Customer Reviews

TrackIr 5 Premium Head Tracking for Gaming

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I fly Microsoft Flight Sim X as a way to keep my head in flying while I cannot afford to exersize my real life certificate. I've been wanting one of these for a while and during the wait, Natural Point put out the new version 5. I finally bought it and, all I can say is "WOW!"

Okay, that's not all I can say. When the package arrived, quickly I might add, from GoGamer, I was surprised at the size of the box. It was well over-packed and protected from the rigors of shipping. The actual unit is quite small. Unpacking from the bubble package is easier than the normal bubble packaging, too. I was going to wait for Christmas, put it under the tree, etc. but the kids will just have to understand!

Setup is a snap. Installed the software from the website first, then plugged it all up. It just works. I picked one of the default profiles and went flying. It was wonderful to look around the airplane, although I habitually use the hat switch which is now largely useless. I haven't even explored all the settings, profiles, or adjusted anything but the flying is 100% better. I turned my head to look where the runway is! Simple thing, but so, so important for realism. Imagine leaning in forward to see and set the radio, or turn the OBS knob to a precise setting, or craning your neck up to see over the dash better. I'm hoping today to explore the settings some more. I picked a profile that moves actually too well. I need to expand the "dead zone" just a bit so my head movements don't make flying into what my wife calls a puke ride. It isn't of course.

The only difficulty I've had so far is trying to assign buttons for "Center" and "Pause" to my Saitek yoke. I haven't figured out how to make it work. But this is due to my not having explored the software yet. The buttons assign in the Track IR software, but when I start the sim, they aren't functioning. I need to RTM.

Bottom line: This Track IR should win the Nobel Peace Prize. It is an OUTSTANDING product. Even at the default settings I'm still using, it is a HUGE improvement over using the hatswitch for panning, the + and - buttons for zooming, the shift+enter to raise my head, etc. It's only going to get better for me as I improve my personal profile settings. If you are not sold on it yet, read flight sim forums for reviews. There are YouTube videos you can watch it in action. No one ever says they don't like it. If you're reading this review, you want it anyway. Buy it. You will NOT regret your purchase.

Compared to the Trackir v4, the v5 is smoothier, and in general you don't need to "recenter" very often. Also, you have more room to move your head, specially when leaning. Considering that v4 is already a 5 star device in my opinion, you can't go wrong with v5. If you have a v4, there is really no necessity to upgrade, but if you're going for your first trackir, don't hesitate - buy v5.

Yes it's expensive but one you have used it, you can't live without it. Using a hat-switch to look around in air combat simulations cannot compare to simply moving your head naturally to pan around as if you are in the plane. Once you own one, flying without it is just not worth it. Do yourself a favor and buy one. I bought mine directly from the trackir website. You can get a better deal by buying from Amazon or an Amazon retailer.

I have enjoyed flight sims for many years but I have NEVER enjoyed them this much!

I bought this head tracking system for use with IL-2 and X-Plane, it works wonderfully with both. Keeping an enemy plane in sight is a breeze and flying a good pattern/approach has never been so simple. TrackIR has reinvigorated my enthusiasm for these games. I don't think I could ever go back to the old HAT switch on the joystick to change views.

It is a bit disorienting for the first few minutes. You have to wrap your brain around the fact that a head turn of less than 90 degrees might produce a view change of 180 degrees or more. But really, the learning curve is minimal.

This unit is much smaller than you think it might be from the pictures, which I think is a good thing. The mount for the "camera" is not universal and you may have to get creative in attaching it to your monitor. The reflector clip you need to attach to a cap (not supplied) feels very flimsy but reflector tape is readily available and making a more sturdy unit would not be difficult at all.

The instruction say the maximum range is around 5 feet, but I am using it at a distance of around 7-8 feet (I use a large plasma screen) with moderate lighting. It has not lost the tracking even once at that distance. No software came with my unit but the needed software is readily available on the manufacturer's website. Installation was a bit touchy and the PC needed to be rebooted after running the setup program. Time needs to be taken with the software to get it set to your preferences but in all this took only about a half hour and was very intuitive.

So is it worth the money? As far as how much it enhances your enjoyment of the games, the answer is a huge YES! However, when you look at the materials it is easy to see that the manufacturer is making a huge profit off of each unit. The camera is really nothing special, it is basically a webcam that can see infrared light. The reflector clip is really "cheap" being made of very thin plastic. The good news is that the manufacturer has done a very good job of getting game/sim developers to integrate the software into many newer titles.

Honestly, seeing the flimsy reflector clip was a huge let down after having spent $150 on the unit. If the manufacturer were smart, they would redesign the clip. As it stands now, each new owner probably has a "you gotta be kidding me" moment when they open the box and see the clip. Spending an extra dollar or two in the manufacturing process to improve the clip would seem to be a small price to pay to eliminate the dampening of customer enthusiasm.

In the several years that I have been a fan of Flight Sim, from Sublogic to FSX, there has been only a hand full it items that has been rule changes in the way one plays.

This product is at the top of the list. Not only is it a snap to setup and get running (took less than 10 minuets). TrackIR 5 has literally changed how I play and enjoy Flight Sim X and Black Shark. Before I got the Track IR, using a HAT switch to pan inside and outside of the aircraft got the job done. The HAT switch is, in my opinion great for changing your view outside of the SIM aircraft. For the record, the HAT switch (even with the Track IR) is still the best way to pan external views.

In terms if developing an awareness of your location, speed, since of movement, and your position relative to where you want your sim plane to be, this tool is hands-down, a game changer. It takes a little getting use to. For me, I have never used a tool that lets me simply look in the direction I want to move to in a natural way. You may need to make a few simple adjustments to the speed and smoothness controls for your taste. However, once you have done that, a new Flight Sim world opens up to you.

I was a bit reluctant to buy this product. But there is enough information on the internet, to give you a real understand of how this tool is supposed to work. And it works very well. If you buy only one add on for Flight Sim, this is the add on to buy. I bought TrackIR 5, without the track clip. It really works well, and I don't have to always wear a headset to use the TrackIR.

I would recommend the TrackIR to any serious Flight or Race sim fan out there. You might think that the unit is a little expensive. I had my reservations, but I am so glad I bought it, and so will you once you buy one for yourself!

As a real-life glider pilot, this tool finally allows me to use my simulators in the way I wanted to: As training aids to practice soaring skills while keeping my "head out of the cockpit", and focusing on pitch attitude and precision turns.

While I prefer the flight characteristics and gliders available in Condor Soaring, and it does support TrackIR perfectly well in 2 degrees of freedom, the implementation in Silent Wings is even better, supporting all 6 degrees of freedom. You can literally lean towards the edge of the cockpit and look over the side of the canopy. The suspension of disbelief is unprecedented.

Setup was easy. Tweaking the TrackIR software to my preferences took some experimentation. Personally, I like the "One:One" mode, but I need to look a full 90 degrees to each side, so I had to create my own curve. I found that a very slight "dish-shaped" curve worked best, with only a moderate ratio, 2 or 3 to 1, and no "dead-spot" in the middle. I applied this to Pitch and Yaw. I think the included "One:One" curve works well for Roll. Removal of the dead-spot was key: If you're relying on the computer to tell you when your plane is flying straight by allowing you to line up the view via a center detent, so to speak, then you're doing just that, "relying on the computer", and that just doesn't work in real-life. Try for a smooth, natural feeling setup and you won't believe the newfound realism your simulator is capable of.

I have debated getting a Track IR since they first started making them. I was never sure I would like such a device, and have sometimes, though not often, experienced some nausea when gaming across multiple monitors, playing first-person shooter games like Half-Life 2. I fly helicopters in MS Flight Simulator X quite a bit, and decided it might make landing easier. Trying to maintain controlled flight in a helicopter and simultaneously use a hat switch to look around and down at the ground when landing has always proven to be quite a challenge. I would usually end up making a mistake on the stick just before touchdown and either speed up and miss the helipad or end up flying backwards before touching down.

So, I finally decided to try one, and bought the TrackIR 5 Pro. I really like it!

The unit itself is very small. Currently the picture displayed is accurate. So I'll say that the width of the square black IR camera with the rounded front, sitting atop the 3 legged mount, is just over 2". The instructions, as the picture here shows, tell you to put the 2 legs on the front edge and one leg on the back edge of the upper bezel on your LCD display. However, on my AOC center display, there really isn't much of an "edge" along the top. The case slopes back away from the top edge. It would not sit that way, and wanted to fall. But by simply reversing the legs so the single leg is on the front, and spreading the 2 legs along the back (they pivot inward and outward) I was able to make it sit there very nicely. The single leg has a notch intended to secure the USB cable. I can't use that with the legs reversed, but the cable drapes nicely down over the back of my Triplehead displays and around to its USB port.

Although the instructions advise avoiding ANY type of USB hub, even if powered, I find that my powered ULTRA USB Hub (switches 7 ports between 2 PCs) works quite well with it. Otherwise I would have needed to use an extension cable since my PC is just a little too far away for the included cable, which I think is 6 feet long.

Setup is very easy. There is no software included, just a URL to the TrackIR site to download the software. I use Windows 7 x 64 bit, so checked to verify that is supported by the latest version 5.1 software. Once the software was installed, I encountered the first minor issue. When the TrackIR software icon is clicked to open it, there is a rather unnerving delay of nearly 20 seconds while it loads, during which NO INDICATION AT ALL is provided to tell you it is loading. I have an up to date PC running a Core I7-860 CPU with 8GB RAM and a GTX 460 video card, so normally things happen fast enough. So my first thought is "why isn't it loading". It does load, and runs very well. It just takes this delay EVERY time I load it. They should have included at least a progress bar or something. Minor, but worth mentioning to keep others from wondering why it 'isn't working' during those first seconds.

The Track IR program window is very attractively designed, and impressed me. Until I wanted to "SAVE" the changes I made to the default profile. The menu for the SAVE action is not across the top of the window as one expects in pretty much every Windows OS app. The button is only a floppy disc icon, very light gray, and virtually "hidden" from view down in the lower portion of the window under Advanced Settings. It can be very hard to find, and will actually scroll out of sight if you have a wide-screen display! Poor planning on their their interface design. I also later found out that apparently it is not possible to save changes to the "default" profile. They do not stay changed. I had to create a new profile, make the changes, and then save that.

But those are the only 2 minor complaints I have. Aside from those, this thing is AWESOME.

All I had left to do setup-wise was install the Tracking Clip to the visor of a ball cap. I have read some reviews saying the early versions of this clip were cheaply made plastic. The one they included is actually stamped out of metal sheet, and nicely painted with black wrinkle-finish paint. It has 3 rounded tabs on which they applied highly reflective silver tape, much like that used on a reflective road sign for night visibility. It seems very sturdy.

The actual interface on the TrackIR window is fun to play with, as it graphically maps where you are looking in a 3D globe coordinate system. Having already started the Track IR program, it instantly pickup up and displayed data from the hat as soon as I oriented it anywhere near the camera. My first impression at that moment was that the sensitivity might be too intense, while playing with the TrackIR window. But I suggest you actually try it in a game before thinking of adjusting any settings, because it seemed just right once I used it in FSX.

I was up and running in FSX in no time. The only change I had to make at all was that by default they chose to use the F9 key to "Pause" the Track IR. I use the F9 key in FSX to switch from external to internal cockpit view, so I re-assigned their Pause key to CTRL+P, since FSX uses the "P" key.

I feel this device adds a lot of realism when using a flight simulator, and it has no problem at all re-centering my view simply by moving my head back to the middle of my displays. There is a centering button defined as F12, which does allow a certain amount of customization. For example, if you look around and when you come back to front center you decide your view is a bit high or low for what you want, you can move your head in the opposing direction (say upward a bit), press F12, and then move your head back down, and it will then give you a slightly lower view from what it considers the 'center' position.

There are further adjustments which can be made, and in fact you can create several different profiles if you like, but I have yet to explore that area. The default settings work really well in FSX. including the default "dead zone" for center, which is narrow, but seems just right. I presume you can adjust the percentage of how far you turn your head vs. how far the on-screen view changes, but they seem to have also made that just right from the very start, at least for someone with wide-screen displays.

I recommend this to anyone who would like more visual realism in PC gaming!

I've been a flight simmer for years. I was even a hard core competitive online WWII flight simmer. When Tracker IR first came out, I was skeptical. I'd seen similar "it'll change the way you sim" touts and most of them fell WAAAYYYY flat. A buddy of mine finally goaded me into getting the new Track IR 5 with the Proclip, and wow.... was I ever wrong. The unit itself is small and lightweight. The camera actually attaches to the base with a magnet, so that if a cable gets snagged, it won't break the mount. Nice touch. AS others have said, the Pro-clip is a bit flimsy. But I vastly prefer the pro-clip to the hat clip, so I'm hoping it lasts. Installation was straight forward, and the just flat out WORKS in games designed to support it. And frankly, no simulation worth the name should be without support for this unit. Using it in-game is intuitive and natural. becuase you need to still be looking at the monitor as you turn your head, your in-game head movements are exaggerated, but after a short time, it feels completely natural. It's so nice to look into a turn, or to be able to naturally and quickly scan around you as you fly along.

Frankly, I don't think I could ever sim without it again. I'd feel like I was trying to run with one leg.

You might as well not play FSX without this! I've been playing Flight Simulator since version 1 in the 1980s and even though I worked in the 90's on a project with NaturalPoint and their 1st IR tracking device (which I still have) I never paired it up with Flight Simulator. However, that one is obsolete. So, I purchased the TrackIr5 after getting FSX going on a Macbook Pro 17". Other than a yoke or joystick / throttle combintation, there is no better product to use than this to make FSX accurate and fun. I have rudder peddles but would throw those out before giving up the TrackIr5. Just remember, you cannot have bright sunlight streaming in or lights on behind you that the IR camera can "see." Then everything goes screwy. In such a case I had to pause the TrackIr5 to complete a landing and I realized how much harder it is without the tracking device. Now I can look up and over the instrument panel or lean in to look at an instrument during approach; or, I can look "over my shoulder" during a base turn on a VFR approach. My next purchase to enhance my experience while using TrackIr5 will be a high-end trackball Kensington Expert Mouse Optical USB Trackball for PC or Mac 64325 so that as I look around I can point and click on instruments without needing the space for a mouse, or to have to use the pad on the Macbook Pro. Incredible product!

Using the hat switch was never very smooth and difficult to center when returning to forward view. TrackIR ended all that. I would not like to go back to
flying without it while in virtual cockpit mode.