NYT VR - New York Times App Reviews

How in this day and age could the NYT have released an app that was so poor? Files that have been downloaded must be RE-downloaded the next time you try to use it (e.g. to show a friend). Given that the download speeds are abysmally slow, and can’t be done in the background, the motivation to use this app has really been stifled.

Fantastic videos, especially "Take Flight." Initially felt major eye strain getting images into focus using the Cardboard, but it was much better after I realized the viewer was meant to be pressed flat against the forehead (as opposed to resting on the nose slightly angled). Occasionally made me slightly dizzy, just because the experience was sometimes immersive enough that my body expected sensations of movement that werent there. Really incredible!

This is a great idea but seeing in double vision on iPhone 6 dooms it. Even with Zoom off per the FAQs. Other VR videos by other producers work fine on my Cardboard (dodo case G2). Please fix!!

The pictures do not converge and thus look blurry. Here is the test. Run the Google cardboard app. If it runs flawlessly then the problem is not your phone or setup.

If you wear glasses, it wont work without them. Focus is a bit blurred. Watched Walk in New York. Fun to look all around, but the blurriness was unpleasant. Tried the flying video. No picture at all---just the audio. Interesting idea. Needs lots of work.

App always suffers from double vision. It just doesnt want to work. If I keep one eye closed, things are in focus, but thats just awkward. Im using an iPhone 6S with standard (not zoomed) view setting. Everything is perfectly aligned, since other VR apps are working great. Bummer.

I see double vision on the app. As recommended on the nytimes site, I checked if I had zoom on (nope). Cant get this app to work with my iPhone 6 Plus.

I have used the app on my iPhone 6 standalone and with the NY Time/Google Cardboard viewer. With the viewer, I dont find the experience "immersive" at all. It gets blurry when I move my head, but is sharp when my head is still. With and without the viewer, it is fascinating to be able to look all around, but the novelty wears off in less than a minute. As a new medium to present information or entertain, it falls flat and is not worth the time it takes to download the data files and watch. Cute technology, but not worth the time.

This is a huge disappointment. The operation of the app, despite requiring "only" a few steps, is not intuitive. When you figure out where to swipe and where to tap, you have to wait for the media to download. The subject matter is sometimes interesting, sometimes not. You can either rotate the screen by dragging your finger on it, or rotate yourself. The videos, while beautifully photographed, are fairly sedate.

I read the FAQ, and verified my phone isnt in zoom mode. No wonder my neighbor threw their Google Cardboard device away. The device works great with 6 plus on other apps. The NY Times app is a no-go. Best content so far is with an app called VRSE, which has some of the NY Times content.

Very interesting app. Has tremendous potential, but slightly annoying given the limited view on the screen. Original idea. Im sure there will be many more games & apps like this. Would love it if the audio would also "move".

Downloaded it and nothing...doesnt respond, doesnt open.

Another update from NYT and still the double-vision with the iPhone 6 Plus persists! I tried zoom mode and I switched to standard mode and in both modes — DOUBLE VISION. Why would NYT not fix this problem?!

Downloaded...does not open...annoying!!

I am having the same double vision problems that others are having. Zoom is not turned on. I can watch NYT videos in the Vrse app, so I know the problem is with this app.

NY Times has really been pushing these VR videos down our throats lately. Ive watched several, hoping to like them. But the truth is, this format creates a huge distraction from the story. Its a party trick, and it stops being interesting pretty quick. Lets say youre VRing in Paris after the terrorist attacks. Theres a speaker at the candlelight vigil youre dropping in on. But instead of paying any attention to what that person is saying, youre busy moving your head around oohing and ahhing over dumb stuff, like how cool the gyroscope in your phone is, or how there is a phantom zone in the video if you look down. In another video, youre dropping in on Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders rallies. You might spend a full minute just looking around the auditorium, getting your bearings trying to find the podium. Its all a waste of time and energy. You come out of these videos not having heard or learned anything. One huge flaw is that when one video transitions to another, it does not begin with an orientation towards the "movies" focus. (Trump, the speaker at the candlelight vigil, etc.) After each transition to a new video, you have to move your head, or whole body, to reorient for the new video. You may be facing your kitchen to watch the subject of one video, it transitions, and you have to do a complete turn and face your living room to see the subject of the following video. Who wants to go through all of that?

Using the app, I found it fascinating that the consumer had the ability to maneuver themselves around. Although the developers of this app have the concept of VR down - there are dimensions where the technology could unlock their fullest potential. In other words, the golden era of VR is just around the corner, this is a great app introducing the powerful media tool VR can accommodate for our society. Surely enough, this app is a great stepping stone towards the goal towards VR.

Cool idea. Not worth the effort to make it work. Fortunately, cardboard recycles...

I really wanted to like this app but video quality is so poor and getting worse between releases so it seems. I was really looking forward to seeing the candidates video but the video was very superficial.

I honestly dont get the technophobe curmudgeons..Its free and its fun and has a lot of potential