Technology today is amazing. I am a sucker for the shiniest brightest objects on the market and I’m passing on that love to my kids. Any day of the week I’d take a new piece of technological wonder over jewelry. Currently, I find myself waffling between wanting the new MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or IPad Pro and my youngest daughter, who is 11, is waging a strong campaign for a new iPad Pro. Because that’s just what every 11 year old needs…. a pro level iPad. But I’ll be damned if I’m not seriously considering getting her grandparents to go in and help me procure her one for impending 5th grade graduation (or lack thereof as it were). Because the Pandemic made me do it.
So naturally, when Dennis and Megan asked if my kids and I wanted to test drive the new MI Homes virtual reality headset, I jumped at the chance. My other daughter is 13 and while she loves herself some social media, shiny techy things aren’t as enticing to her as they are to Lelia (aforementioned 11 year old) and I. However, she happily obliged my requests to provide commentary and feedback on the headset.
Our first reaction was that it was a breeze to assemble. The too-cool-for-school (perhaps that’s even literal now given the distance learning we’re all enduring), 13 year old, did it without even reading the directions. Izzy McFly as I like to call her, was stymied though as to what to do with the headset since she had poo-pooed the need for reading directions. Lelia, ever the rule follower, read the directions to completion and was the first of us to begin touring some lovely model homes. She shared with the class (her mother and sister) that usage of the headset required the Matterport app being installed on our phones.
From there we each took turns touring ourselves through the homes; walking up and down the stairs, peering into bedrooms and around bathrooms, admiring art on the walls and the shiny hardwood floors. Even my luddite husband took it for a spin and was impressed with how immersive it felt. It’s the first time I’ve used one of these headsets, oh no wait, there was that one time I tried one that used a roller coaster as the visual effect. Turns out I also don’t like VR roller coasters. I digress, this time around, I was super impressed. Standing in the kitchen between the island and the fridge, looking out into the family room, I could really get a feel for the size of the home. Usage was easy and straightforward too, so the non-direction reading child could navigate through without any questions. Again, I refer you to my luddite husband who figured out with an out loud exclamation to himself, “oh the blue dots are how I move”. As is the case with all VR headset usage, watching someone use it is almost as fun as using it yourself.
Izzy, Lelia, Colin and I all give the headset 5 stars for ease of use. As for helpfulness in the home sales process, I also give it 5 stars. This product above all others, truly makes you feel as if you are in the model home. It helps you understand size and layout. It gives you a feel for what it would be like to live in the home. You can walk in and out of every room, turn around and look at it from various angles and see the quality craftsmanship of the build and the finishes. Plus, the headset is reusable so when you’re done touring homes, you can go on your own roller coaster ride and pretend you’re in Disneyworld, not “quarantine”.
