Virtual Reality: A Blessing or a Bane?

Times have changed, and so has the way we see technology now. You might have never been able to swim on Mars, or walk on Moon two decades before. But today, when technology has taken a drastic turn in drawing the limit between reality and virtuality, you might as well be able to do all those things that once were only a figment of your imagination.  

When you’re listening to ambient instrumental music or classical music with your eyes closed, you are transported to a completely different world, and start dreaming about a world that doesn’t really exist. Isn’t that a kind of virtual reality? Losing yourself in your favorite book or movie... isn’t that a kind of virtual reality?

Welcome to the era of extended reality! A reality that incorporates Augmented, Virtual and Mixed Reality. A reality that lets you experience what you imagine. A reality that lets you be what you imagine. Using high-performance computers and sensory equipment like gloves and headsets, you can now simulate bits of our world or a completely imaginary world.

Virtual Reality is a believable, interactive 3D computer-created world that you can explore so you feel you really are there, both mentally and physically. VR makes you think that you are living in a completely believable virtual world, wherein you can interact with your surroundings by engaging both your mind and your body into the imaginary world that you are in at that particular point of time.  

But, all that glitters isn’t gold. Let me tell you how...

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Pros and Cons of VR

‍‍Pros

Thrilling Experiences: When used correctly, VR can create a thrilling sensory experience. Money and creativity are the only restrictions when using computer-generated imagery (CGI) to create new and exciting environments, product demos, and other realms.

Teaching-Learning Processes: When used in education, virtual reality (VR) facilitates and enhances learning.

Experimentation with Alternate Worlds: Users of virtual reality can experiment with made-up surroundings.

Cons:

Diverse Market: The market for VR is dispersed. The early adoption of VR standards means that content made for one platform typically won't function on another.

Expensive: The process of creating content is frequently expensive and highly personalized. Additionally, best practices for producing useful and interesting material are constantly being developed.

Disconnect from Reality: VR frequently transports you to a different location that is separated from the current world, making it an alienating, alone experience. This is the opposite result from occasions where bringing individuals together and encouraging group interaction is one of the primary objectives.

No doubt, VR has a lot of use cases in today’s world. And despite several downside issues, there are various ways VR can be used effectively for exhibitions and events. Before embarking on a voyage into the virtual and augmented worlds, we should think about the applications and the cost. There are numerous ways to immerse ourselves in the VR/AR world and benefit from this cutting-edge technology, but completely immersing ourselves into a world that doesn’t really exist does come with some limitations which should be taken care of.