One of the best places to escape the confines of reality is probably on a flight. So rather ideally Quantas flights between Australia and the US will now offer Samsung Gear VR headsets to whisk passengers off to virtual reality.
The Samsung Gear VR headset, which is available to buy now, is being used as a trial on the airline where it will act as a supplementary in-flight entertainment system. The Gear VR uses a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 which sits within the headset to display an image on either eye. Combined with the accelerometer on the handset the virtual reality environment lets the wearer look around inside the virtual world.
The Gear VR experience will only be available to first-class passengers on the Airbus A380 from LA to Sydney or Melbourne to LA. The headsets will begin to appear both on planes and in first-class Australian lounges from mid-March.
The headsets have been loaded with special 3D videos – so no watching Hollywood movies just yet then. Videos include special footage of Quantas airplanes and a boat trip in Kakadu. And the price for this treat? Flights on these routes, first-class, start at over £10,000. Or buy your own Samsung Gear VR for £150, plus a Galaxy Note 4.