Htc Vive

[DigitalEngine]

Ok, Oculas seems to be out of the game, lost focus, or whatever...

but?

HTC Vive, and here, supposed to be out this year. Just announced.

 

One Reveiw here. HTC is targeting gaming, hardcore so to speak, it seems.

 

So, could we see support for this devise in BOS/BOM?

 

 

OpenVR

Our SteamVR APIs are free to use and come with everything you love about Steam, but they can also be leveraged without it. We call this alternate version of our APIs OpenVR. OpenVR includes all the same great capabilities, minus Steam.

Edited March 6, 2015 by BlueMatrix

[VRnoorbeast]

Do not expect the Vive bar for quality VR implementation to be any lower than for the Rift, in fact some things will be more demanding than they are for the current DK2, such as 90hz refresh rate, which will be more demanding.

[DigitalEngine]

Y

 

Do not expect the Vive bar for quality VR implementation to be any lower than for the Rift, in fact some things will be more demanding than they are for the current DK2, such as 90hz refresh rate, which will be more demanding.

 

Yes, likely so, and likely to cost more,

but, I'd pay (yes, early adopter) if the vive meets expectations, which means for me, higher resolutions, refresh rate, etc...

time will tell, but at least HTC/Valve have a release date for a "gaming hmd". No specifications other than the refresh rate seems to be forth coming as of yet (If anyone finds more please let us know).

Question is will their SDK support or be compatible DX9? The vive is a partnership with HTC/Valve/Steam though, so hopefully.

 

Oculas seems to have lost interest in the higher end gaming market, and to be concentrating more on mobile phone VR devices, apps and such.

Edited March 6, 2015 by BlueMatrix

[JG27_Chivas]

There have quite a few posts in other forums that have counted out Oculus since the Valve prototype headset has been released.  Its way to early to come to that conclusion.  The same people will count out Vive if Oculus next VR headset version has better specs.   Many  people have also suggested that Oculus has abandoned PC VR because a portion of Oculus development crew is working on mobile VR.  Another ridiculous conclusion.   The work Oculus is doing with mobile will have some value when eventually PC VR goes wireless.   The main reason Oculus works with Samsung's mobile VR is to gain access to high-end and/or custom Samsung displays for Oculus's PC VR market.   Of course if the Oculus janitors start working for Valve then all bets are off. 

https://twitter.com/backslash/status/574634170795712512

[MolotoK]

The key ingredient is the SteamVR/OpenVR API. If Valve make their API open for all headset manufacturers to use, then it will have the biggest selection of headsets and more game developers will want to support it. Oculus' closed API will simply not be able to compete.

Also Valve can do no wrong in the eyes of many PC gamers and doesn't have the evil corporation stigma of Facebook, even if Valve is being evil all the time.

Edited March 9, 2015 by MolotoK

[JG27_Chivas]

The key ingredient is the SteamVR/OpenVR API. If Valve make their API open for all headset manufacturers to use, then it will have the biggest selection of headsets and more game developers will want to support it. Oculus' closed API will simply not be able to compete.

Also Valve can do no wrong in the eyes of many PC gamers and doesn't have the evil corporation stigma of Facebook, even if Valve is being evil all the time.

 

I doubt it will matter who the hardware maker is.  Quality, price point, and available software will be the keys.  VR's open API is definitely a strong feature, but Oculus has already setup tech and financial support for a very large third party development community, and in house software development.   Oculus has also stated they will sell their VR hardware at cost.  All else being equal it will be very difficult for other VR hardware company to compete unless they also sell at cost, or their hardware is superior to Oculus VR.   Valves latest prototype appears to be slightly better than the prototype shown by Oculus a few months ago, but neither is the finished product, so time will tell on that front.

[MolotoK]

Even if Oculus sell their hardware at cost, their costs are much higher than HTC's or Sony's or whoever else might get into the business. Oculus doesn't have any manufacturing capability of their own. They have to buy everything and they simply don't have the bargaining power of large manufacturers like HTC, who buy tens of millions of display panels per year. Oculus also only has one headset at a specific price point. SteamVR will probably have two or three different headsets at different price points. This will attract more customers.

 

Oculus simply went the wrong way by trying to monopolize the market and keeping other manufacturers out. If they had actually released a headset by now, they would have a significant installed user base and might have been able to stave off the competition. As it is now they are fighting an uphill battle against some better positioned companies.

[JG27_Chivas]

Even if Oculus sell their hardware at cost, their costs are much higher than HTC's or Sony's or whoever else might get into the business. Oculus doesn't have any manufacturing capability of their own. They have to buy everything and they simply don't have the bargaining power of large manufacturers like HTC, who buy tens of millions of display panels per year. Oculus also only has one headset at a specific price point. SteamVR will probably have two or three different headsets at different price points. This will attract more customers.

 

Oculus simply went the wrong way by trying to monopolize the market and keeping other manufacturers out. If they had actually released a headset by now, they would have a significant installed user base and might have been able to stave off the competition. As it is now they are fighting an uphill battle against some better positioned companies.

 

 

 

The Oculus/Facebook/Samsung partnership should have more than enough money/bargaining power/ VR personal/custom displays to challenge any competitor.   I don't really care who wins, the work Valve is doing is awesome, and just having all these huge companies invest in VR is a win for us.  To count out Oculus at this early juncture, and its capabilities to manufacture the most advanced cost effective hardware is quite frankly ridiculous.