Too little too late. Dont see a way of it being worth it, unless someone really wants to pay double just to not use Pico, or just for smaller form factor.
i like the small form factor, kinna reminds me of megane x. Would love to have something small and light i can wear for hours comfortably, which has been missing in market.
HTC really should have invited Sebastian to their offices for user testing during the development phase. It would’ve really helped them to understand what features they should not miss if they want the product to be successful.
Amazing first impressions Sebastian ! Especially the fact that you compare each separate aspect to a 'known experience' from another existing headset gives us something we can relate to as if we were there ourselves to try the headset first hand. Keep it up !
@@ji32002030??? lol... how about in 2025 maximum. its not even hard to do.. it's just these HMD companies that are too stupid to just give it a bigger fov and having one light. guaranteed by 2025-2026 max.. they release new headsets every year..
@@heyjeySigma I also hope that Quest 4 in 2026 will finally have better FOV. But we should be careful with the predictions. Since 2012, the ultimate VR headset is always 5 years away. Even Michael Abrash fell victim to that and in 2016 predicted 140 FOV and 2x4k displays for year 2021
The feature for eye ajustment is just SO AMAZING, I would love to see this come from more affordable devices like pico or meta, it would be so amazing for me because I have myopia
The crazy thing is that this is utterly trivial to do. As in this review, and my OG Samsung Gear VR headset, you simply have the lenses on a fine pitch 'screw' so that it can move slightly further from the panel and the only downside is a very slight loss of FOV! I simply don't know why this isn't universal. It's the reason I won't buy an Aero (not interested in add-on lenses!).
Your Focus 3 review was very good and convinced me to get that headset for PCVR. I do like it, but if the XR Elite is an overall better experience (form factor, lenses, better battery/charging options, weight distribution, binocular overlap comparison, F3 "120" FOV vs XR "110" FOV, F3 3.5 audio jack vs no jack on the XR, heat generation and fan noises, and lenses+panel combo), I'd definitely like to know. The lenses+panel combo difference is important, as F3 has noticable glare. But, the F3 got a VBS streaming quality update to 'ultra' at 3072 x 3072@90hz 200mbps for RTX 4000s dual video encoder, so it would be hard to give that up. I really hope your full XR Elite review can cover this comparison! Oh, and the overall eye comfort experience of the F3 with prescription lens inserts or glasses vs the XRs diopter!
can't wait for your in depth hands on review! Unfortunately this is out of my price range but hopefully the tech and design trickle down to future models.
I tried this at CES and their product development director told me the depth sensor is currently disabled. They are still tuning it and will be available once it releases.
Ok see that's important information they should have shared with people trying out their products. I will never understand why companies forget such important details.
@@Meianju people are human if no one complained about it maybe they forget to mention it ( although they should have talking points ) or maybe they need to hire better reps lol
I wish they had a more affordable version without the mixed reality features, maybe even with a battery-less strap, just for PCVR. If the price were under a thousand I might have started saving up for it.
I keep coming back despite the price, there's something's here. One extra good feature like bigger fov, oled screen, better resolution or even extra passthrough camera and it would have been pretty incredible. There's also the question of privacy, how important is it truly and how much is it worth. It's modulability is another feature that makes me want to support it.
This is honestly the first standalone style headset that has even remotely piqued my interest. The price is steep, but this form factor and the potential moving forward looks incredible. This is something I can see myself carrying around a lot and using with my laptop with a link cable if I can't do everything on the device itself. I really hope this catches a lot of attention and I hope HTC takes this and makes a simplified version at a cheaper price to disrupt the market. I absolutely love my Vive Pro Eye, but this looks like it could replace it very easily, especially with the eye and face trackers that are following soon.
No DP, next please ...What mania do vr manufacturers have in fighting for the standalone market, don't do the same in any other way. Very good that it is a transformer but since the pico4 came out, many users are waiting for a viewer with pancake and dp (cheap price?)... it's not too much to ask, is it?
get over it ....the wire was already dead before wifi6e ....and with next gen headsets it will only keep getting better ...and the next gen high end headsets will use wigig so u will have to wait for Deckard
@@pumpuppthevolume Why would I choose more compression artifacts, more GPU load, more weight due to needing battery, as well as higher latency over just a simple cable?
@@RavenTaleLive clearly you guys are the minority since all the industry is moving to standalone, pcvr ready headsets. Maybe something like the psvr 2 will come out for pcvr. It looks like valve isn't done with lighthouses so maybe the wire will also stay if people chooses that option.
With such a price I would expect 2x 4K and a DisplayPort. This can't compete with Pico 4 in this case which is quite a shame. Maybe someone will finally create a Pico 4 competitor but with DP included for PCVR and better FOV. Oh well... will wait.
The lenses remind me of a problem I saw with the Aero, looks like there is too much of a gap between them, which would cause poor stereo overlap, even if you had them as close as they go, looks like the gap is too big, like you're looking through a pair of binoculars, with less of a merged image. No local dimming or oled is a deal breaker for me going forward and this is gen 1 fov, htc need to do better to justify a grand. They could have a tough time selling any of these at this price
Thanks Sebastian. I think this new headset takes HTC multiple steps in the right direction. Certainly appears to be worthy of a middle tier purchase for someone who's not willing to accept the Meta, Pico, or Pimax baggage. 😊 Looking forward to the full review!
That might not be the case. It looks like those arms go a fair bit behind the head and resting on a pillow could push it up off your face, not to mention you'd need to be snuggling with a battery pack + long cable.
@@pakman184 I agree I thought of that after I made this comment. You might have to be careful not to push the headset forward off your face because of those arms. But it might work out, it will definitely be better than the adjusting knob and I don't think the battery pack is any kind of problem at all if you're laying down
Thanks for the review. I'm still shopping for my first VR headset and I've been waiting on the Vive XR Elite reviews to see if this will be my first one. I like that they do not take personal data for resell so I think paying a higher price to keep my privacy, this might be worth it.
Hello Worrior! Our consumers safety and peace of mind is a top priority for us. You can find more information on our privacy practices here: www.htc.com/us/terms/learn-more/.
If only they had put the 2.5k panels of the Focus 3 in. It would have been a win. But now its just a too late gimmick with its current specs. Pico 4 crushes it at pcvr at higher resolution, bigger fov, and half the price. Would loved to see those Focus 3 panels with the pancake lenses, Wahh!!
Yeah, this is just missing the mark a bit for me. I had given up on HTC honestly, so it was a surprise to see them take a swing at something I might have considered. But if you call something 'Elite' and charge more than a grand, I shouldnt be seeing any specs that look too cut corner - and that res is not it anymore.
Oh man. The ergonomics seems great. They look sexy. And I'm ok with paying extra for a prosumer XR HMD. But I would need that 3D passthrough implemented and tested first, and of course HTC are working on that. They will have solved really complex frontline problems when they get SLAM+depthsensor+RGB working.
PICO 4 Has better 3D pass-through after the last update, may get better with future updates. HOPEFULLY Pico will partner with Virtual Desktop to access pass-through
Finally a thorough and well balanced review of this headset. Didn’t knew that power bank was demonstrated for use. Love it. I wonder what continuous power from power bank or charger will do the cpu and stock tiny mint batteries ? I can understand laptops on continuous power but this small and light duty product?!?!
While this headset isn't quite what I would spend $1k on, I'm excited for the better for factor. We are getting REALLY close to a headset where it will be decently comfortable to sit back and watch a movie on. For me personally, I'm going to stick with my Index and Quest 2 for a while longer. I'd like to see 120 become the new minimum FoV, and 4k res. Once that happens, I'd be way more likely to pick up a headset like this XR.
Look forward to your report on tethered PC VR exp of this one. If it's DP, it would be somewhat worth considering for flight sim. The MeganeX is already a disappointment for its price, and pico doesn't have DP. Really wish there could be a Reverb G2 replacement with higher FOV, pancake lens, DP, and a reasonable price...
I think its USB Type C if you want PC teethered. Theres no Display Port unfornately. It's what i've seen from the tweets on their twitter and other sources
@@EruKaze thx. haven't dug into the info too much. So if it's USBC on both ends then it's a bummer...not sure if any adapter on the market is capable enough for doing the job. ShiftAll says they are USBC too with an official DP adapter iirc, while Pico4 and others are just USBC without DP function...
@@NanaHoshi35 Yeah, on the standalone side it doesnt need a cable to be plugged to your PC but ofc you be using its battery source. But if you wanted to play teethered without worrying on battery it can be plugged in USB-Type C and you can capture the source of it in both ways as well. With Vive Streaming application. (Teethered or WiFi) But yeah i was suprise hearing that, coz that wouldnt be good for those that have a PC that doesnt have a Type C Connector, if they wanted to use the teethered mode. Its been said it can run games in Vive or SteamVR which is good on that, coz you don't wanna be locked out using just Vive software/games only.
So glad u cleared all my questions up. Not the best resolution and no depth perception leave it feeling abit like an expensive pico 4. Ill stick to my pico 4 n 4090 till i see u get a better look at a finished pimax crystal at some point
As expected it's unfortunately not really justifying the label "XR" yet as it seems, although the form factor, external IPD control and diopter dials are really nice to see. Thanks for getting there to give us an early hands-on impression.
SadlyItsBradley released a video talking about. Unfortunately they didn't have a complete VR headset to show but they did have some contraption people could look through showing the headsets VR and real time passthrough modes.
Other than the size and the diopters, I don't see anything worth getting excited for, especially for that "consumer" price lol. You could get a ps5 and psvr2 for just one of those, and get a superior experience imo. The tech moving forward is cool, HTC is not and they seem determined to NEVER make an actual consumer product. How predictable.
I don't think enough people are aware of this. Sony are really paying for a lot of the hardware for you. The software library is going to boost probably better than any other headset over its life too. I've not seen it but uploadvr talked about loving the screens so I think I could make that my upgrade path from a quest2. I'm just waiting to see how this year plays out for a bit before making my choice but Sony is in my top three so far. This headset here? I wouldn't touch this, hold the line!
Overall, some solid compromises made imo, but $1100 is barely on the edge of acceptable - would rather this priced at $800 for the FOV. But still, I think the non-stereo passthrough might be able to get corrected via software since there's a depth sensor. I just love love love the form factor - I want glasses I can just slide on and off while I'm doing VR work. I saw that in glasses-mode, you were plugged into what I think was a battery bank - wondering if it supports PC tether as well? Or does PC connection HAVE to be over wifi?
Very helpful insights. Thank you. I was waiting to hear someone talk about the difference the depth sensor makes when in pass-through mode, along with the quality of the color pass-through camera before deciding on a Quest Pro or this new HTC set. There are things I like about the hardware, such as the form factor, diopter, and the modular design, but after hoping for more from the color pass-through and depth sensor, I am crestfallen for the MSRP.
I have OQPro and definitely recommend it. Have had about 5 VRs - including the Index... I'm using the OQPro for a lot of UA-camVR everyday and browser + poker. Standalone fantastic.. and when connected to PC/Steam - it's amazing. MRTV's review wasn't that good, but it's because of his personal comfort (I find it THE most comfortable) and the price (glad to see HTC's is not that far off).
For people who are PCVR focused like me, for the resolution, processing power and tracking precision; are the added features to the XR or Quest Pro worth converting to?
It definitely depends on what you want. As somebody who is heavily invested into social VR and PCVR as a whole the biggest thing with inside out tracking headsets is losing hand tracking due to occlusion. Personally, I could never give up my index because I have an easy full body setup and can more or less be tracked in any position, from being face down on the floor to doing a handstand. While its specs might not be the best (4 years old in a few months) there has been nothing so far I want to give it up for. More or less, do you intend on getting invested into VRChat or not lol.
Have in mind that I never had any headsets in my home but I tried couple of them over time. Tbh the pancake lanses are alone woth converting. Eye and face tracking of quest pro is a game changer for social/online games, but if you dont care it, then XR Elite would be a go to headset for you. Mind that both headsets are overpriced, cuz of the new technologies, so for normal consumer they arent the best to buy. Also most heasets that will be released from now forward will have pancake lanes so it will be more common in the future, of course we all should wait for review of the HTC headset. So if you want a better headset right now then yeah, go ahead, but there will be more headsets released in this year, like Quest 3 and hopefully a Valve Deckard...Decard will probably be the best headset when it will come out or maybe it will be overhyped product...who knows. If you are like me and can wait even another year for new headset then wait, but if you are craving for new one, then go ahead and buy either of headest. I wont be a big jump in next-gen vr but I would say the headsets is more like QoL changes that are more than welcome.
@@KyroOryk Rec room was cool when i came out and I dropped off. I think I'm more drawn to the immersion from vr, the best resolution, tracking and wireless are great. I'd be willing to deal with cords for high quality rendering and great tracking. Blew my mind first time someone tossed me a vive wand and caught it.
Think there are decent attempts but do not think its worth getting anything new until its pancake lenses + microOLED panels with eye tracking + base station tracking + wireless so aka index2
For £1000 I want bigger FOV, eye tracking and proper 3D external view. I do like the removable back power bank, tho it would be nice to replace it with a fabric band as the glasses structure doesn't look that secure (but good for movies in bed).
I think this is the most we will get resolution-wise with an XR2 processor. And with that resolution you have to limit the FOV so that the passthrough gets sharp enough to read text.
I can well imagine that you can use it to reach business customers. But if you have a Pico 4 & Quest 2, you don't need the glasses. It's also a pity that there is no DP. With DP I would have found the glasses exciting.
DP would have dramatically increased the expense of this. You can’t just slap DP into anything. It’s not that simple. The XR2 doesn’t have direct DP support, it has to be added with additional hardware that this tiny HMD doesn’t have the space for. I’m sorry, but people are going to have to get over lack of DP support until a new SOC drops with it integrated. Licensing and additional hardware on board makes it virtually impossible to integrate into standalone HMDs right now, because it isn’t feasible.
the form factor and comfort seems very enticing but the FOV turned me off. I can really see the benefit of the removable battery strap section for high back chair and lean back comfort. A lot to like about the headset and HTC are innovating here but I'd rather pay another 400 or 500 pounds (over the price of this headset) for mini LED (or better) and wider FOV as well. Such a thing does not exist. So, its a Pico4 for me in the meantime (as a PCVR headset). Also, Interesting that the separate power bank / stream unit (I understand you can use an android phone to stream stuff) is a feature, seen a lot of ridicule that Apple might be going for a pocket compute/ power unit, I really don't have a problem with that if it affords a better experience.
@@stormvr1070 yep same. would love to have a pancake lens, small form factor, wireless headset to use while FBT dancing! whoever releases the first one will get my money.
still watching but not getting the impression it still has lighthouse tracking as an option, which is disappointing. For the price and calling it Vive, that should have been a possibility. (at least on the headset)
I personally think hardware manufacturers do not understand that people beat a few good games and don't really play games as most of them suck so they go sit in vrchat all day and want full body tracking and for this only very few good options.
Don't care about the headset as is, will be a different story if the eye and face tracker addons are affordable though. I wonder if the headset itself has a built in battery so you have the ability to hot swap batteries without it shutting off on you..
If youre comparing visuals to the G2, its prob best to compare to Pico 4 instead. Has same resolution, and closer fov. Only thing this new headset has going is its form factor.
@@seraphimelegy6747 I actually own a G2, so I'm hoping it would at least match the visuals. Form factor is super nice but I don't know if it's worth shelling out the the $1100 asap for that alone.
I considered putting in a pre-order the other day, but I ultimately decided against it. Coming from the G2, taking a hit in resolution is a big deal, I could probably live with it if it offered something of value. I figured that having only one color pass-through camera was going to be an issue, especially since they did not mention using other cameras, thanks for confirming that. I am glad they put diopter adjustments on there, but having a manual IPD adjustment, at this point, is just lazy. Honestly, this is way overpriced for what it is, if it was sub $800 I think it would be worth considering. I keep hoping that there will be some new headset to get me off of the G2, WMR has been a train wreck for awhile now.
The only good thing about this headset as an upgrade, is the form factor. And that's no small thing. But without doing anything else as good or better, there's no way one could reasonably justify the price. I'm currently using a Samsung Odyssey Plus and the FoV, OLED, and brightness on this thing is insanely good. It's really the standard going forward. I think the only headset that finally surpasses it is the PSVR2. Everything roughly the same but resolution being a lot higher. Looking forward to pancake lens high resolution micro-OLED headsets to upgrade to. I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of FoV for the form factor/ significantly better comfort and high res micro-OLED.
@@zackmac5917 odyssey plus is terrible man.. its very bulky and heavy and bad controllers and quite blurry .. but especially bulky which sucked. reverb g2 is a lil lighter but has terrible sweet spot. anyway i threw away the Odyssey+ some time ago. get a better headset.. it's not a "standard" at all. But yea i just want a very light headset cause they are heavy as heck on my face after a while
@@heyjeySigma can't stand LCD. I returned my index and went back to my Rift CV1. Odyssey plus has the best display out of all of them in terms of the quality of the OLED display, and also amazing brightness. No sde due to anti screen door tech, even though its not 2k x 2k or anything. It also has one of the best FoVs, similar to the index. For me going from CV1 to Samsung odyssey plus, the resolution is a big improvement tbh, and no sde is a dream. It's a great headset to hold me over until pancake lens high resolution Micro-OLED headsets like the Meganex. I'm looking forward to the upgrade in resolution and getting rid of the bulk and weight. That's what I'm waiting for. I'll even sacrifice some FoV. But no way at the expense of OLED.
It would be an instabuy (if I got the spare money) and if it could run some Quest games I like. As both are android based devices I wonder if it would be possible. I am wowed bye the form factor and modularity. So it'd be nice if I could carry around a power efficient SteamVR capable gpu form factor laptop or gaming device that'd simultaneously charge the headset and drive the display through the cable (which might be more powerefficient then using wireless). For now I'm quite happy with the Quest Pro but a bit jealous of the even smaller form factor. With the higher resolution pass through mode, walking around and using them as expensive spare glasses is also nice! I also want an alpha transparency hardware slider for windows or apps, so I can lookup something while sitting on the couch, even though I could use my smarphone or watch for that.
Hello Dan! VIVE XR Elite does support Wi-Fi 6 + 6E. You may refer to this page for a complete list of supported countries: www.vive.com/us/support/focus3/category_howto/in-what-regions-can-wifi-6e-be-used.html.
I sold my Rift before getting a Rift 2. Hated the light blacks so much I returned it. Been away from VR ever since. I was thinking of getting a quest 2 until they jumped the cost $100.
Interesting device. But don't these companies understand that we need proper 3d full color passthrough? Just squash 2 cameras in there at the correct IPD and make those your pasthough cams. Even better: Put 2 fisheye lenses in there and you'll be able to RECORD a VR180 experience, and maybe even share it on youtube or DeoVR. Oh well maybe one day somebody will come to their senses :)
They really should have invested into a second camera for the passthrough almost seems like the depth sensor is simply there to justify a higher price.
I like your video it made my mine up to wait on the apple headset because I want better on screen view for watch movies and playing games. When I look at the screen throw the glasses I want the Samsung as looking at a Samsung Note Ultra
A bit on the pricey side but it could be worth the wait if it has other much needed features. Now to do research on if HTC Vive is a trust worthy company unlike Face Book or Pico 4 being a Chinese brand who reports to their government.
Oh dear. It doesn't even do proper (3D) passthrough. As a PC VR user waiting for OLED, I wouldn't be getting this anyway, but damn, that's bad. It therefore isn't really even competing with the Quest Pro for MR. And it's LCD vs mini-LED. So it's only competing in form factor.....
The XR Elite isn't a "Quest Pro Killer" like some will most likely call it due to 2 things. 1, the controllers are pretty basic (think Quest/Quest 2 controllers) for the $1,100 price tag. And 2, the XR Elite is missing both face and eye tracking. Both will be options, but adding them will bring this headset North of $1,400. It's an interesting looking modular headset design, but based on specs it doesn't quite measure up to HTC's lofty goals of competing against the Quest Pro.
So, it cost double of the Quest 2, that is way too expensive for most consumers. Two questions. How easy is it to clean the fabrics. And can you play your Steam VR games on this as stand alone (not connected to a PC), or you need to buy the games all over. That is what prevents me for swapping my original Vive headset for a Quest 2 or Pico 4, that I still need to connect to a PC to play the games I bought on Steam VR even though many of them are built native for the headset. My PC is not powerful enough for these new headsets, so I need to run the games in the headset. But if this from Vive will allow me to transfer the games to the headset, that would be great.
Thank you for a first impressions on this very nice, I'd personally really like more fov for that price. Also does anyone know what the refresh rate of the panels are 🤔
What are your thoughts about the Vive XR Elite?
It will be interesting to hear your honest opinion! (including whether it is worth the price!)
Too little too late. Dont see a way of it being worth it, unless someone really wants to pay double just to not use Pico, or just for smaller form factor.
I'm linking a lot from it. Not liking the screen.
Would like a comparison to something like the Varjo Aero... If I'm going to drop 1100 on a headset... I'll just as soon drop 2k on a headset.
i like the small form factor, kinna reminds me of megane x.
Would love to have something small and light i can wear for hours comfortably, which has been missing in market.
HTC really should have invited Sebastian to their offices for user testing during the development phase. It would’ve really helped them to understand what features they should not miss if they want the product to be successful.
Yes. Arpara should have done also. Professional beta tester Seb.
Amazing first impressions Sebastian ! Especially the fact that you compare each separate aspect to a 'known experience' from another existing headset gives us something we can relate to as if we were there ourselves to try the headset first hand. Keep it up !
Some day we will have a headset like this that has an acceptable FOV. That's when I'll buy my next headset.
It will happen. I guarantee it will happen before year 2030
@@ji32002030??? lol... how about in 2025 maximum.
its not even hard to do.. it's just these HMD companies that are too stupid to just give it a bigger fov and having one light.
guaranteed by 2025-2026 max.. they release new headsets every year..
@@heyjeySigma I also hope that Quest 4 in 2026 will finally have better FOV. But we should be careful with the predictions. Since 2012, the ultimate VR headset is always 5 years away. Even Michael Abrash fell victim to that and in 2016 predicted 140 FOV and 2x4k displays for year 2021
The feature for eye ajustment is just SO AMAZING, I would love to see this come from more affordable devices like pico or meta, it would be so amazing for me because I have myopia
The crazy thing is that this is utterly trivial to do. As in this review, and my OG Samsung Gear VR headset, you simply have the lenses on a fine pitch 'screw' so that it can move slightly further from the panel and the only downside is a very slight loss of FOV! I simply don't know why this isn't universal. It's the reason I won't buy an Aero (not interested in add-on lenses!).
Your Focus 3 review was very good and convinced me to get that headset for PCVR. I do like it, but if the XR Elite is an overall better experience (form factor, lenses, better battery/charging options, weight distribution, binocular overlap comparison, F3 "120" FOV vs XR "110" FOV, F3 3.5 audio jack vs no jack on the XR, heat generation and fan noises, and lenses+panel combo), I'd definitely like to know. The lenses+panel combo difference is important, as F3 has noticable glare. But, the F3 got a VBS streaming quality update to 'ultra' at 3072 x 3072@90hz 200mbps for RTX 4000s dual video encoder, so it would be hard to give that up. I really hope your full XR Elite review can cover this comparison! Oh, and the overall eye comfort experience of the F3 with prescription lens inserts or glasses vs the XRs diopter!
can't wait for your in depth hands on review! Unfortunately this is out of my price range but hopefully the tech and design trickle down to future models.
I tried this at CES and their product development director told me the depth sensor is currently disabled. They are still tuning it and will be available once it releases.
Ok see that's important information they should have shared with people trying out their products. I will never understand why companies forget such important details.
@@Meianju people are human if no one complained about it maybe they forget to mention it ( although they should have talking points ) or maybe they need to hire better reps lol
@@Meianju Probably because they know it's not working as intended yet and do not want to advertise that fact.
I wish they had a more affordable version without the mixed reality features, maybe even with a battery-less strap, just for PCVR. If the price were under a thousand I might have started saving up for it.
I keep coming back despite the price, there's something's here. One extra good feature like bigger fov, oled screen, better resolution or even extra passthrough camera and it would have been pretty incredible. There's also the question of privacy, how important is it truly and how much is it worth. It's modulability is another feature that makes me want to support it.
This is honestly the first standalone style headset that has even remotely piqued my interest. The price is steep, but this form factor and the potential moving forward looks incredible. This is something I can see myself carrying around a lot and using with my laptop with a link cable if I can't do everything on the device itself. I really hope this catches a lot of attention and I hope HTC takes this and makes a simplified version at a cheaper price to disrupt the market. I absolutely love my Vive Pro Eye, but this looks like it could replace it very easily, especially with the eye and face trackers that are following soon.
No DP, next please ...What mania do vr manufacturers have in fighting for the standalone market, don't do the same in any other way. Very good that it is a transformer but since the pico4 came out, many users are waiting for a viewer with pancake and dp (cheap price?)... it's not too much to ask, is it?
get over it ....the wire was already dead before wifi6e ....and with next gen headsets it will only keep getting better
...and the next gen high end headsets will use wigig so u will have to wait for Deckard
@@pumpuppthevolume Why would I choose more compression artifacts, more GPU load, more weight due to needing battery, as well as higher latency over just a simple cable?
@@RavenTaleLive clearly you guys are the minority since all the industry is moving to standalone, pcvr ready headsets. Maybe something like the psvr 2 will come out for pcvr. It looks like valve isn't done with lighthouses so maybe the wire will also stay if people chooses that option.
@@Dindonmasker They absolutely are the minority
It has DP over USB-C
You totally nailed this first impressions video, thanks Seb!
With such a price I would expect 2x 4K and a DisplayPort.
This can't compete with Pico 4 in this case which is quite a shame.
Maybe someone will finally create a Pico 4 competitor but with DP included for PCVR and better FOV. Oh well... will wait.
The wifi 6E is a redeeming factor tho. You could do a much faster/lighter encode and use more bandwidth instead.
The lenses remind me of a problem I saw with the Aero, looks like there is too much of a gap between them, which would cause poor stereo overlap, even if you had them as close as they go, looks like the gap is too big, like you're looking through a pair of binoculars, with less of a merged image. No local dimming or oled is a deal breaker for me going forward and this is gen 1 fov, htc need to do better to justify a grand. They could have a tough time selling any of these at this price
Thanks Sebastian. I think this new headset takes HTC multiple steps in the right direction. Certainly appears to be worthy of a middle tier purchase for someone who's not willing to accept the Meta, Pico, or Pimax baggage. 😊 Looking forward to the full review!
we simply do not want to pay a LOT of money for high quality!
At £380 the Pico 4 is an absolute bargain, as for baggage there really isn't any when you pair with virtual desktop.
The removable back would be good for laying down
Great point that didn't occur to me immediately!
That might not be the case. It looks like those arms go a fair bit behind the head and resting on a pillow could push it up off your face, not to mention you'd need to be snuggling with a battery pack + long cable.
@@pakman184 I agree I thought of that after I made this comment. You might have to be careful not to push the headset forward off your face because of those arms. But it might work out, it will definitely be better than the adjusting knob and I don't think the battery pack is any kind of problem at all if you're laying down
I love that it converts to glasses for the plane etc, but for media viewing I’d love to see OLED and maybe slightly higher resolution
Get a psvr2 problem solved
@@biglegacy6472 You right PSVR2 is standalone...wait a minute...
Nice review, thanks
Thanks for the review. I'm still shopping for my first VR headset and I've been waiting on the Vive XR Elite reviews to see if this will be my first one. I like that they do not take personal data for resell so I think paying a higher price to keep my privacy, this might be worth it.
Unpopular opinion I'm kinda excited for this headset plain and simple I don't want my data being used by a big market
Hello Worrior! Our consumers safety and peace of mind is a top priority for us. You can find more information on our privacy practices here: www.htc.com/us/terms/learn-more/.
If only they had put the 2.5k panels of the Focus 3 in. It would have been a win. But now its just a too late gimmick with its current specs. Pico 4 crushes it at pcvr at higher resolution, bigger fov, and half the price. Would loved to see those Focus 3 panels with the pancake lenses, Wahh!!
Yeah, this is just missing the mark a bit for me. I had given up on HTC honestly, so it was a surprise to see them take a swing at something I might have considered. But if you call something 'Elite' and charge more than a grand, I shouldnt be seeing any specs that look too cut corner - and that res is not it anymore.
Such of Great preview!
Thank you so much & i hope you have a good day always! ❤
I think I'll wait for the MeganeX VR with OLED panels.
100%.
Or the mystery unannounced micro-OLED headset that's supposedly going to compete with it.
Oh man. The ergonomics seems great. They look sexy. And I'm ok with paying extra for a prosumer XR HMD.
But I would need that 3D passthrough implemented and tested first, and of course HTC are working on that. They will have solved really complex frontline problems when they get SLAM+depthsensor+RGB working.
Great review! Interesting to see how far things have come in the last 10 or so years
That battery system should be standard on all headsets.
PICO 4 Has better 3D pass-through after the last update, may get better with future updates. HOPEFULLY Pico will partner with Virtual Desktop to access pass-through
I agree. The pass through has much improved since the update but there are no applications to make use of it
Thanks for the impressions! I'm gunna skip out on this one but it's good to see them innovating
Finally a thorough and well balanced review of this headset. Didn’t knew that power bank was demonstrated for use. Love it. I wonder what continuous power from power bank or charger will do the cpu and stock tiny mint batteries ? I can understand laptops on continuous power but this small and light duty product?!?!
While this headset isn't quite what I would spend $1k on, I'm excited for the better for factor. We are getting REALLY close to a headset where it will be decently comfortable to sit back and watch a movie on. For me personally, I'm going to stick with my Index and Quest 2 for a while longer. I'd like to see 120 become the new minimum FoV, and 4k res. Once that happens, I'd be way more likely to pick up a headset like this XR.
Same with me, will just stick with my Index and Quest 2 until resolution improves more and don't have to spend 2500+ for it.
Look forward to your report on tethered PC VR exp of this one. If it's DP, it would be somewhat worth considering for flight sim. The MeganeX is already a disappointment for its price, and pico doesn't have DP. Really wish there could be a Reverb G2 replacement with higher FOV, pancake lens, DP, and a reasonable price...
I think its USB Type C if you want PC teethered. Theres no Display Port unfornately. It's what i've seen from the tweets on their twitter and other sources
@@EruKaze thx. haven't dug into the info too much. So if it's USBC on both ends then it's a bummer...not sure if any adapter on the market is capable enough for doing the job. ShiftAll says they are USBC too with an official DP adapter iirc, while Pico4 and others are just USBC without DP function...
@@NanaHoshi35 Yeah, on the standalone side it doesnt need a cable to be plugged to your PC but ofc you be using its battery source. But if you wanted to play teethered without worrying on battery it can be plugged in USB-Type C and you can capture the source of it in both ways as well. With Vive Streaming application. (Teethered or WiFi)
But yeah i was suprise hearing that, coz that wouldnt be good for those that have a PC that doesnt have a Type C Connector, if they wanted to use the teethered mode. Its been said it can run games in Vive or SteamVR which is good on that, coz you don't wanna be locked out using just Vive software/games only.
So glad u cleared all my questions up. Not the best resolution and no depth perception leave it feeling abit like an expensive pico 4. Ill stick to my pico 4 n 4090 till i see u get a better look at a finished pimax crystal at some point
The future looks bright. Once they can release headsets like this with 120hz, it's time for me to jump back into the market.
I mean VR future looks bright. Life future on the other hand...
As expected it's unfortunately not really justifying the label "XR" yet as it seems, although the form factor, external IPD control and diopter dials are really nice to see. Thanks for getting there to give us an early hands-on impression.
Hello MRTV, have you demoed the SomniumVR1? I havent seen a video on it, and I really want to see what its like
Good question 🤔
SadlyItsBradley released a video talking about. Unfortunately they didn't have a complete VR headset to show but they did have some contraption people could look through showing the headsets VR and real time passthrough modes.
Other than the size and the diopters, I don't see anything worth getting excited for, especially for that "consumer" price lol. You could get a ps5 and psvr2 for just one of those, and get a superior experience imo. The tech moving forward is cool, HTC is not and they seem determined to NEVER make an actual consumer product. How predictable.
I don't think enough people are aware of this. Sony are really paying for a lot of the hardware for you. The software library is going to boost probably better than any other headset over its life too. I've not seen it but uploadvr talked about loving the screens so I think I could make that my upgrade path from a quest2. I'm just waiting to see how this year plays out for a bit before making my choice but Sony is in my top three so far. This headset here? I wouldn't touch this, hold the line!
Thanks Sebastian! Did it slip around without the rear battery attachment?
Overall, some solid compromises made imo, but $1100 is barely on the edge of acceptable - would rather this priced at $800 for the FOV. But still, I think the non-stereo passthrough might be able to get corrected via software since there's a depth sensor. I just love love love the form factor - I want glasses I can just slide on and off while I'm doing VR work. I saw that in glasses-mode, you were plugged into what I think was a battery bank - wondering if it supports PC tether as well? Or does PC connection HAVE to be over wifi?
It does support a wired connection I believe.
Very helpful insights. Thank you. I was waiting to hear someone talk about the difference the depth sensor makes when in pass-through mode, along with the quality of the color pass-through camera before deciding on a Quest Pro or this new HTC set. There are things I like about the hardware, such as the form factor, diopter, and the modular design, but after hoping for more from the color pass-through and depth sensor, I am crestfallen for the MSRP.
I have OQPro and definitely recommend it. Have had about 5 VRs - including the Index... I'm using the OQPro for a lot of UA-camVR everyday and browser + poker. Standalone fantastic.. and when connected to PC/Steam - it's amazing. MRTV's review wasn't that good, but it's because of his personal comfort (I find it THE most comfortable) and the price (glad to see HTC's is not that far off).
The reduced size alone is worth the price difference.
I really like the look of this system its just the high price that puts me off.
For people who are PCVR focused like me, for the resolution, processing power and tracking precision; are the added features to the XR or Quest Pro worth converting to?
It definitely depends on what you want. As somebody who is heavily invested into social VR and PCVR as a whole the biggest thing with inside out tracking headsets is losing hand tracking due to occlusion. Personally, I could never give up my index because I have an easy full body setup and can more or less be tracked in any position, from being face down on the floor to doing a handstand. While its specs might not be the best (4 years old in a few months) there has been nothing so far I want to give it up for. More or less, do you intend on getting invested into VRChat or not lol.
Have in mind that I never had any headsets in my home but I tried couple of them over time. Tbh the pancake lanses are alone woth converting. Eye and face tracking of quest pro is a game changer for social/online games, but if you dont care it, then XR Elite would be a go to headset for you. Mind that both headsets are overpriced, cuz of the new technologies, so for normal consumer they arent the best to buy. Also most heasets that will be released from now forward will have pancake lanes so it will be more common in the future, of course we all should wait for review of the HTC headset.
So if you want a better headset right now then yeah, go ahead, but there will be more headsets released in this year, like Quest 3 and hopefully a Valve Deckard...Decard will probably be the best headset when it will come out or maybe it will be overhyped product...who knows. If you are like me and can wait even another year for new headset then wait, but if you are craving for new one, then go ahead and buy either of headest. I wont be a big jump in next-gen vr but I would say the headsets is more like QoL changes that are more than welcome.
Nah. Ideally we'd like to have at least 2.5k resolution per eye. FOV, bigger is always ideal
@@KyroOryk Rec room was cool when i came out and I dropped off. I think I'm more drawn to the immersion from vr, the best resolution, tracking and wireless are great. I'd be willing to deal with cords for high quality rendering and great tracking. Blew my mind first time someone tossed me a vive wand and caught it.
Good review. Nice form factor, but seems like the Pico 4 is a better value. Nothing really exciting,,, unless you use it on a train or plane.
Think there are decent attempts but do not think its worth getting anything new until its pancake lenses + microOLED panels with eye tracking + base station tracking + wireless so aka index2
For £1000 I want bigger FOV, eye tracking and proper 3D external view. I do like the removable back power bank, tho it would be nice to replace it with a fabric band as the glasses structure doesn't look that secure (but good for movies in bed).
Yeah, not sure why they didn't think of a simple elastic band.
Resolution & FOV should have been higher. Also needed displayport
I think this is the most we will get resolution-wise with an XR2 processor.
And with that resolution you have to limit the FOV so that the passthrough gets sharp enough to read text.
the big win of all these standalone devices is OpenXR. Choice is king.
I can well imagine that you can use it to reach business customers. But if you have a Pico 4 & Quest 2, you don't need the glasses. It's also a pity that there is no DP. With DP I would have found the glasses exciting.
DP would have dramatically increased the expense of this. You can’t just slap DP into anything. It’s not that simple. The XR2 doesn’t have direct DP support, it has to be added with additional hardware that this tiny HMD doesn’t have the space for. I’m sorry, but people are going to have to get over lack of DP support until a new SOC drops with it integrated. Licensing and additional hardware on board makes it virtually impossible to integrate into standalone HMDs right now, because it isn’t feasible.
@@thunderbolt10031 it would have only cost an extra 10 dollar max per unit. It can be done.
the form factor and comfort seems very enticing but the FOV turned me off. I can really see the benefit of the removable battery strap section for high back chair and lean back comfort. A lot to like about the headset and HTC are innovating here but I'd rather pay another 400 or 500 pounds (over the price of this headset) for mini LED (or better) and wider FOV as well. Such a thing does not exist. So, its a Pico4 for me in the meantime (as a PCVR headset). Also, Interesting that the separate power bank / stream unit (I understand you can use an android phone to stream stuff) is a feature, seen a lot of ridicule that Apple might be going for a pocket compute/ power unit, I really don't have a problem with that if it affords a better experience.
htc would be super ahead if they just hire sebastian
I pre-ordered. Right mix of features for me, I think.
looking good Sebastian! :)
if this had basestation tracking i would buy it
Same. As a full body tracker user, I have no interest in mixing tracking solutions.
@@stormvr1070 yep same. would love to have a pancake lens, small form factor, wireless headset to use while FBT dancing! whoever releases the first one will get my money.
That headset looks so slick.
Wow, this is so exclusive! :O Great job in going there
still watching but not getting the impression it still has lighthouse tracking as an option, which is disappointing. For the price and calling it Vive, that should have been a possibility. (at least on the headset)
I personally think hardware manufacturers do not understand that people beat a few good games and don't really play games as most of them suck so they go sit in vrchat all day and want full body tracking and for this only very few good options.
having a Diopter is a huge plus for me.
Holding on for the quest 3 without any "elite straps" for comfort
Don't care about the headset as is, will be a different story if the eye and face tracker addons are affordable though.
I wonder if the headset itself has a built in battery so you have the ability to hot swap batteries without it shutting off on you..
In the htc ces presentation they did say it was hot swappable
The form factor is amazing, but it's just another Quest 2. I will just keep waiting for the next generation headset. Maybe the Quest 3 will be it.
10:54 it's so light that it doesn't fall off, interesting. Quest 2 would drop like a rock.
How does the resolution and display compare to the Reverb G2?? And great video!
If youre comparing visuals to the G2, its prob best to compare to Pico 4 instead. Has same resolution, and closer fov. Only thing this new headset has going is its form factor.
@@seraphimelegy6747 I actually own a G2, so I'm hoping it would at least match the visuals. Form factor is super nice but I don't know if it's worth shelling out the the $1100 asap for that alone.
I considered putting in a pre-order the other day, but I ultimately decided against it. Coming from the G2, taking a hit in resolution is a big deal, I could probably live with it if it offered something of value. I figured that having only one color pass-through camera was going to be an issue, especially since they did not mention using other cameras, thanks for confirming that. I am glad they put diopter adjustments on there, but having a manual IPD adjustment, at this point, is just lazy. Honestly, this is way overpriced for what it is, if it was sub $800 I think it would be worth considering. I keep hoping that there will be some new headset to get me off of the G2, WMR has been a train wreck for awhile now.
The only good thing about this headset as an upgrade, is the form factor.
And that's no small thing.
But without doing anything else as good or better, there's no way one could reasonably justify the price.
I'm currently using a Samsung Odyssey Plus and the FoV, OLED, and brightness on this thing is insanely good. It's really the standard going forward.
I think the only headset that finally surpasses it is the PSVR2. Everything roughly the same but resolution being a lot higher.
Looking forward to pancake lens high resolution micro-OLED headsets to upgrade to. I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of FoV for the form factor/ significantly better comfort and high res micro-OLED.
@@zackmac5917 odyssey plus is terrible man.. its very bulky and heavy and bad controllers and quite blurry .. but especially bulky which sucked.
reverb g2 is a lil lighter but has terrible sweet spot. anyway i threw away the Odyssey+ some time ago.
get a better headset.. it's not a "standard" at all.
But yea i just want a very light headset cause they are heavy as heck on my face after a while
@@heyjeySigma can't stand LCD. I returned my index and went back to my Rift CV1.
Odyssey plus has the best display out of all of them in terms of the quality of the OLED display, and also amazing brightness. No sde due to anti screen door tech, even though its not 2k x 2k or anything.
It also has one of the best FoVs, similar to the index.
For me going from CV1 to Samsung odyssey plus, the resolution is a big improvement tbh, and no sde is a dream.
It's a great headset to hold me over until pancake lens high resolution Micro-OLED headsets like the Meganex.
I'm looking forward to the upgrade in resolution and getting rid of the bulk and weight. That's what I'm waiting for. I'll even sacrifice some FoV.
But no way at the expense of OLED.
OLED vs LCD screens is the reason why I am still on OG HTC Vive and still waiting for the no compromises upgrade...
I would love to try this
nice! ready for the crystal
Good that they put the battery at the back for better balance.
I'm waiting for Quest 3 for my small form factor headset and either Somnium or Crystal for my sims
Pimax 12k for PC VR and Psvr2 for exclusive games 🙂
Only 2 headsets that you need
It would be an instabuy (if I got the spare money) and if it could run some Quest games I like.
As both are android based devices I wonder if it would be possible. I am wowed bye the form factor and modularity. So it'd be nice if I could carry around a power efficient SteamVR capable gpu form factor laptop or gaming device that'd simultaneously charge the headset and drive the display through the cable (which might be more powerefficient then using wireless). For now I'm quite happy with the Quest Pro but a bit jealous of the even smaller form factor.
With the higher resolution pass through mode, walking around and using them as expensive spare glasses is also nice! I also want an alpha transparency hardware slider for windows or apps, so I can lookup something while sitting on the couch, even though I could use my smarphone or watch for that.
The diopter is a huge selling point.
Needs to have good 3D color pass through. If they fix that I will buy one.
Why would you want to have passthrough
@@x32i77 you don't see the value of 3D passthrough for mixed reality? it's an exciting future, i reckon.
@@RogerEssigArtist if they would project Ryley into my room then it would be interesting but other than that there is little use case
Seb looked like a cool in the future VR/Aviator dude..
I like that!
Hmmmmm. Seems like a smaller quest pro made by a different company. Pretty cool! But we’re all waiting on the quest 3!
I actually like using VR with PC via wifi. I hope they will continue to support it.
Hello Dan! VIVE XR Elite does support Wi-Fi 6 + 6E. You may refer to this page for a complete list of supported countries: www.vive.com/us/support/focus3/category_howto/in-what-regions-can-wifi-6e-be-used.html.
I don't see the problem with a magic leap style puck u can offload for more computing power???
Seb you are the best
I sold my Rift before getting a Rift 2. Hated the light blacks so much I returned it. Been away from VR ever since. I was thinking of getting a quest 2 until they jumped the cost $100.
I'd absolutely love something like this but without standalone so it could be as cheap and light as possible
Interesting device. But don't these companies understand that we need proper 3d full color passthrough? Just squash 2 cameras in there at the correct IPD and make those your pasthough cams. Even better: Put 2 fisheye lenses in there and you'll be able to RECORD a VR180 experience, and maybe even share it on youtube or DeoVR.
Oh well maybe one day somebody will come to their senses :)
Was thinking the same about VR180. Definitely gonna propel VR porn as well haha. I might make some if that happens haha
They really should have invested into a second camera for the passthrough almost seems like the depth sensor is simply there to justify a higher price.
Interesting, but not quite what I'm looking for as a replacement for my Valve Index.
What if you have reading glasses (Positive lenses instead of negative?)
Can I get a recommendation on VR headset with the most features such as OLED?
It's truly an interesting headset but it's low fov and average resolution make it a hard sell at that price. Thank you for making this video.
All I care about is its PCVR wireless abilities. I don't care about the standalone mode as much.
I want to know comfort comparison between Q2(mod strape) vs Qpro vs XR elite vs pico 4. Which is the most comfortable headset on the market?
I like your video it made my mine up to wait on the apple headset because I want better on screen view for watch movies and playing games. When I look at the screen throw the glasses I want the Samsung as looking at a Samsung Note Ultra
A bit on the pricey side but it could be worth the wait if it has other much needed features.
Now to do research on if HTC Vive is a trust worthy company unlike Face Book or Pico 4 being a Chinese brand who reports to their government.
I want better FOV. Tired of feeling like I'm looking through binoculars .
That effect might also be caused by bad binocular overlap. Still I agree it needed a bigger fov and/or resolution.
Oh dear. It doesn't even do proper (3D) passthrough.
As a PC VR user waiting for OLED, I wouldn't be getting this anyway, but damn, that's bad.
It therefore isn't really even competing with the Quest Pro for MR. And it's LCD vs mini-LED. So it's only competing in form factor.....
The XR Elite isn't a "Quest Pro Killer" like some will most likely call it due to 2 things. 1, the controllers are pretty basic (think Quest/Quest 2 controllers) for the $1,100 price tag. And 2, the XR Elite is missing both face and eye tracking. Both will be options, but adding them will bring this headset North of $1,400. It's an interesting looking modular headset design, but based on specs it doesn't quite measure up to HTC's lofty goals of competing against the Quest Pro.
Why do companies keep removing the top head strap.
The reverb g2 is the most comfortable headset I’ve tried solely due to that top strap
Still don't trust them since the pre-order of the OG Cosmos that was an absolute scam. Will definitely wait for solid release reviews.
So close yet so far. A truly good company would make a full modular headset. Maybe Framework will do it.
Lcd , I pass . Funny that the vive pro and original vive had OLED Displays and this one not
Nice Seb. Any through the lens footage?
Nope, not this time.
Does the diopter accomodate people that need reading glasses(presbyopia)?
So, it cost double of the Quest 2, that is way too expensive for most consumers. Two questions. How easy is it to clean the fabrics. And can you play your Steam VR games on this as stand alone (not connected to a PC), or you need to buy the games all over. That is what prevents me for swapping my original Vive headset for a Quest 2 or Pico 4, that I still need to connect to a PC to play the games I bought on Steam VR even though many of them are built native for the headset. My PC is not powerful enough for these new headsets, so I need to run the games in the headset. But if this from Vive will allow me to transfer the games to the headset, that would be great.
Is it natively compatible with 11 table tennis?
This makes me feel the Pico 4 is extremely good value!
Thank you for a first impressions on this very nice, I'd personally really like more fov for that price. Also does anyone know what the refresh rate of the panels are 🤔
Currently it's display refresh rate is 90Hz.
oh nice, thank you very much