” user of the virtual reality app Immersed, which he’s been using for work for the past two years.

The biggest problem is: Why do you want to do this?

It’s only been two hours and my eyes are burning

While this all sounds impressive, after working on Metaverse myself for a week, I’m not sure how anyone could have done it for longer.

I clocked in and out for most of those seven days using the virtual shared office app Immersed, which can be found in the Meta Quest store or downloaded from other platforms.

Most days, I’m joined by as many as a dozen other VR users, depending on the time of day and the communal workspace I choose. (The “cafe” setting seems to be the most popular.)

Initially, I planned to spend a week using Meta’s home-grown Horizon Workrooms, but after realizing that Horizon Workrooms did not support public workspaces and lacked important quality-of-life features (such as mobility capabilities) , I quickly turned to Immersed. and adjust screen size and distance.

In both cases, setup isn’t too difficult. When you first put on the Meta Quest 3 headset, the device will scan your surroundings to understand where you are in the room (in my case, the office) and where certain obstacles are, such as bookshelves, Table and chair. This way, it can warn you if you’re too close to a wall or obstacle while you’re immersed in VR.

In order to be able to interact with your computer in VR, a companion application needs to be installed on your PC, which will then allow the application to retrieve the necessary information from your computer and communicate it via cable or WiFi Stream it to your headphones. Most remote desktop applications work the same way.

In Immersed, your virtual screen can be rotated, resized, and moved to any position you want. You can even choose to work in mixed reality, superimposing a virtual screen on a real-life environment.

But that doesn’t help much. I would end each day with a splitting headache and massive eye strain trying to get rid of. My neck always feels stiff, a side effect of the weight of bulky headphones.

for what? Most of the time, it is difficult for me to achieve the same level of output as I usually do in front of the computer.

My experience is by no means unique. In 2022, Dr. Jens Grubert, a researcher at the University of Applied Sciences Coburg, Germany gather 18 people participated in a week-long study on the effectiveness of VR work.

Two of them dropped out within the first few hours due to nausea, anxiety and migraines, while others who managed to complete the week reported increased levels of depression and anxiety.

They also reported a significant decrease in their own perceived productivity compared to real-world work. All experienced eye strain, but this seemed to lessen as time went on.

In April, research firm Forrester found that while there’s been a lot of hype about the possibilities of working in VR, not much of it is happening in reality (virtual or otherwise).

Forrest’s research established Only 2% of respondents said they preferred using mixed reality devices for work. JP Gownder, principal analyst on Forrester’s Future of Work team, said the hardware is still too bulky to be used for extended periods of time.

Okay, some places are impressive.

Despite all the annoyances, eye strain, and headaches, there were times when I stood out from the experience.

Working with other like-minded people in a virtual environment has made my usual remote, isolated working life feel less lonely.

During my week using VR, I sat down with a digital marketer from Canada, a software developer from the United States, and a salesperson from a company that provides e-commerce solutions. We talked about sports and our respective jobs. It feels like the real internet.

“The biggest benefit is being able to easily interact with people around the world. I work from home and there’s no one around,” explains Pat, a digital marketer.

“With VR, you can choose whether you want to chat with other people, mark yourself as ‘do not disturb’ or occupy a private room.”

Ron from Microsoft also told me that he generally prefers to work in VR and takes the headset with him wherever he goes, including his home office, a client’s office, or sometimes when he needs to report to the tech company’s headquarters in Seattle, Washington.

He points out that VR has no weight or size restrictions to carry around, and the headset essentially allows him to carry five monitors with him.

Holding meetings can also be a game-changer for virtual reality.

Being able to shake hands with someone over ten thousand miles away is a very strange natural phenomenon, even if they have no physical form. This is something that Zoom meetings can never replicate.

Other times, I just admire how attentive my VR colleagues are, prompting me to do the same.

I also have the freedom to switch my “office” environment – from a space station orbiting the Earth to a cozy cabin on a snowy mountain with a fireplace quietly crackling in the corner.

Maybe Zuckerberg is right?

When Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg touted his lofty vision for the Metaverse at the 2021 Connect event, Metaverse skeptics raised their eyebrows.

“No matter how far apart we are physically, it feels like we’re right there with people,” Zuckerberg said.
Many laughed when the tech giant poured tens of billions of dollars into research and development into its money-losing Reality Labs division—seemingly only to produce legless, hollow-eyed monsters through Meta’s horizon world.

But that laughter is subsiding. In September, Zuckerberg showed that the technology is much more advanced than we thought.

In a face-to-face chat with computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, Zuckerberg showed off the latest version of Codec Avatars, one of Meta’s longest-running research projects aimed at generating realistic Metaverse avatars.

The technology inspired awe from onlookers, including Friedman himself.

“I had forgotten you weren’t real.”
However, this technology requires specialized equipment and will take at least three years to become available to everyday consumers. Zuckerberg said he hopes the scanning process will eventually be done via a smartphone.

Meta’s latest version of VR uses a separate head-mounted display that uses a “pancake” lens to display three-dimensional images through an LCD screen, providing a wider field of view than its predecessor while being lighter and thinner. Motion and hand tracking are achieved through a combination of accelerometers, gyroscopes and four outward-facing cameras, while the other two cameras are used to display color “thru” – useful when participating in mixed reality experiences.

Meanwhile, there is considerable anticipation for the Apple Vision Pro, which is set to launch in the first quarter of 2024. While it comes with eye tracking, 4K resolution, and Apple EyeSight, which may also impact future work, it also comes with an eye-popping $3,499 price tag.

Apple says the “spatial computing” device will allow users to “build the perfect workspace.”

So, are VR titles ready for prime time?

As I reflect on my week in virtual reality, I’m enjoying a coffee in a very real, definitely not virtual, coffee shop in Sydney’s western suburbs.

Occasionally, I miss my VR work friends and the tranquility of my cozy virtual cabin.

But until the technology gets smaller, lighter, and less clunky, I’ll probably stick to Slack for gatherings and keep my trusty computer on the wooden table.

subscription

The most fascinating read in blockchain. Delivery is weekly.

Felix Wu

Felix Ng first started writing about the blockchain industry in 2015 through the lens of a gambling industry reporter and editor. He has since started reporting on the blockchain space full-time. He is most interested in innovative blockchain technologies designed to solve real-world challenges.