The HTC Vive Standalone headset is meant to be a bridge between high-end PC powered virtual reality (VR) and mobile VR. Up until very recently, there was much confusion on what iteration of the hardware and software was going to come to the different regions. Nina talks to HTC Vive representative Graham Breen to clarify matters.
Breen is a little hesitant to say too much: “I can’t say much beyond what’s already been said, but there’s a lot of working going into it at the moment.” he said, but did clarify HTC’s position on the hardware: “There’s a difference between software applications, just with various countries and what app stores are available in each region. In terms of the underlying hardware, it’s the same. We’re going to be coming up with more details soon.”
This confirms that the Vive standalone headset will be the same hardware in each region, but will offer different software depending on what application store is available in each country. For example, China will primarily use Viveport as software distribution, since Google Daydream services are largely unavailable in China at the moment.
“It’s regional separation in that sense, which is the case with a lot of products.” Breen said.
Regarding the HTC Vive price drop: “Vive’s been out there for about eighteen months now and it’s hit a natural point where it’s right for it to come down. Q4 is always the busiest season for our retails partners, and it is timing beautifully with upcoming AAA content.”
You can watch the full interview below.
VRFocus will continue to bring you further news from Gamescom.