The first wireless HTC Vive is coming, but only in China for now
The next phase in VR technology appears to be close to launch in China.
A major milestone in premium virtual reality has been reached in China, with HTC announcing the first wireless version of their Vive headset.
At a trade show in the country, the Taiwanese tech giant revealed the Vive Standalone, the first of the flagship VR systems that will operate without the need for a PC or smartphone to power it.
The new Vive Standalone will use HTC’s Viveport platform to supply content – in essence the headset’s own app store – and house Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 856 processor for computing power.
Few further details have been released, including the screen specification or what kind of battery system the Vive Standalone will have in order to keep it powered.
“Partnering with Qualcomm to deliver an easy to use and more affordable Vive VR system will enable us to make premium standalone VR widely accessible to the masses in China.”
Wireless VR headsets do already exist – most notably the Samsung Gear VR and Google’s Daydream View – but both use a smartphone slotted into the device to provide the screen for virtual reality content.
