HTC reveals the Vive’s finished consumer version – and finally tells us the price

By Hugh Langley

Note: The embargo for this news was broken by another publication. Techradar is reporting on what is already being reported on elsewhere.

HTC has revealed that its Vive virtual reality system will cost $799 – that includes the headset, room sensors, controllers, and two bundled games. It will be available for pre-order starting February 29.

It’s a lot of money, but not that much more expensive than the Oculus Rift, and a smidge cheaper than we were expecting. Remember, this is high-end VR.

HTC has also revealed what the final consumer version will look like. Not an awful lot has changed since we revealed the updated model from CES, but HTC has tweaked the headstrap a bit for added comfort and altered the branding a little.

However the bigger news is what you can’t see. HTC has introduced a new feature to the Vive called Vive Phone Services, which lets you make and receive calls (via an inbuilt mic), send messages, and check calendar updates through the headset.

It’s another way in which HTC and Valve are tackling some of VR’s practical issues, meaning you’re not totally disconnected from the real world while you’re “plugged in”. The Vive headset also uses its front camera …read more

Source:: techradar.com – Gaming