An educational physics laboratory in mobile versus room scale virtual reality - A comparative study

The emergence of new digital tools supporting immersive and engaging learning through Virtual Reality is opening up new paths for both distance, but also classroom learning. In this article we discuss the virtual physics laboratory "Maroon" and discuss experiences with Maroon in a cost-effective mobile setup with a mobile VR experience through Samsung GEAR and compare it with a more interactive VR experience in room-scale VR with HTC Vive. We describe a comparative evaluation of these two setups in order to identify chances and challenges of both setups. First results indicate more flexibility and portability with the mobile setup, while the room-scale setup profits of a highly interactive and hands-on experience. We discuss and compare the two setups based on immersion, engagement, presence, and motivation.