Pre-Order the $99 Oculus-Powered Samsung Gear VR Now

Good news, Samsung Galaxy owners: Now you can see for yourself if virtual reality is really worth the hype.

Samsung on Tuesday started taking pre-orders for its new, $99 Oculus-powered Gear VR headset. The device works with Samsung's 2015 flagship smartphones, including the Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S6 Edge+, Galaxy S6, and Galaxy S6 Edge.

The Gear VR uses your phone's display to provide "the color, clarity and performance needed for an amazing virtual reality experience," Samsung said. The new consumer-version Gear VR up for pre-order today is 19 percent lighter than the Innovator Edition, and includes a new foam cushioning to make it more comfy to wear. The new model also includes improvements for the touchpad, which should offer geater control and easier navigation.

The headset can play "dozens of new made-for-VR games" headed to the Oculus platform this year, including CCP's Gunjack and Ustwo Games' Lands End. You'll also be able to watch content from Samsung's premium Milk VR service, Netflix, and Oculus Video, which offers "thousands" of videos and films from Lionsgate, 20th Century Fox, Twitch, and Vimeo.

The Gear VR is now available for pre-order in the U.S. via Samsung, Amazon, and Best Buy, and is slated to begin shipping on Nov. 20. It will also be available in Best Buy stores Nov. 20, T-Mobile on Nov. 27, and AT&T will carry it at some point in the near future as well.

For more, check out PCMag's Hands On With the Oculus Touch and New Gear VR.

Meanwhile on the VR front, Google on Monday expanded its Expeditions Pioneer Program for students to 15 new cities. The program is designed to enhance the in-class experience by letting students visit places they're learning about in school — like the bottom of the sea or the surface of Mars — in VR.

The Expeditions Pioneer Program will now be available in Alexandria, Va.; Baltimore; Cincinnati; Detroit; Indianapolis; Las Vegas; New Orleans; Orlando, Fla.; Phoenix; Portland, Ore.; Salt Lake City; and Washington D.C. Outside of the U.S., Google is also launching the program in Toronto, Canada as well as Denmark and Singapore.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade.

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes.

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app.

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth.

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light.

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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