Hello everyone!
Cas here.
And this is the VR Balance, and I’ve been using it for about a month now, it’s become
my favorite comfort mod for the Oculus Quest.
There are some pros and cons, though, which I’ll explain in this video.
We’re going to get started, but first, subscribe if you haven’t yet to see more videos like
this one.
And now, let’s dive in.
So the VR Balance is a new comfort mod for the Oculus Quest.
They launched a successful Kickstarter campaign for it, and they reached their funding goal
quickly in January.
If you own the Oculus Quest, then you probably understand why these products are so popular.
The headset can be front-heavy because it houses all its hardware in the front.
So people have been looking for ways to make the headset more comfortable.
The VR Balance takes away the weight of the front of the headset by acting as a counterweight.
The edges of the mod contain little weights that you can’t remove, and boy is it heavy
enough.
It weighs about 531 grams, which is about 1.17 pounds.
This can be compared to having three Powerbanks of ten thousand mAh.
It’s easy to attach it to your Quest.
In the box, you’ll get 6 Velcro hook strips that you tape on the back of the headset,
on these places.
You will also get a manual with it that tells you where to place the strips.
Once you’ve done taping, you attach the VR Balance by firmly pressing it onto the
Velcro strips.
If you don’t like the big logo here, then you can also turn it around nicely.
You also get an extra Velcro strip that you can use to attach your own battery power bank
for longer play sessions.
However, VR Balance recommends using belts or armbands for battery placement to remove
the additional weight.
So I’ve used the VR Balance for about a month now, and so far, I’m really enjoying
this comfort mod.
It takes away the front-heaviness completely for me.
It feels like the front of the headset floats on my face now instead of it being on it.
So it’s not too tight anymore.
This is probably also better for people who wear glasses.
It has never fallen off either, which was a concern for me after I felt its weight.
And it still fits in the original Oculus case.
Sometimes I do feel like it might be a little too heavy.
My Oculus Quest is now back-heavy instead of front-heavy.
There have been times where I felt the need to tighten the headset slightly so that the
front of the headset doesn’t lift up.
I think it would have been nice to be able to remove weights as we pleased.
It might also be a bit heavy for travel if you have limited baggage allowance.
But I guess that differs per person.
Further, because of the extra weight, you need to make sure you handle your Quest with
more care.
For example, I used to pick up the headset with just one hand.
But with the VR Balance, the backside of the headset is so heavy, that I am afraid the
straps could break if I don’t use two hands.
This is only a matter of getting used to it, though.
The tapes here are pretty easy to remove, too, in case you want to stop using the balance.
However, I don’t recommend removing the tapes if you plan on using it again as it
won’t be as sticky anymore, and then there’s a chance that the counterweight could fall
while playing.
You’ll need to buy new Velcro strips then, but thankfully those are pretty cheap on Amazon.
I’ll link one below.
But these cons don’t stop me from using the VR Balance, because with it, I can play
a couple of hours without feeling the headset’s pressure on my face.
The headset is now much more comfortable without the need to adjust it much.
And so it became my new favorite comfort mod for the Oculus Quest.
You can pre-order one for 30 US dollars on the site that I’ll link below.
Shipping to the United States is 8 dollars, while shipping to The Netherlands in Europe
is about 24 dollars.
This is more expensive, probably because the product is so heavy.
So do check what the shipping price is for you on their website before buying.
They are also selling a counterweight plus strap combination for 40 dollars, shipping
excluded, I haven’t tried that one, so I can’t say if it’s any good, but if it’s
anything like the Studioform top strap, then I believe it could work well.
However, I myself haven’t felt the need to add a top strap anymore with just the VR
Balance counterweight.
VR Balance has told us that pre-orders should go out in April 2020.
And if you’ve followed our channel, then you might be interested in our other videos
about other comfort mods for the Oculus Quest.
Check them out here or with the link in the description.
In collaboration with VR Balance, we are also giving away one counterweight plus the comfort
strap combo!
If you want to participate in this, then you can enter by using the link in our description.
In any case, I’m glad to see more accessories pop-up that can help increase our VR experience.
I do agree that it is a strange design choice by Oculus to make the headset so front-heavy.
Especially now, we are seeing headsets like the Pico Neo 2 who balance the headset by
putting the internal battery at the back.
So I do hope that Oculus changes this design for the Quest 2.0 or something.
Anyway, let me know in the comments whether you are getting one or have other new comfort
mod solutions that you think we should check out.
Don’t forget to like the video if you enjoyed it.
A special thanks goes to our Right-Hand Patrons.
A huge thanks to artArmin for his support!
Check out his Board Games VR on Steam.
Another thank you goes to BaxornVR.
Check out his VR YouTube channel!
Everyone, thanks again for watching, you are the best.
And as always VR on!