As the latest equipment in the virtual reality sphere hits Australian stores, developers gear up for a whole new world in immersive technology.

Stefan Pernar, president of the Australian Virtual Reality Industry Association and director of Virtual Reality Ventures, wears the latest release in VR technology. (ABC :Margaret Burin )

Gliding through the solar system, climbing the Eiffel Tower and standing centre stage at Cirque du Soleil can now all be done from the couch.

New smart goggles that have hit Australian shelves this month are reported to be the first step in bringing virtual reality (VR) to the masses.

Samsung's Gear VR requires a smart phone to immerse its user into another world.

The Australian Virtual Reality Industry Association's president, Stefan Pernar, says two years ago money could not have bought this sort of VR technology.

"For the very first time in history there is going to be a consumer-level virtual reality device that is in many ways superior to what, not long ago, even the military and governments couldn't afford," he said.

Unlike augmented reality - displayed in scenes of the 1984 film The Terminator - where vision of the surrounding environment is altered by computer-generated imagery, virtual reality immerses the user in a completely computer-generated world.

Based in Ballarat, Mr Pernar is the managing director of a private venture that has developed software for AGL, enabling new employees to undergo in-the-field induction training from the desk.

It has also created a virtual reality fashion show for an Adelaide clothing store and is currently working with an Australian university to develop a virtual on-campus tour that can be experienced by prospective international students.

A pioneer of VR, Mr Pernar said the opportunities are endless.

Real estate

If there are any companies that need to start looking at developing a VR plan, they are those in the real estate business, according to Mr Pernar.

The technology allows interested buyers to tour properties via immersive imagery that has either been filmed or computer-generated.

"If you imagine Chinese investors, they want to do other things other than come to Australia and go to 100 different properties and decide on two," Mr Pernar said.

"They can inspect 100 properties from the comfort of their home."

It also means architects and developers can give clients an experience of their concept, well before it has been delivered in the real world.

These advancements also pose risks for consumers.

Like deceptive realtor photography, virtual reality will have the same ability to misportray its subject, according to Mr Pernar.

And given the customer is immersing themselves in the property rather than just seeing it, that deception could be experienced at a heightened level.

However, Mr Pernar argues the buyer can use the same advancements in technology for their own benefit.

"From a customer perspective, you can use augmented reality to actually overlay what was promised, to what was delivered," he said.

"You will see what was promised and say, it was supposed to look like this and then overlay it over the real thing.

"It is empowering developers in selling mind-blowing apartments but they would not be well-advised in cheating there because the same technology could be used to compare what they have been promised to the real thing."

Health, lifestyle and tourism

Imagine you are a student training to become a doctor.

VR head-sets can mean removing a gallbladder many times virtually, before performing surgery on a cadaver or real-life human.

Online shoppers can create a virtual avatar and try on clothing before they buy.

Tourism companies can give travellers a real sense of their most picturesque destinations, instead of creating brochures.

And people who are disabled or less fortunate can experience parts of the world that would otherwise be impossible.

VR developers have begun designing programs surrounding all aspects of human life.

"If somebody's terrified of heights, you can put them on a pedestal in virtual reality and do exposure therapy with a guiding psychologist, and make sure you're slowly reducing your anxiety when you're in these kind of situations," Mr Pernar said.

"If you wanted to go to the Great Pyramids or the Great Wall of China, it's like you're there.

"For me the most exciting thing is the ability to empathise with how life is like for people in other places."

Pornography

With the widespread accessibility of online porn and cybersex services, virtual reality is the obvious next step for the sex industry.

It is an extension of the virtual sex seen in applications like Second Life.

The latest technology means the viewer is no longer just a viewer or a two-dimensional character.

They are a part of the scene.

VR porn programming is still under development and very expensive, but filming on immersive cameras from the goggle wearer's point-of-view is being designed to make the consumer feel as though they are the focus of the porn star's attention.

"They are very real and they are going to form a big part of what is going to come down the pipeline in the next few years," Mr Pernar said.

Ever since the internet's inception, there have been debates about the psychological and emotional impacts of cybersex.

Mr Pernar argues VR is no different.

"On the one hand you can say it's terrible that human intimacy can be threatened by virtual reality," he said.

"There's also positive aspects to it; there's people who just don't have human intimacy, they can experience it with virtual reality.

"All technology has to be consumed with a sense of measure and proportionality."

Reality vs virtual reality

Virtual reality is already used in fields such as the military and aviation.

Despite a limited offering of VR content, the newly released VR goggles are the first commercially available virtual reality headset, aside from Google's cardboard experiment.

Last year social media giant Facebook invested US$2 billion in virtual reality specialist Oculus .

This week the company announced it is currently working on VR apps.

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg predicts immersive virtual and augmented reality will become a part of people's everyday life.

Its rapid advancements pose questions about exactly what human life and communications will look like (and feel like) in years to come.

"There are predictions that virtual reality is going to have a five-times higher adoption rate of the original iPhone," Mr Pernar said.

For many the technology offers an escape from their reality.

And despite his excitement about the infinite possibilities, too much of an escape is one risk that concerns Australia's Virtual Reality Industry Association president.

"The problem I see is that people will produce experiences in virtual reality that have nothing to do with the real world," he said.

"The opportunities are limitless, yes they are dangerous but with every new technology comes dangers - that's one of the things you have to find ways to deal with and be responsible with."