Conclusion

What we liked

• Professional design
• Easy USB connectivity
• Easy installation
• Fast start-up sequence
• Easy to interface with existing code
• Great value for the money

What needs improvement

• Fan noise on the main unit is exceeding normal noise levels for such devices.

On the pros side, the main unit as well as the plastic moulded emitter and receivers look well-built and solid. The USB connectivity is also a plus and something that is rarely found on this type of devices. The installation process was very quick and simple. A Windows compliant installation shield would be welcomed for the final production units, but besides that, there is really nothing wrong regarding the installation of this device. The start-up sequence is fast and painless with this tracker system. After about 30 seconds, the unit is ready to send its data to the host computer. A small utility provided on the bundled CD-ROM allows the user to quickly send a reset or calibration command to the main unit. This utility proved to be quite useful during our tests. Adding support for 6 DOF tracked data into your own C/C++ applications takes a matter of a few minutes. While we did not specifically benchmark the CPU load caused by the tracker driver, using it on our medium-sized Virtual Reality applications, we did not notice serious CPU usage increase which is good sign. Lastly, this VR device is really interesting in term of its price, which will be aggressively set against the competition. This is a good thing for the virtual reality market in general, as it will stimulate some competition and, hopefully, price reductions in this market segment. The virtual reality market has been lacking strong competition so far. Please check the manufacturer web site for current pricing information.

On the cons side, the fan noise, while some can perceive it as a more aesthetic or secondary concern, is an issue that could limit the use of this device as a consumer product in homes. We are confident that the manufacturer will find alterative solutions to its current power supply system in order to reduce the noise level of the unit.

Who is this device for?

If you want to do virtual reality at home, while having a cost effective solution, this tracker system is for you. The Wintracker unit is made for application requiring a small to medium-sized operational volume. As we measured in our benchmarks, this roughly corresponds to a volume of 160 centimeters (5.3 feet) on each axis. For applications requiring a high level of precision and data stability, we suggest to limit the volume of operation to around 120 centimeters (4 feet) on all axis. Applications requiring head tracking will be particularly sensible to the selected operational volume.

Institutions and universities looking for an efficient and low cost tracking system will find the Wintracker particularly well suited for many research project needs. For instance, applications such as driving or flight simulation can be implemented with this system with quite reasonable performances. Any application where the user is sitting still so that the emitter can be located near the user is a perfect candidate for the Wintracker unit. Researches in user interface development or virtual environment object manipulations are also a few of many possible uses. The emitter can even be located on a desk, nearby the user. This allows receivers to be located on the user head and arms, provided that the user remains at a reasonable distance from any interference sources such as a computer monitor. We have successfully tested the system in such conditions. The user was sitting at about 45 centimeters from the computer monitor.

Our final verdict

Based on what we could see from this unit, it is well worth buying it. We recommend it to anyone looking for an affordable magnetic (i.e., using electro-magnetic RF fields) tracking solution for projects requiring small to medium-sized operational volumes.

Some criteria like the durability and pricing are estimates or are based on information we cannot divulgate at the moment of this writing on the manufacturer's request. The exact pricing of the Wintracker product will be made available by the manufacturer. You can consult their web site for up to date information at:

http://www.vr-space.com/

About the criteria used:

• Aesthetics: measures our general impression on the device aesthetical look and ergonomics design. Controls user friendliness and accessibility is an example of factors we evaluate.
• Robustness: measures our general impression on the device mechanical assembly quality.
• Durability: measures our general impression on the device expected durability. This is only an estimation based on visible and observable physical and mechanical assembly characteristics of the device. The warranty provided by the manufacturer is also considered on our final rank decision.
• Performances: measures our general impression on the device performances based on the benchmark result we got during the evaluation.
• Pricing: measures our general impression regarding the pricing of the device.

About our ranking system:

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