As is to be expected in 2018, we will see some new VR hardware come to market fairly soon. HTC is trying their hand at another headset, even though things were not looking all that good with the Vive to begin with. Their new “enhanced” Vive headset has two OLED screens with a better resolution. Known as the Vive pro, it will be pretty interesting to see if consumers are excited about this development. No pricing has been announced at this point in time.
The HTC Vive pro is a big Improvement
While the first generation of VR hardware was always somewhat mediocre, it certainly allowed consumers to get accustomed to this new technology. Even so, some of the headsets were considered far too expensive given what they offered. This is part of the reason why both HTC and Oculus struggled to ship millions of units, unlike Samsung and Sony. HTC seemed almost on the brink of exiting the VR headset market altogether, but it seems they may have come up with a plan of action to give it another try
During CES 2018, the company announced the HTC Vive Pro. It is an improved iteration of their current headset, especially where the graphical quality of content is concerned. More specifically, the two built-in OLED screens boast a resolution of 2880 by 1600 pixels. It is a 78% improvement over the current HTC Vive. Do keep in mind this new headset will make sub-par content quality looks even worse, as that is not something HTC can solve on behalf of developers. Until high-quality content is produced, the benefits of such an improved OLD screen will not be apparent whatsoever.
Additionally, the HTC Vive Pro includes high-performance headphones with a built-in amplifier. Given how virtual reality is all about offering an immersive experience to users, such headphones are more than welcome. Until we know the actual pricing of this new headset, it will remain unclear what type of premium customers will pay for the improved hardware. Considering how the HTC Vive was relatively expensive from day one, it seems feasible the enhanced version will follow a similar path. Consumers may not be interested in paying a high fee for a device which offers upgrades they can’t take full advantage of, though.
Furthermore, HTC made some interesting announcements regarding future VR content. The company will revamp the Viveport VR store, which is always a welcome change. The number of available experiences is also expected to grow from around 2,000 to over 3,000 in 2018. HTC is definitely not giving up on virtual reality just yet, even though their first attempt was less than stellar in terms of revenue. Whether or not this new iteration can live up to people’s expectations, remains to be determined, though
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