The unveiling of the HTC Vive Pro has generated some excitement in the virtual reality (VR) community, with the tantalising prospect of higher-quality visuals. It seems that the headset itself is not the only thing seeing a design change, as the Link Box is also going to get a redesign.
Announced at CES 2018, the HTC Vive Pro is an upgraded version of the HTC Vive. The new headset won’t act as a replacement for the existing HTC Vive, but will rather be an upgrade path, and is said to not be coming with any accessories such as Base Stations, but HTC have still made some changes to the Link Box accessory.
The Link Box is designed to provide more power to the headset and enable Bluetooth connectivity. This makes the device useful for users who have more than one headset, as it also functions with the Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality headsets.
The new version of the Link Box was spotted by Steve Bowler from Cloudgate Studio, who managed to get some images of the device, posting them on Twitter. The images show a new power button, along with a mini DisplayPort input.
The currently available version of the Link Box has three different cable ports, including HDMI and mini DisplayPort, with the new version offering a much less cluttered design.
Experts have stated that most users will prefer the DisplayPort solution, since while HDMI does provide enough bandwidth to power the 2880×1660 high-resolution display, the DisplayPort provides a high available bandwidth, and most modern graphics cards prioritise DisplayPort connections over HDMI.
The power button also enable users to leave the HTC Vive plugged in at all times, using the power button to power the device off and on at need, potentially saving power and certainly saving time required to plug in and set up the cables.
The HTC Vive Pro is expected to launch sometime in 2018, VRFocus will continue to bring you the latest news on the HTC Vive Pro and other VR devices.