Get a Samsung Gear VR for $79.99
From the Cheapskate: In my first-ever Cheapskate video (!), I tell you why this is the VR headset to buy. Plus: Get a compatible phone, the Samsung Galaxy S6, for just $299.99.
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Cheeps! Trying something new today. You know how you have a favorite DJ, maybe your morning radio guy, and you build up this picture in your head of how he looks -- and then you actually see him and it's like, "Whoa! That guy definitely belongs on the radio!"
That's about to happen here. Sure, you've seen a thumbnail of my smiling mug for the past eight-plus years, but most likely you've never seen me outside the printed word. Assuming you haven't run screaming from the room after watching that, allow me to flesh out a few details.
Phone not included. But you can get a deal on one!
First, the most important one: The Samsung Gear VR for $79.99 shipped is available from Daily Steals, and it's new, not refurbished. Second, people continue to ask me if Daily Steals is legit, because although it's under new ownership, there are still lots of very negative reviews out there from the old days.
My take: Daily Steals is A-OK. Shipping times are fast and customer service is good. The only thing it shares with its former terrible self is a name.
As I mentioned in the video, the Gear VR works with only a handful of Samsung phones. If you don't already have one that's compatible and you've been thinking about making a change anyway, Daily Steals also has the refurbished Samsung Galaxy S6 (Verizon unlocked, 32GB) for $299.99. That's an amazing price for what was, until very recently, Samsung's flagship phone.
Actually, Daily Steals is running deals on all the VR-compatible Samsung phones, just FYI.
I've mentioned the Gear VR before -- it's my favorite VR headset that doesn't say "HTC Vive" on it. For considerably less money, you get an Oculus-powered environment with access to games and apps not available for Google Cardboard. One of my favorite pastimes right now is just demo-ing the thing, because people go bananas for it. It's that good.
And, to be honest, it's worth $99.99. But why not get it for $20 less? As I said in the video, you will not be disappointed.
You can't play Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes on Google Cardboard. But you can on Gear VR! (And you should.)
Speaking of the video, I'd welcome your feedback. This is just a little experiment right now, but the idea is to do more of these going forward. Because for certain products, I want you to see my enthusiasm instead of just reading about it. But bear with me while I get my video legs.
Bonus deal: Sure, you could spend $400-500 on a Surface 3 or similar hybrid PC. But here's another, slightly cheaper option: Walmart has the Nextbook Flexx 10 two-in-one tablet for $99.99 shipped (plus tax).
This 10-inch tablet runs Windows 10 (though Windows 8.1 is mentioned in a few places in the listing) and comes with a keyboard dock, 32GB of expandable storage and a rather snazzy blue paint job.
No powerhouse, obviously, but could be good for a student or similar kind of user. A full-blown Windows PC for under $100 -- amaze-balls!