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HTC expand its new VR headsets 2021 series with the launch of the new Vive Pro 2 VR headset. Outwardly, the new HTC Vive VR headset repeats the design of the previous Vive Pro model. The company notes that the ergonomics of the first generation of the device turned out to be so successful that it was decided not to touch it. All major changes in the Vive Pro 2 are related to its internal stuffing.
The Vive Pro 2 features dual Full RGB LCD screens with a total resolution of 5K (4896 x 2448 pixels) and dual lenses for a 120-degree viewing angle. Against the background of a stand-alone model, the HTC VR headset is distinguished by a higher refresh rate, which thanks to the wired connection of the Vive Pro 2 is 120 Hz instead of 90 Hz.
The new Vive headset connects to the PC using DisplayPort 1.2. Since the headset is not standalone and the calculations take place not in it, but on the computer, the capabilities of the DisplayPort 1.2 standard are not enough to transmit 5K resolution with such a high refresh rate. To solve the problem, HTC turned to its partners AMD and NVIDIA to adapt the Display Stream Compression method. It allows the computer to compress a very large amount of data transmitted over the cable and then decompress it on a VR device. However, in the description on its website, HTC recommends using a DisplayPort 1.4 connection.
The company has made the mechanism of fixing the VR Vive headset on the head of the Pro 2 more reliable. In addition, the manufacturer has redesigned the mechanism for adjusting the distance of the screen to the user’s eyes, making the calibration process smoother. The Vive Pro 2, like its predecessor, has a built-in speaker system with high fidelity audio support.
If desired, the new Vive VR headset can be used wirelessly. This requires an HTC Vive Wireless adapter. However, in this case, the resolution of the Pro 2 picture will be reduced to 3264 × 1632 pixels, and the screen refresh rate will be reduced to 90 Hz.
The new HTC Vive headset can work with the Vive Facial Tracker. The latter uses built-in cameras and an infrared emitter to scan in real-time and draw in virtual reality the lower part of the user’s face, conveying his facial expressions and emotions. In addition, the new product is compatible with the new Vive Tracker 3.0 body trackers.
Since Pro 2 supports the Steam VR ecosystem, instead of the usual OEM controllers, you can use the Valve Index controllers with the helmet if you want.
HTC Vive Pro 2 price and availability
HTC will release two bundles of the Vive Pro 2. One contains only a VR headset and is suitable for those looking to upgrade their existing VR system. The Vive Pro 2 Full Kit includes base stations, 2.0 controllers, and everything you need to deploy your new VR system. The new VR headset price starts from $799 and is now available to pre-order on Bhphotovideo.com. It will go on sale in July-August 2021.
Recently, MSI has unveiled the powerful MSI GP66 Leopard VR Ready laptop with a boast of the latest NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30-series graphics cards based on the Ampere architecture. This allows offering support for Resizable BAR technology, which allows the CPU to have full access to the graphics card memory, which can increase the frame rate in games by 10-15 percent and is priced at $1,899.
