Oculus Lens protector?

Micha · Jul 23, 2017

I just bought some Savvie's 50mm lens protectors for the Oculus and they are no good. Excellent quality, fast shipping, but too thick and not curved - and hence not malleable enough to stick to the curved lenses of the CV1. I tried softening one up with a hair-dryer before sticking it on, but still no joy.

This thread (https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...-protection?highlight=screen+protector+oculus) indicated they work great for the DK2, so either they changed their product in the intervening 3 years, or the lenses in the CV1 are significantly different from the DK2.

Anyway, cutting a long story short, does anybody have any current personal recommendations for lens protectors for the Oculus Rift CV1?

Orvidius · Jul 23, 2017

I ended up getting a set of these. The 48mm versions fit pretty well (I measured with calipers before ordering). They're just flexible enough that you can stretch them over the curvature of the lens. They'll even hide existing scuffs and scratches a little bit. Basically to put them on, I would start from the inner edge of the lens, and press it in at the center, and then squeeze the air out in all other directions. Small bubbles may try to catch at first, but you can press them out and it'll take it.

The caveat is that they take forever to ship them. They're coming from China, and I don't see any other sources.

Micha · Jul 26, 2017

Thanks; nobody else has suggested any alternatives so looks like that's it for curved protectors. At £12 for 3 they're rather expensive as far as screen/lens protectors go, but better than scratching the Oculus!

Amazon UK has them available for faster shipping.

Chromezero · Jul 26, 2017

You might consider https://vr-lens-lab.com/. I haven't personally tried them but others seem to like them.

DaggerSnake · Jul 26, 2017

What are you doing to ge the lenses scratched? I'm pretty careful putting my headset on and off.

Do glasses scratch them? I could see than being an issue.

Just curious.

Orvidius · Jul 26, 2017

DaggerSnake said:
What are you doing to ge the lenses scratched? I'm pretty careful putting my headset on and off.

Do glasses scratch them? I could see than being an issue.

Yep, that's exactly it. My glasses aren't that huge, but the HMD would push them hard into my face, and the main point of contact was the lenses. Over time it was starting to scuff up the Rift lenses, such that it looked like a smudge, but it was actual surface damage. The "healing shield" watch protectors solved it, and even improved the view such that I could forget that the scuffs were there. So even though I'm now using the VR Lens Lab lens inserts, I still have the scratch guards on there to hide the existing scuffs.

DaggerSnake · Jul 26, 2017

Oh man that sucks, so contact lenses aren't an option for you?

I'm sure there are others who will be the same boat.

Orvidius · Jul 26, 2017

DaggerSnake said:
Oh man that sucks, so contact lenses aren't an option for you?

I'm sure there are others who will be the same boat.

I tried them once (at the eye doctor), not so great. I have a fairly strong prescription with astigmatism, so at least at the time, I'd have needed hard lenses. Probably still do, unless the technology has gotten a lot better. But those are pretty uncomfortable and I don't mind using zero-maintenance glasses.

I was also turned away for LASIK.

Micha · Jul 28, 2017

I do wear contact lenses but usually only for motorbiking. Rarely when using the computer (not enough blinking -> dry eyes).

I saw the vr-lens-lab option; pretty expensive but probably the way to go long-term.

Unless I look into getting my eyes lasered (something I've been considering anyway), but at nearly £4k, that's getting a bit ridiculous for a game! Still, others I know have had it done and swear by it, and it would improve general quality of life. I'm just concerned that copious computer use (I'm a programmer as well as gamer) will rapidly degrade my eyes again afterwards.

Orvidius · Jul 28, 2017

Yeah, I have friends who have gotten LASIK, and they say it's life-changing. I got a free evaluation from the eye doctors that advertise on the radio constantly here. They said I was a poor candidate, and "don't let anyone else do it either", due to the severity of my prescription. They said PRK might be possible though. It's almost the same thing as LASIK, except instead of cutting a flap and removing material from inside the cornea, it's removed at the surface, which means they have more room for removal without needing to preserve a thick flap. The downside is that it's more painful and has a longer recovery (a couple of weeks instead of a couple of days). But also LASIK has a life-long risk of reopening the flap if you take a severe blow to the head. So of course I look ahead to things like car accidents, and I think I'd prefer PRK anyway, for that reason alone.

But in the meantime, I'm pretty satisfied with the VR Lens Lab inserts. The spherical distortion took some getting used to, but most of the time I'm not aware of it anymore.