HTC Vive Flow release date, price, features and more

(Image cite: HTC)

The HTC Vive Flow from is looking to shake ascending the Oculus Request 2-dominated VR commercialize with a new headset that puts meditation and media white plague at the forefront.

In a release, HTC Vive announced the Vive Flow, a more casual VR headset meant for those looking for content outside of gaming. The headset costs $499, which is significantly more than the Oculus Quest 2, which starts at $299.

At the minute, there's no set departure date, but shipments testament go on in embryonic November. Or s of the key selling points look to be the lightness of the intent and a clever engine cooling system.

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"It has never been more important to take time intent on calm our minds, and Vive Flow provides the perfect chance to fly the coop our four walls and immerse ourselves in our ideal ambience," said Cher Wang, CEO of HTC in a handout. "Speculation, gentle stretches, brain training, streaming our preferred shows or even merging friends or coworkers in VR with Vive Sync can all be increased away a device light and compact enough to healthy in our pocket."

Present's everything we bon hitherto about the HTC Vive Flow.

HTC Vive Flow from release date

HTC has non unveiled an exact release date for the Vive Flow rate. Just future buyers should know that pre-orders will tour loaded on Oct. 15 and the headset will send onetime in early November.

HTC Vive Flow price

A major sticking point for the Vive Flow is its high price. While $499 might non sound high-pitched compared to headsets like the Valve Index, which retail for $999, the Vive Flux is far many expensive than its main challenger.

Facebook's Oculus Quest 2, which sits atop our best VR headsets list, is sharply priced at $299 for the 128GB model. It also includes a standalone headset and controllers, which the Vive Flow doesn't hold.

HTC Vive Fall features and specs

HTC Vive's own press release didn't give a ton of elaborate specs along the Vive Run, but Lucas Matney over at Tech Crunch was able to get an early work force-on.

The HTC Vive Flow is powered by the last propagation Qualcomm XR1 processor. The Oculus Seeking 2 uses the Qualcomm XR2 processor by comparison. This normally would be a major demerit on any while of tech, only considering the Vive Flow is not meant for gaming, it honestly will not be that bragging of an publish. It still begs the question: wherefore is the Vive Flowing so often many expensive?

Either fashio, unlike the Oculus Quest 2, the Vive Flow is a worthless 189 grams in weight. The Quest 2 weighs in at a some heftier 532 grams. So the Vive Flow should be more comfortable to wear.

As for the screen, the headset boasts 1.6K per eye resolution, although Matney noted that HTC Vive did non divulge the exact pixel count. The screen also refreshes at 75 FPS, which is fine for content phthisis. The Vive Flow also has a 100-degree field-of-view.

The Vive Flow is fitted with "pancake" optics, which are thinner than authoritative VR lenses. The Vive Flow's adjustable dioptre lenses arse easily allow users to correct vision inside the headset, forgoing the need to use glasses.

One defining device characteristic with the Vive Flow are its colossus out lenses, that look away same the bug eyes along a fly. Apparently those put up cameras underneath. And there's also a fan inside the headset to draw out hot air away from a user's face and eyes, a big deal for those that enjoy elaboration in VR.

As for battery life, there is none. Weirdly, the Vive Flow does not have A battery along board, and instead must constitute powered either via an Humanoid phone or an external power source. This also means that the Vive Flow is technically non a wireless headset. Really, information technology seems that the keep company phone app volition do much of the heavy lifting for the Vive Flow, even if that lift is nothing more than meditation 2.0 apps same TRIPP, Path 66 or Mynd VR.

As the Vive Flow is non a gaming gimmick, it does non include controllers.

HTC Vive Flow outlook

While we harbor't gone active with the Vive Flow yet, it's undoubtedly an left over device. It's nerve-racking to provide to a casual VR user that we're unsure exists. Plus, at its $499 damage point, we suspect it might be a tough sell o'er the Oculus Quest 2.

There are by all odds some interesting ideas with the Vive Flow, some of which we assume other companies have also been experimenting with. But at this phase the Vive Flow feels more like a souped-up version of cardboard VR headsets that work with a smartphone. Yes, it's light and constrict. But will consumers really want to fork over $500 for a headset that can only be old for media and speculation?

The cooling feature, which uses a rooter to pull hot air away from your expression and eyes, is nifty, and potentially a gage changer for working call at VR, IT might not personify enough. But until reviewers and fans get significant hands happening time, only then wish we know if it's Charles Frederick Worth the cost.

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Imad Caravan inn is news editor program at Gobbler's Guide, serving direct the day's break coverage. Prior to working at the site, Imad was a full-metre freelancer, with bylines at the New York City Times, the Washington Post and ESPN. Outside of work, you can uncovering him sitting without expression before of a Word written document trying desperately to write the first pages of a new book.