VR Headsets Hit the Mark on Satisfaction

Consumer Adoption of virtual-reality products is still small and in its early stages, but consumers who’ve taken the plunge seem happy with their purchases.

That’s according to a fresh survey from Frank N. Magid Associates, which found most recent buyers of VR gear are “very satisfied” with their purchases and performance of those headsets has exceeded expectations.

The largest group of satisfied customers — at 67% — are consumers who bought a VR headset that works with a smartphone. Such products range from an inexpensive Google Cardboard viewer to higher-end products such as the Oculus-powered Samsung Gear VR or Google Daydream View, which works with a subset of Android-based smartphones.

Most consumers across all device types said their VR headsets were “very good.” More than half (60%) were consumers who bought a headset designed for a specific smartphone.

Some 72% reported using their VR headsets for nongaming video content such as short videos and TV experiences, compared to 63% for video games. Music and virtual travel were among the most popular VR experiences (51%).

The study also explored the types of content users experience on VR devices and determined the potential for a variety of genres. VR users watched more nongaming video content such as short videos or TV experiences (72%) than played video games (63%). Music and virtual travel were also among the top VR experiences, at a combined 51%.

About 81% of purchasers of VR devices also indicated a willingness to recommend such products to friends or family, Frank N. Magid Associates found in the study, based on a survey of 1,000 respondents age 18 to 64 who watch live or recorded video on a TV, PC or mobile device, or play games on PCs, consoles or mobile devices one or more times each week.