TPCAST, the wireless solution for HTC Vive that was revealed at the end of 2016 is closing in on release after it was confirmed to VRFocus by HTC at the 2017 Mobile World Congress (MWC) event in Barcelona that it will be available to order in Europe during Q2 of 2017, collaborating earlier reports of a worldwide Q2 release. Roll out of the kits will commence in China, before continuing across other regions worldwide.
The date was confirmed to VRFocus by the Vice President HTC Vive, Europe Peter Frølund.
TPCAST, a company invested in through the Vive X global virtual reality (VR) accelerator program, which offers access to experienced VR developers and VCs looking to invest in startup firms, was first revealed back in November 2016 as part of an event by HTC and Alibaba.
“We are also very proud that a Vive X team, TPCAST, has developed such an impactful product in such a short time.” Commented Alvin W. Graylin, China Regional President of Vive, HTC at the time. “It will allow Vive customers worldwide to gain untethered mobility in VR from their existing devices, while satisfying the biggest feature request of potential PC VR customers.”
And last month the company revealed a partnership with Lattice Semiconductors to bring the product up to near-zero latency with non-line of sight (NLOS) performance best suited ideal for dealing with VR applications.
“When seeking a partner to collaborate on our wireless VR protocol TPCAST 2.0, Lattice’s proven WirelessHD technology, coupled with Lattice’s FPGA and ASSP products, was a natural fit,” said Andrea Liu, marketing director at TPCAST. “Working with Lattice, we’re able to deliver a truly unmatched VR experience with low latency, high robustness and high bandwidth video transmission. We look forward to continuing our work with Lattice to develop future wireless VR solutions.”
VRFocus will be bringing you more news, hands-on reviews and information throughout the week from both MWC and GDC.