1. According to media reports, the latest version almost eliminates motion sickness. You can still get motion sickness from e.g. going on a virtual roller coaster that would make you sick in the real world, but you won't get sick just sitting in place (which is why the new demos do just that).
2. Far away objects look pixelated, and very close objects look incorrect because the depth of field is wrong. However, the 3D effect is much better than with any previous 3D technology, and there's an overwhelming sense of real scale that you don't get watching e.g. a 3D TV set. You feel placed in the 3D world and you can easily judge the size of things relative to yourself.
3. If your friend knew about the Rift they would easily be able to tell that it was VR; however there is also a perceived feeling of it being real that doesn't go away just from knowing that it's not. VR "presence" means that you'll dodge an object thrown at you even though you know it isn't there, and you'll be afraid to step out over a cliff even though you know you're on a flat floor in real life.
By (2), are you referring to the fact that you don't have to refocus your eyes when shifting your view between objects at different distances?
I've never tried one, but I'd assume the screen is projected at infinity or close to? This should only be an issue with objects that are closer than 1.5ft or something.
Yes, it's only a problem with objects that are unusually close to your face. It's a small concern and only really relevant for people designing VR content, because with properly designed content users should never notice.
2. Far away objects look pixelated, and very close objects look incorrect because the depth of field is wrong. However, the 3D effect is much better than with any previous 3D technology, and there's an overwhelming sense of real scale that you don't get watching e.g. a 3D TV set. You feel placed in the 3D world and you can easily judge the size of things relative to yourself.
3. If your friend knew about the Rift they would easily be able to tell that it was VR; however there is also a perceived feeling of it being real that doesn't go away just from knowing that it's not. VR "presence" means that you'll dodge an object thrown at you even though you know it isn't there, and you'll be afraid to step out over a cliff even though you know you're on a flat floor in real life.