The HTC Vive is HTC’s initiative into the VR world. They hope that through a strategic partnership with Valve, HTC promises to transform the way that consumers interact with technology and the world around them with the debut of the HTC Vive. The development kit will be launched this spring with the consumer edition available only towards the end of 2015. Come to think of it, seeing as how the HTC One M9 turned out, you have to be questionable on the quality of the Vive.
The Vive makes use of Valve’s Steam VR tracking and input technologies while the design was engineered by HTC.
“It’s rare that a company has an opportunity to forever transform the ways in which people interact with the world and communicate with each other but that is exactly what we plan to do with Valve.”
— Cher Wang, Chairwoman of HTC
“We achieved this once before with our development of smartphone technology. And, through our partnership with Valve, we’ll now be doing this for a second time with VR technology of which consumers could only previously dream.”
— Peter Chou, CEO of HTC
The Vive offers the most immersive experience thanks to Valve’s VR technology, allowing users to experience the Full Room Scale 360 Degree Solution with Tracked Controllers. This technology literally allows the wearer or viewer to get up and explore the virtual space as well as inspect objects from every angle, truly giving the ability to interact with the surroundings. This definitely sets the bar higher for performance as the headset features high quality graphics, pushing through 90 frames per second and incredible audio fidelity.
The wireless VR controllers introduced by HTC will make you feel one with the environment. They come in a pair and are designed to be versatile and work with a wide range of VR experiences. They have a shallow learning curve and will simulate a “pick up and use” form.
“Our collaboration with HTC is driven by the companies’ shared desire to produce the most compelling and complete VR experience. Delivering content creators with the Vive Developer Edition is an incredibly important milestone in our efforts to achieve that goal.”
— Ken Birdwell, Valve
Beta versions of the Vive Developer Edition have been aided in generating rich entertainment content from some of the world’s top game developers such as Vertigo Games, Bossa, Barry –Fireproof, Dovetail Games, Wemo Labs, Steel Wool Games, Owlchemy and even Google.
An immersive experience is staple to a VR universe but the potential beyond just gaming is limitless. HTC and Valve seem highly committed to turning the VR headset into a life transforming experience. You may have a loved one who is in another state for a job or school, this would allow you to be as close as you possible can as well as interact with one another in a more intimate fassion. Leading content creators such as Google, HBO, Lionsgate and the National Palace Museum in Taiwan are working to transform the way you travel, attend a game, meet up with friends or even shopping. I can just imagine every nerd’s dream coming true, being able to shop in a virtual environment without ever having to leave the house– then have the purchased items come to your doorstep via mail is gonna be so sick.
“Vive creates an exciting opportunity for all developers and content creators, to help us bring virtual reality into the mainstream with an end-to-end solution that completely redefines how we entertain ourselves, communicate with each other, learn and, eventually, how we become more productive. HTC Vive is real, it’s here and it’ll be ready to go before the start of 2016.”
— Cher Wang, Chairwoman of HTC
Am I excited? A little bit. I just hope HTC doesn’t break my heart like they did with the Nexus 9 and then with the HTC One M9. My money is on Valve though.
