So when Go spotted a pair of “Virtual Reality Googles” while prowling Daiso the other day, he felt conflicted. VR is certainly great fun, but can it be captured as well with such discounted gear? Even more disconcerting was the fact it wasn’t even in the standard Daiso 100-yen (US$0.91) price range. It was marked up to a whopping 500 yen ($4.56).
This seemed especially odd since rival stores like Seria and Can Do sell smartphone VR kits for a flat 100 yen. In this cut-throat business Daiso must think they have something extra special to jack up the price 500 percent.
Looking more closely at the package, Go read: “Install VR Application on your smartphone and use. VR application can be downloaded from the App Store of Google Play.”
“So that’s their edge,” thought Go, “It comes with an exclusive Daiso VR app!” Fascinated by wondering what kind of VR content Daiso could have worked up, he decided to buy into this high-stakes game of intrigue.
After taking the VR goggles back to the office and opening the box, Go found a pair of little cloths to wipe the smartphone screen, but no manual. He wasn’t sure how to access the Daiso app without any documentation but found himself quickly distracted by the headset itself.
It looked alright…
And had a comfy looking cushion to minimize chafing on Go’s delicate T-zone.
There were also some sliders on the reverse side of the inner goggle.
By manipulating those, he could fine-tune the position of the lenses. This would make the Daiso VR Goggle fit even that guy from The Goonies.
The phone carriage slides right out from the side and has some little spongy clamps to fit whatever size phone you’re using.
Sliding that sucker back in is also strangely satisfying.
It even had a little sliding door to let the camera look outside while wearing the goggles. This doesn’t seem to be useful for any currently available apps, but it doesn’t hurt either.
It even had holes for access to headphone or battery pack cables, situated for the jack positions of various devices.
All in all, it was a pretty well-thought-out design and probably worthy of a 1,000 yen price tag. So, it was beginning to look like Go got a pretty sweet deal, and he hadn’t even got to the included app yet.