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VR History

Historical devices and articles. Items without a link are on our publishing list. We publish a page only after we verify its facts, and items marked unverified come from our research notes. Last updated October 11, 2026.

Early / pre-2010 systems

• VPL EyePhone (1989, VPL Research)
• Virtuality 1000CS (1991)
• Nintendo Virtual Boy (1995)
• Forte VFX1 (1995)
• Research systems from organizations such as NVIS and Sensics

2010s consumer VR boom

• Oculus Rift DK1 (2013)
• Oculus Rift DK2 (2014)
• Oculus Rift CV1 (2016)
• HTC Vive (2016)
• PlayStation VR (2016)
• Samsung Gear VR
• Google Daydream / Daydream View
• Windows Mixed Reality headsets: Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung Odyssey
• Valve Index (2019)
• Oculus Quest / original Quest (2019)

2020s maturation and spatial computing

• Meta / Oculus Quest 2 (2020)
• Meta Quest 3 (2023)
• Meta Quest 3S (2024)
• Apple Vision Pro (2024 generation and later refreshes)
• Samsung Galaxy XR (2025)unverified
• Valve Steam Frame (September 2026 launch)unverified
• High-end PC VR systems from Pimax, Varjo and Bigscreen Beyond

Historical devices

• VPL EyePhone
• Virtuality 1000CS
• Nintendo Virtual Boy
• Forte VFX1
• Oculus Rift DK1
• Oculus Rift DK2
• Oculus Rift CV1
• Original HTC Vive
• Original PlayStation VR
• Samsung Gear VR
• Google Daydream
• Windows Mixed Reality headsets
• Oculus Go
• Original Oculus Quest

Historical articles

• History of virtual reality
• The evolution of VR gaming
• The Oculus Rift Kickstarter story
• How room-scale VR developed
• The history of standalone VR
• Why smartphone VR declined
• The evolution of VR controllers
• How VR displays have improved
• The history of PlayStation VR
• The development of mixed reality