HTC+Valve VR (HTC Vive) *Consolidated

[ahhming]

 

Called HTC vive the headset was developed in conjunction with Valve

comes with Two wireless controllers with hand tracking. 

1200x 1080 per eye with 90Hz refresh rate and 360-degree views. HTC says this is the first headset with "full room scale."

FOV will be 110 degrees

 

over 70+ sensors to provide full room tracking

The device uses a gyrosensor, accelerometer, and laser position sensor to track your head's movements as precisely as one-tenth of a degree. Most surprisingly, there will be something called the Steam VR base station, which will let you walk around the virtual space instead of using a controller. A pair of the base stations can "track your physical location ... in spaces up to 15 feet by 15 feet."

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTITJSSRUso

holy hype!!

 

source:

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/132954-this-is-htc-vive-the-steam-vr-headset-built-by-htc-and-valve

 

http://androidcommunity.com/htc-and-valve-get-together-to-bring-forth-vive-vr-headset-20150301/

 

http://phandroid.com/2015/03/01/htc-vive-valve-vr-headset/

 

http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/1/8127445/htc-vive-valve-vr-headset

 

htcvr.com

 

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/01/htc-vive-vr-headset-with-valve/?ncid=rss_truncated

 

http://www.tweaktown.com/news/43875/early-steam-vr-impressions-people-saying-utterly-phenomenal/index.html

 

________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

GDC UPDATE

 

Valve's 'Lighthouse' VR tech lets TVs and headsets work together

Hardware engineer Alan Yates says that it's Lighthouse room scale tracking system brings the "high resolution, high speed tracking" that you need for a quality VR experience.

According to Yates, the system is cheap enough to integrate into TVs, monitors, headsets, input devices or mobile devices.

Valve will make Lighthouse available to hardware manufacturers "freely", and we'll probably be looking for VR-ready stickers on our next TV or monitor.

Source:

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/03/valve-lighthouse-vr/?ncid=rss_truncated

 

 

Valve's virtual reality headset is great, but its controllers are the real story

 

I cannot stress enough here how 1:1 that feeling was. Lighthouse tracked the controllers and my head movement to an incredible degree. When I got to close to the walls of the demo room, a virtual grid popped in VR -- this is a measure of Lighthouse's capability. It suddenly made a lot of sense to me why Newell was so bullish on Lighthouse being an industry-changing technology.

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/04/valve-vr-input/

Source:

http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/4/8150653/valve-steam-controller-vive-vr-gdc-2015

 

The interactivity in each of the demos was great, and it felt natural. Aside from the commands from the HTC guide coming through the headset explaining what was going on (it was a two way conversation, I asked about the hardware), I felt immersed. I could just about see the pixels in the set, but the two controller method for some of the tasks felt like the right thing to do. The PC hardware used for the demo was a single GPU system (I was told a current generation high end card), indicating that no massive tri-SLI system is needed at this point. For a couple of the demos (such as the table top), the scene was a little blurry but I have experienced this before on VR demos – on the large scale everything seems great, but some of the low resolution demos on small models can cause some defocusing. That being said, the Portal demo was filled with detail and I had no issues there, even though there were some intricate detail within the models.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/9048/testing-the-htc-re-vive-with-steam-vr-better-than-oculus

 

 

 

 

http://www.polygon.com/2015/3/4/8148265/htc-vive-vr-valve-hands-on-impressions

[coen113]

this better be good

[qwertywarrior]

i hope its OLED

never seen HTC do anything oled since the shortage incident

[crystal6tak]

Interesting...Why HTC though? Their current flagshipand and their next, m8 and m9, are still at 1080p. Something like LG would make more sense with their 1440p phones. Use that 538 ppi in the ocu-I mean vive. Which also, no mention of resolution? 90Hz is nice though.

[WiiManic]

Which also, no mention of resolution? 90Hz is nice though.

1200x1080 per Eye.

 

Looks very nice spec wise, less so design-wise, too round for me.

Going to be interesting at GDC to see some more about it.

 

Very excited for all these entrances into VR.

More VR out there is more money into it, more experiences made for it and more competition between the manufacturers.

[crystal6tak]

1200x1080 per Eye.

 

Looks very nice spec wise, less so design-wise, too round for me.

Going to be interesting at GDC to see some more about it.

 

Very excited for all these entrances into VR.

More VR out there is more money into it, more experiences made for it and more competition between the manufacturers.

Ah, that looks flippin sweet then. 

[Doobeedoo]

Well, GDC is gonna be interesting with all announcements.

[TOMPPIX]

allowing you to look around the virtual environment naturally. Couple the headset with a pair of Steam VR base stations to track your physical location (in spaces up to 15 feet by 15 feet) – get up and walk around inisde the virtual world!

 WUT?? 

[werto165]

 WUT?? 

Base station emits IR into the whole room? sensors on the headset itself detect the reflection off the walls and thus the location perhaps? 

[qwertywarrior]

1200x 1080 per eye = 2400 x 1080  or 1200 x 2040 full rez because i dont know if they are using two panels or one  or that they are calculating it vertically

 

i hope thats only for the dev version

 

[werto165]

1200x 1080 per eye = 2400 x 1080  or 1200 x 2040 full rez because i dont know

ERRRR ok then my post just disappeared.... 

anyway, I was saying that the resolution is still lower than the resolution of the crescent bay prototype, 2560*1440 is still > 1080*1200 per eye. 

[captain cactus]

ERRRR ok then my post just disappeared.... 

anyway, I was saying that the resolution is still lower than the resolution of the crescent bay prototype, 2560*1440 is still > 1080*1200 per eye. 

 But will you notice that with the display basically in your eyes... Also, refresh rates matter a bit more than resolution now. No matter how nice the image quality, if it lags behind for even the slightest second because the screen can't update fast enough you'll pull it off your head because you get motion sickness in an instant.

[werto165]

 But will you notice that with the display basically in your eyes... Also, refresh rates matter a bit more than resolution now. No matter how nice the image quality, if it lags behind for even the slightest second because the screen can't update fast enough you'll pull it off your head because you get motion sickness in an instant.

Yeah I understand that, but crescent bay is already 1440p @75Hz-90Hz(that's what the estimates are). I'm just worried that valve and HTC will release a VR headset that still has a screen door effect. I'm hoping the lower resolution is just for the dev kit. 

 

the dream is 95Hz 4k+ however you would need a 10K * 10K screen to not be able to decipher individual pixels. That's why they're working on eye tracking, hopefully this is included in a VR headset sometime in the future. 

[qwertywarrior]

Yeah I understand that, but crescent bay is already 1440p @75Hz-90Hz(that's what the estimates are). I'm just worried that valve and HTC will release a VR headset that still has a screen door effect. I'm hoping the lower resolution is just for the dev kit. 

 

the dream is 95Hz 4k+ however you would need a 10K * 10K screen to not be able to decipher individual pixels. That's why they're working on eye tracking, hopefully this is included in a VR headset sometime in the future. 

i was kinda thinking about this idea of mine

 

lets say a VR HMD with eye tracking capabilities + 4k screen per eye

everything in ur peripheral vision would be at a much lower resolution but everything in ur eye sight would be 4k

 

sound extremely complicated to implemented in a game engine though

[werto165]

i was kinda thinking about this idea of mine

 

lets say a VR HMD with eye tracking capabilities + 4k screen per eye

everything in ur peripheral vision would be at a much lower resolution but everything in ur eye sight would be 4k

 

sound extremely complicated to implemented in a game engine though

Yeah that's what oculus is working on, michael abrash talked about it during Oculus connect, I'll try and find the video and send you a link, keep in mind this was a while ago and I might not be able to find it .

 

@qwertywarrior I found it it's more ridiculous than I thought

 

http://youtu.be/knQSRTApNcs?t=27m26s

 

Yeah it sounds like eye tracking isn't happening anytime soon. 

[qwertywarrior]

Yeah that's what oculus is working on, michael abrash talked about it during Oculus connect, I'll try and find the video and send you a link, keep in mind this was a while ago and I might not be able to find it .

 

@qwertywarrior I found it it's more ridiculous than I thought

 

http://youtu.be/knQSRTApNcs?t=27m26s

 

Yeah it sounds like eye tracking isn't happening anytime soon. 

never seen Abrash's vids i only watched carmack's vids (he kept talking until they forced him out )

this is very interesting

 

 

check out the eye tribe

[werto165]

never seen Abrash's vids i only watched carmack's vids (he kept talking until they forced him out )

this is very interesting

 

 

check out the eye tribe

Yeah, carmack just blows my mind at times, he's such a genius. 

The only issue with eye tracking in VR is that it's so close to your eyes, I'd imagine illumination changes would be a pain. You would also need it to not get in the way of the optics. 

I guess that's why they have so many people working on VR, difficult problems, with solutions that would be game changing. Can't wait for GDC now, 90Hz to eliminate flicker all together with the HTC valve HMD, I just want to see the VR "base station", probably just something along the lines of what kinect does, fills a whole room with Infra-red. However it sounds like because you need two you would face the two base stations at the HMD and it would work out the relative distance between and therefore the position. 

[Echodamus]

Kinda sad it's made by HTC. Oh well, they will probably do a descent job. 

[BloodySinner]

 

Rob Warner 2 hours ago

 

The guy wearing the headset in the video looks like Eli Vance, STOP TEASING US VALVE!

 

I hope this is a pure coincidence and Valve is not trolling...

[SirSquid]

Interesting...Why HTC though? Their current flagshipand and their next, m8 and m9, are still at 1080p. Something like LG would make more sense with their 1440p phones. Use that 538 ppi in the ocu-I mean vive. Which also, no mention of resolution? 90Hz is nice though.

Because [H]alfLife [T]here [C]onfired

[Deletive]

I honestly couldn't give a damn about these anymore. I want one to rule every ecosystem which is why I'll probably get an oculus.

There isn't even this much demand for virtual reality. Why do we need as many VR companies as Smartphone Companies?

[ThE_MarD]

Heyyo,

 

Kinda sad it's made by HTC. Oh well, they will probably do a descent job.

Lol, and may I ask why?

HTC has made some fantastic products in the past. The only part about HTC smartphones in the past was the camera. Ultrapixel just didn't deliver the same image quality as regular smartphone cameras was their only weakness. As for OLED screens? Pfft, IPS is a lot more beautiful.

 

Interesting...Why HTC though? Their current flagshipand and their next, m8 and m9, are still at 1080p. Something like LG would make more sense with their 1440p phones. Use that 538 ppi in the ocu-I mean vive. Which also, no mention of resolution? 90Hz is nice though.

As for 1080P being an issue on a smartphone? Are you SHITTING me? Does 4k even make a difference on a smartphone?

Let's look at Pixels Per Inch on this PPI caculator...

https://www.sven.de/dpi/

Dell UP2715K (5k 5120 x 2880 on a 27" screen):

Display size: 23.53" × 13.24" = 311.5in² (59.77cm × 33.62cm = 2009.68cm²) at 217.57 PPI

ROG Swift PG27AQ 27-inch 4K (3840 x 2160)LCD which was annouced at CES 2015:

Display size: 23.53" × 13.24" = 311.5in² (59.77cm × 33.62cm = 2009.68cm²) at 163.18 PPI

Now let's compare that to the smartphone I have... HTC One M7. 1080P on a 4.7" screen:

Display size: 4.1" × 2.3" = 9.44in² (10.4cm × 5.85cm = 60.9cm²) at 468.7 PPI

Occulus Rift DK2 (960 x 1080 per eye on a 5.7" screen):

Display size: 5.23" × 4.65" = 24.33in² (13.29cm × 11.81cm = 156.97cm²) at 206.43 PPI (per eye)

You see? For the size of screens? 1080P still has a much greater pixel density for the size... so tell me, why does it matter that HTC isn't going higher than 1080P on a screen size of 5" or smaller? Really, after that 400 PPI? It's really just a number on paper... if Samsung for example was to release a Galaxy S6 with both a 4K and 1080P display and have the exact same case and everything... would you be able to pick out the 4K at a 100% accuracy rate when playing a game or watching a movie? The jump of 1080P to 4K on small screens isn't nearly as profound as Big screen TVs or Computer Monitors.

As for the argument of Super LCD3 vs Super AMOLED? Yes, these days Super AMOLED is better with response times (at least from what I've read) but Super LCD is still a strong screen. There's been no mention what type of screen HTC will slap into the HTC Vive, but it's obviously going to be something higher spec than their phones since they're aiming for a higher resolution. Time will tell if they go Super LCD3 or switch to IPS or OLED.

[Guest Strangerbob]

I honestly couldn't give a damn about these anymore. I want one to rule every ecosystem which is why I'll probably get an oculus.

There isn't even this much demand for virtual reality. Why do we need as many VR companies as Smartphone Companies?

 

Your thinking is evil, backwards and responsible for stagnation and degradation in SO MANY fields.

[werto165]

I honestly couldn't give a damn about these anymore. I want one to rule every ecosystem which is why I'll probably get an oculus.

There isn't even this much demand for virtual reality. Why do we need as many VR companies as Smartphone Companies?

You're gonna love it when the release even more VR hardware. To quote what Chet Faliszek said "HTC will be the one releasing this year", the one is a strong indication that they could be going to multiple manufactures down the road to build their hardware

[WiiManic]

You're gonna love it when the release even more VR hardware. To quote what Chet Faliszek said "HTC will be the one releasing this year", the one is a strong indication that they could be going to multiple manufactures down the road to build their hardware

Yeah, the wording behind all this seems like Valve is making an ecosystem for VR, and will have multiple manufacturers making things that operate for it.

Like how they wanted the Steambox to be I guess, an OS that everything runs on that lots of different manufacturers make things for.