Never let it be said that you are too old for new gaming experiences. I have been gaming for about 43 years now and I genuinely still love it, even though I will be the first to admit the hurtling pace of the industry and the dedication needed to keep up with it, does leave me trailing a bit.
However, at the tender age of 48, I’ve just had my first experience of a haptic gaming vest. Now, if you are like me, you may have no idea what that is at all.
So as I unboxed the rather combative looking vest, it was very much a journey of discovery. The first impressions from the unboxing were great, it’s clearly a really high-quality product that looks the part with a very robust looking mesh material that is lightweight and fully adjustable.
I had half expected a struggle to get this on, because in all honestly my belly is having some expansion issues, luckily it was actually a very comfortable fit and I didn’t really know I was wearing it. My wife knew though, she took pictures, which I refuse to share, and she mocked me for looking like I was off to play paintball or pretend I was in the army.
The vest is actually pretty subtle, despite her derision. It’s low key, really comfortable, and never looks ‘too much’. Of course, a nicely designed vest really means nothing, because that’s only a small part of the package, after all, I’m not wearing this to look good as I go down to the shops.
The technology is what we are here for, and it has a lot of it packed onto the vest. The first key element is the control panel, the hub of everything you need and it’s here that you can control the volume and sensitivity of the haptic sensors.
Those sensors are called transducers, again, every day is a school day for me when it comes to things like this. These circular sensors are what allows the vest to work its magic and provide you with the vibration and sound interactions.
That’s essentially what the vest does, through a series of these sub woofer sensors at different parts of the body – it turns the audio into physical sensation and allows a 4D experience to the game you are playing.
So for example on Call Of Duty – if an explosion crashes to the right of you, you feel it on the right side of your body. When you get shot you feel it, the music interacts with the vest and the game’s audio suddenly becomes alive in your living room.
That coupled with a linked pair of headlines is quite the immersive experience, in fact it’s pretty mind-blowing as the vest takes the bass on the game to give you this innovative new experience.
My teenage daughter also had a go and was suitably impressed with result, so much so that she claimed that games felt a bit flat after using it. It isn’t just gaming though, the vest can be used for movies to add another level to watching films, particularly effective on horror films!
If you want another use of the vest – sit in a lowly lit room, stick your headphones and the vest on, and get listening to a few albums – as Stardust once sang ‘The Music Sounds Better With You’ – it doesn’t just sound better though – you feel every beat.
The Woojer is a seriously top-notch, innovative, inspiring gadget – and there is no doubt that it is a complete game changer in every sense. It’s my first experience of a haptic vest, something I didn’t know anything about, it was a great experience testing it out, but I have nothing to compare it to.
It looks superb, feels really comfortable, it’s easy to use, and it gives you something really fresh and unique in terms of the experience. It’s largely something you would use on your own, you would feel a bit daft on family movie night sitting there with the vest on.
The price is probably the only downside – this is a premium product at a premium price. In fairness, it doesn’t claim to be anything else – but it will set you back a pretty penny.
You can only judge whether anything is worth the money if you can spare the money. My honest opinion of the Woojer vest is that it is a brilliant product that adds a level of immersion to games that is fun and effective. It’s a luxury addition to anyone’s gadget set up.
I personally would never be in a position to part with a hefty chunk of cash to add it to the household, but others can, and if they did, I am very sure they would enjoy it.
VR users and people who do a lot of gaming and have disposable income for their hobby, would clearly get a lot from a Woojer 3 vest.
It’s certainly more than just a gimmick, it’s an impressive product with very bold intentions and quality performance – I had great fun.
The Woojer Vest 3 is available from the Woojer website for £420.
What people have said on Best Buy
Mike C: The fit is great no problems to get on or off. Battery life is good. The response is great. I works with the audio from the games and gives the extra rumble and thump during game play. With music you can feel the vibrations. It is not a tactile vest so no direct pin point hits or shocks like that. If you go in looking for that you may be disappointed. Other wise you I say go for it.
RamB: I’ve been using the Woojer Vest for a few weeks now, and I’m absolutely amazed by it. It’s a wearable haptic feedback device that adds a whole new dimension to my gaming, music, and movie experiences.
The Woojer Vest uses haptic transducers to create vibrations that you can feel throughout your body. These vibrations are in sync with the audio that you’re hearing, so they really immerse you in whatever you’re doing.
When I’m gaming, the Woojer Vest makes me feel like I’m right in the middle of the action. I can feel the explosions, the gunfire, and the footsteps of my enemies. It’s like having a whole new level of feedback that makes the game even more exciting.
Rtxpc: It says it lasts 8 hours. It depends on audio out. Headphones or speakers and type of headphones. Battery has run for about 4hrs now and it dies using headphones. 3 weeks in 1 month? Not sure. Also it randomly makes your headphones sound as if they blown out but you need to unplug it and shut off and reboot then once on plug it back in. The Bluetooth is not intuitive and easy use. If your headphones use their own usb device to connect via Bluetooth good luck connecting to the vest. Phone connects via app. Vest also heats up pretty good. The rumble is interesting. Music is great and some movies are also fun. Vr games are fun with it and spooky ghost games are freaky+. The battery dying faster in less than a month is not favorable. The build and materials used feel solid and premium but that battery and audio issue is inconvenient
Alternatives
bHaptics TactSuit X40 — Haptic Vest with 40 Vibration Motors for VR
This is an even higher premium haptic vest offering on the market and one that opts for a whopping 40 sensors rather than just six. I can’t comment on the effectiveness as I haven’t tried it, but it does have a high 4.5 average rating after 31 reviews. To me, the vest looks less flexible, quite bulky, and definitely looks more like a combat vest rather than something you would want to sit around in the house listening to music while wearing.
Next Level Racing HF8 – Haptic Feedback Gaming Pad (NLR-G001)
There aren’t many gaming vests on the market, and certainly not at the lower price range. It’s still a nice area of the industry. This gaming pad for chairs is an interesting side step from the vests and one that hones in on the racing market. This is versatile for all types of chair and has eight vibration motors included.