Most of us have been in the field of flight simulation for a number of years now, and have seen more evolutions than you probably care to remember! We have seen superb advances in the design and creation of aircraft. From practically a visual representation of what the plane looks like, to multi-functional working systems which simulate exactly how the real systems work on real world aircraft. Hardware is another area that keeps being developed, not only by companies but by individuals who strive to achieve the most realistic environment they can for their summing experience. This brings me nicely onto home cockpits. You will probably have seen various websites with simmers who have created masterpieces using real world components.
So what about the rest of us? Those who don't have the time, money, resources or skill to create their ideal simulator? There are a number of inexpensive hardware add-ons available on the market, and one of these is the Track IR3. Track IR3 has been around for a while now, and has gone through various stages of development to get to where it is today. The principles have remained the same, however the visual look and no doubt the software has gone through various overhauls to bring it to where it is today.
At present, Track IR3 comes in two variants. Standard and Pro. The review will cover the Pro version. The main difference between to the two is its capabilities in speed and resolution.
So, without further ado, lets see how it all works and performs using Fs2004. Installation After making initial contact with Naturalpoint, I received the unit in a matter of days! Delivered by UPS to my door, it was packaged extremely well and arrived in perfect condition. I was doubly impressed with the fact that it had to be shipped overseas!
On opening the package, you are presented with a striking display package with a fighter pilot staring you right in the face!
Unlike many plastic display packages these days, you don't have to rip or cut the packaging. It opens up with ease to allow you to remove the contents. It may seem insignificant but it is particularly useful if like me you are subject to moving house every few years!
The contents of the Track IR3 include the following:
Opening the CD case reveals a few important instructions to follow to ensure successful installation. As with many USB devices these days, it is imperative that you install the software prior to plugging the device into your PC. I have fallen foul of doing the opposite with other hardware in the past and have almost reached breaking point before realising the error of my ways! Moral of the story is (as with so many add-ons these days) RTFM!
On placing the CD into your drive, it will autorun and begin the installation process. If you should have inadvertently plugged the sensor in already, you are reminded to unplug it prior to continuing any further. If like me you are installing the software to use with FS2004, it will automatically detect where it is located, and install the necessary components into the modules folder. The remainder of the software can be installed in a directory of your choice.
After the software has been installed, its time to plug the sensor into your USB port. If you are using a USB hub, depending on what other devices you have plugged in might decide whether you need to have it powered or not. Once the unit has been plugged in, windows will automatically detect it, and run through a quick install process. You are now ready to unleash what the TrackIR3 has to offer!
Calibration & Documentation
Before
you begin to use your TrackIR3, it is necessary to run through the various
stages to ensure you get it working to your liking. The sensor is rather
futuristic in design to say the least! Its like a small alien bug like
creature constantly looking at you. I placed my sensor on top of my
monitor directly in front of me. The legs are flexible and the sensor can
both tilt and swivel to ensure you can place it almost anywhere. One word
of warning I will give you at this stage, is try to avoid having any
bright natural light coming directly from behind you. Due to my
surroundings I am forced to have a large window directly behind me, which
initially caused havoc with my calibration. With a little jiggery-pokery I
managed to dampen down the light coming in from behind me. The TrackIR3
works by an infra-red (IR) camera to track your head movements. You
reflect IR light back to the TrackIR3, which sends instructions to your
computer to move your game view or mouse cursor. That's the principle in
layman's terms, if you want to read a more detailed report on how it
works, click
here As you step through each of the 5 pages, you are met with what at first seems quite daunting figures, radio buttons and slide bars.
As with most software/hardware these days, the manual comes in electronic format. The same is to be said with TrackIR3. A highly detailed 35 page manual in .pdf (Adobe Acrobat) is included and explains in simple terms how to tackle each of the various stages of calibration. Although probably the insignificant object in the package, the sheet of reflective dots are the key to making it all work. These dots are self adhesive and are designed to be placed on your forehead!
Most of the settings were easy to implement, but it did take me a while to get the lateral movement to a degree that met my liking. Never the less, with perseverance and continual reading of the manual, I had it all calibrated and ready for use within the hour.
I decided at this point to carry out a flight from start-up to shutdown. Using the default Lear 45 I positioned myself at Cardiff Airport (EGFF) to Schipol (EHAM). After initial start-up and clearance, it was time to taxi. This is where it really started to become apparent how useful the TrackIR3 is. As you follow your assigned taxi route to your departure runway, you can glance very quickly out of the windows to ensure you are following the taxiway direction boards and there is no other traffic that might obstruct you.Once airborne, it was surreal being able to "wander" around the VC using the TrackIR3. On a couple of occasions ATC called warning of other traffic in the area. A small movement of the the head and I was looking out of the port window scanning for the reported traffic. After a short flight, it was getting time to start the decent into EHAM. Again, it was a breeze to scan the skies to see if there were any unreported aircraft in the local airspace. As I mentioned at the beginning of the flight about being able to see your taxi route, the same applies on the taxi to the arrivals ramp.One of the areas where the TrackIR3 really excels is flying helicopters. With the versatility of helicopters, its hard to resist trying to land in tight and almost inaccessible places. Unlike landing in a fixed wing aircraft, when travelling at almost 0 kts, it becomes hard to judge what your landing attitude is. A quick glance to the side, or even through your feet quickly brings the visual references you need. The number of times I have attempted a landing using my hat to pan round the cockpit has ended in a rather heavy landing to say the least! Using the TrackIR3, you look where you want get your reference and your back looking forward out of the cockpit before you know it. There are a couple of very neat videos demonstrating how it reacts when flying helicopters on the Naturalpoint website here. So are there any down sides to the TrackIR3 I hear you ask? Well, there is one area that caused me a small problem, but the problem really laid with me as opposed the functionality of the TrackIR3. I did find during my early days of using the TrackIR3 I started to feel a little nauseas after a short while. I can only assume that it was due to my senses not being used to the new stimulation they were experiencing. In my case, I found that using it for a short period and gradually increasing the duration over a period of time pretty much eliminated the nausea. I don't think this is something that is attributed specifically to the TrackIR3, but more of a generic feeling you get when subjected to anything new like this. The only other area is its interoperability with Active Camera 2004. Both the utilities use head latency to achieve their given effects. There is a hints and tips section on the TrackIR3 website which explains about this, and how to make things work harmoniously. Summary:Having put the device through its paces, I would most certainly recommend it to fellow flyers. I must admit it is quite hard to really explain how well it works and how it can give your flightsim that added touch of realism. It has to be tested to really appreciate what it is all about. My two biggest regrets whilst testing this device was not being able to test it on a mulit-monitored flightsim setup (which I believe would be truly outstanding) and not being able to test it with other simulation software. It really does bring a different perspective even if like me you only have a primary display for your simulator, with the very manipulative software interface, it can be tailored to how you see fit. Like lots of products these days, the price is always a consideration. In this case your going to have to part with $139 for the Pro version, or $109 if you decided to go with the standard. But look at it this way, on average an add-on plane for Fs2004 is in the region of $15-30. If you are a hardcore simmer, you will probably buy 2 or 3 planes in a year, but might only ever fly them initially for the first month or so, then leave it to gather dust in its virtual hanger. With the TrackIR3, you use it every time you load your sim! Old/New/Fast/Slow/Light/Heavy... it matters not. As long as it has a Virtual Cockpit your in business.
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