Cost barrier for virtual reality dwindling, expert says at NAB

Virtual reality is on the rise in the Las Vegas Valley.

Visitors to Springs Preserve can “paint” virtually with headsets and handsets, and thrill-seekers on the New York-New York roller coaster can wear headsets to chase a virtual alien.

In his talk Sunday at the National Association of Broadcasters Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center, video-editing consultant Jeff Greenberg shared tips to get started in virtual reality.

Greenberg showed a Vuze camera that captures 360-degree virtual reality video for $799 and VR goggle by Merge that cost $30.

Cheaper equipment from overseas has lowered the price of cameras that once cost tens of thousands of dollars, he said. And that shift has allowed more industries to experiment with the technology.

Here are four other tips from Greenberg:

— Samsung, Kodak and Nikon are good brands for consumer-grade VR cameras.

— Only buy cameras that are shipping to customers. Putting money down on cameras that haven’t come to market is risky.

— Use a service like speedtest.net to see how quickly a phone uploads and downloads data in a given area to see how well someone will experience your video.

— Stay mindful of where lines may appear on a video when the camera combines the 360-degree footage to make a video.

Contact Wade Tyler Millward at wmillward@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4602. Follow @wademillward on Twitter.