I've been interested in getting a trackir for a while now & wondered does anyone out there use one for LFS? (or FPS/flight sim gaming)
What do you think of it?
Does it improve immersion & or gameplay?
Is it worth spending the extra for the latest version or just pick up the older GX version?

There are also many alternatives out there. Does any one own or use any of these head tracking devices for LFS or other?

Cymouse - $75
GyroTrack 2 - $195
Free Track - $20

Feel free to discuss the pro's & con's of using head movement in LFS.

I don't know about the other alternatives but I wrote a fairly detailed review of my first TrackIR experience... It is well worth the money in my opinion, assuming you have good frame rates and a good wheel as those are more important... But TrackIR will improve immersion by 100 times. It is amazing...

Let me find the link...

EDIT:

http://www.lfsforum.net/showthread.php?t=40262

which version do you have?

TrackIR 4 Pro. I am not sure you need the LEDs TrackClip Pro part, but its what I use... I bought this from Amazon.com to get free shipping. $199 or something meant that shipping was free. (And that was from amazon and not a store on amazon...). But I think you should hear others opinions too, just because I enjoy it does not mean you will enjoy it. There were things I had heard people say they noticed that I don't notice. I won't say its made me faster, nor has it really slowed me down much, but it brings immersion to another level, and I feel "safer" being able to quickly check where the other opponents are...

Well I dont think I'm gona splash out £100 or so on one but I may go for one of the cheaper options which provide the same head tracking movement in game.
I hope I can get it to work in BF2 as well. That would be great.

TrackIR 3 PRO will do you fine probably... You get almost the same performance as the TrackIR 4 PRO. TrackIR 4 PRO is slightly more responsive but well I wouldn´t call my upgrade from 3 PRO to be the best bang for the buck ever lol. Anyway don´t even look for web cam solutions or other cheaper alternatives... These products don´t get obsolete like CPU and video cards do so it´s not that big of an investment really.

In racing games you will hardly be faster with it but it increases the immersion and I feel more confident racing with other cars beside me. It also makes the cockpits so much more real and living.

in flight sims like IL 2 you are at a disadvantage in dog fights if you don´t have TrackIR. SA is key when fighting in 3D space. And again it increases the immersion here too. If you are into civil flight sims like FS 2004 or FSX it´s quite awkward enjoying the scenery through a pov-hat even if that works of course.

So for flight sims it´s absolutely crucial. For racing sims I really don´t want to race without it. Especially since I create my own Geforces which is quite cool. So remember if you get the TrackIR 3 PRO make sure you got one with the vector clip or buy one separately later on you will want it If you don´t use a headset you can use the clip for that if you have vanity or what it´s called

Quote from oqvist :

TrackIR 3 PRO will do you fine probably... You get almost the same performance as the TrackIR 4 PRO. TrackIR 4 PRO is slightly more responsive but well I wouldn´t call my upgrade from 3 PRO to be the best bang for the buck ever lol. Anyway don´t even look for web cam solutions or other cheaper alternatives... These products don´t get obsolete like CPU and video cards do so it´s not that big of an investment really.

In racing games you will hardly be faster with it but it increases the immersion and I feel more confident racing with other cars beside me. It also makes the cockpits so much more real and living.

in flight sims like IL 2 you are at a disadvantage in dog fights if you don´t have TrackIR. SA is key when fighting in 3D space. And again it increases the immersion here too. If you are into civil flight sims like FS 2004 or FSX it´s quite awkward enjoying the scenery through a pov-hat even if that works of course.

So for flight sims it´s absolutely crucial. For racing sims I really don´t want to race without it. Especially since I create my own Geforces which is quite cool. So remember if you get the TrackIR 3 PRO make sure you got one with the vector clip or buy one separately later on you will want it If you don´t use a headset you can use the clip for that if you have vanity or what it´s called

I agree. I tried using FreeTrack in LFS, it works great in terms fo accurancy of tracking, but its incredibly hard to get used to it, and as said, it hardly can do more than stock look left/right buttons. The main reason for me is that I loose the feel of where the car moves when I start moving my head, so its you to decide

I tried a race last night (1 lap in the LX6) and didn't have the TrackIR on my head, that totally made me realize how much more immersion TrackIR adds. I felt lost without it and actually did worst. I can say it was worth it for me, I wouldn't recommend cheaper alternatives since do it yourself doesn't always work the best and may give you a bad taste... I don't know about TrackIR 3 PRO but I am sure that would do just fine and is slightly cheaper...

what about the trackir GX? one on ebay here

Quote from anttt69 :

what about the trackir GX?

Never heard of it, sorry. : /

Quote from anttt69 :

what about the trackir GX? one on ebay here

That looks like a TrackIR1/2 model - old school, haven't been sold since 2004 (at the latest )

Are there any downsides to using the older models? e.g. - trackIR2

Yes they are slower essentially... More lag before they start to track and not as smooth. TrackIR 3 PRO or better you should go for

I have free track w/one point tracking. It works very well for the price. I don't use it for realism, i use it for functionality and performance. It does take some messing with to make it work correctly and smooth. Other more expensive and probably better solutions like TrackIR I would imagine would work better 'out of the box' because of standardized hardware and faster polling rates then a cheap webcam. With free track it can be hit and miss since almost everybodys equipement is more then likely different in some form or fashion. I put my free track together for 10 US dollars. I had a friend that owed me a favor that had a webcam new in box (microsoft vx1000). One infrared LED, a AA battery holder and a molex connecter from radioshack. I use the tube from a BIC pen to hold the LED and attached the female molex connector to the end. The other molex is on the tip top of my headphone set and the battery holder is mounted on the side of the headphone set. This way I can plug in the LED pen, if you will call it that, to the headset and use it for LFS. This way I can turn it off easy and not have to worry about being in the way during non LFS activities. I tried the hat, but that was annoying to wear.

Hope this helps.

Good luck!