[GustavMahler]

I have seen that MSI have developed before quite some time a backpack PC, that doesn't actually seem to be very light.
And then I asked myself-why should we not actually put a relatively light gaming laptop on our back, and all of the wire problems will be gone?
There are strong enough laptops for VR out there, and it could save the 200+ dollars for a wireless extension for the Vive and the very limited wireless battery (I guess that a gaming PC could last more than 1.5 hours disconnected).

Have I been missing something and it was already done?
Or is there a reason why it is not done?

That could be the ultimate solution!

Now, the question is..
How should we stick it to our back..?

[VirtuaTyKing]

You would have the additional weight of the screen. Possible ventilation issues too. I don't know if they would like being under load with the screen laying flat. Keyboard areas can get toasty. I imagine some heat gets dissipated from there.

It's doable but with the price for a similar performing desktop being much cheaper and the fact that I like to be able to access my desktop easily. Occasionally a game won't exit properly in Steam VR. It requires Steam VR be exited and then reloaded. It only takes seconds to do but having to keep removing a backpack would be a pain.

[GustavMahler]

Do you mean that I must have an actual PC monitor to use the Vive?
I am planning on freeing up my room in the future and leaving only a gaming PC, and not letting in even a pc monitor so it cannot get broken, and therefore I don't have to worry all the time about hitting it.

[VirtuaTyKing]

Do you mean that I must have an actual PC monitor to use the Vive?
I am planning on freeing up my room in the future and leaving only a gaming PC, and not letting in even a pc monitor so it cannot get broken, and therefore I don't have to worry all the time about hitting it.

Or TV. When setting up the chaperone system it asks you to point at your TV. So it ends up behind you from the beginning of most games. The chaperone system is very good. Stray outside the grid at you own risk. The only things it doesn't protect you from are ceiling objects. I have got carried away before and hit my dangling light bulb. Most games don't require vertical movement but watch out if they do.

The controllers are very sturdy. If I was very dumb and started swinging outside the boundaries I would honestly expect a bone to break before the controller.

[Chemy JMHT]

Well there are more than one option for backpack, MSI, Dell, Zotac, HP and a lot more are doing backpacks because there is another consideration as VirtuaTyKing mentioned, the battery life will be less due the consumption of the headset and some other USB devices needed, the heat problem is not only for the internal component while carrying a laptop in your back, but also for the user!

The option from MSI has 2 batteries and it's optimized to handle the heat.

Other options are in this old thread:

http://forums.vrheads.com/vr-news-di...backpack-8318/

[Russell Holly]

It would be interesting to see a company make a sort of thermal sleeve you could put any VR laptop in, but I'm not sure this trend is going to stick around long enough for the idea to be useful. Backtops are not nearly as convenient as a wireless transmitter.

[krisguy]

You would have the additional weight of the screen. Possible ventilation issues too...

It would be worse for those of us who sweat at the drop of a hat. I know how funky my Vive can get after an hour...

[Chemy JMHT]

It would be interesting to see a company make a sort of thermal sleeve you could put any VR laptop in, but I'm not sure this trend is going to stick around long enough for the idea to be useful. Backtops are not nearly as convenient as a wireless transmitter.

I think you already mentioned that, the wirelles HMD is around the corner so eventually it won't be needed to carry a computer with you to have some quality VR.

[sgtpokey]

One reason no one has mentioned yet: Laptops that are capable of running VR are not really designed to be ruggedized so there is very little chance that I would want to risk 2-3k in USD for the almost certain short lifespan of using it in a backpack fashion. I commute daily (fly) with my work laptop, have used many gaming laptops, and also know what I do in VR. I think people underestimate how fragile a laptop's components can be as well as how much jostling you would be doing in VR.

To be honest I am also sceptical of the viability of the purpose-built backpack VR computer demos... the price and compromises for that type of design are probably not commercially viable--> which is why we really don't see them in real life.

[Chemy JMHT]

I think @sgtpokey is right, in both things, 1st. laptops are way more fragile, not designed to that kind of movements and also expensive and 2nd The backpack computer are meant to be mobile in that way, I think kind of cheaper than laptops but anyways way too expensive to be mainstream.

I think we are also closer to be able to have some amazing Wireless VR, so maybe that's why not many are pushing hard in the VR capable mobile computers.

BTW Welcome to the Forum @sgtpokey Sir!

[sgtpokey]

@Chemy JMHT thanks.

Was thinking more on this and if you take what Tim Sweeney was saying about where VR will be once it gets to the same stage as the highly integrated and miniaturized design that the smartphone represents... that is when the whole "laptop on a backpack concept" will actually work --> it wouldnt be a backpack, just everything built into the headset. Also at that point there wouldn't need to be any wireless headset, since you truly would be wearing everything already (also assuming that Microsoft's inside out tracking is the way forward here so no need for external sensors)

[badelhas]

@sgtpokey Yeah, I am looking forward to that moment also. And photo-realistic graphics since now they are pretty simple...

Cheers