HTC is now throwing open the pre-order doors for its upcoming next-generation “Vive Pro” virtual reality headset for the PC. Ahead of our review, we did an unboxing video of the Vive Pro you can check out above, showing the packing and the unit out of the box.
The device will ship on April 5, 2018, but you can reserve your headset now at HTC and Amazon for $799. Everyone who purchases a Vive Pro before June 3, 2018 will receive a six-month subscription to Viveport, a $40 value.
If spending $799 on a virtual headset is a bit too steep for your wallet, HTC has reduced the cost of the previous Vive headset to $499. That’s still $100 more than the Oculus Rift, but based on our testing with the two headsets, you have a better experience with the slightly more expensive HTC Vive. The company’s Vive Pro should take those experiences to the next level.
To get you caught up, here are the difference between the first-generation Vive and its successor now available to pre-order:
| Vive | Vive Pro | |
| Display: |
2x 3.6-inch OLED |
2x 3.5-inch AMOLED |
| Display resolution: |
1,080 × 1,200 each |
1,440 × 1,600 each |
| Total resolution: |
2,160 × 1,200 (448ppi) |
2,880 × 1,600 (615ppi) |
| Refresh rate: |
90Hz |
90Hz |
| Field of view: |
110 degrees |
110 degrees |
| Tracking area: |
15 × 15 feet |
33 × 33 feet |
| Sensors: |
Lighthouse laser tracking |
Lighthouse laser tracking |
| Audio: |
Integrated microphones |
Integrated microphones |
| Connections: |
1x USB-A 2.0 |
1x USB-C 3.1 Gen1 |
| Controllers: |
2x motion-sensing |
2x motion-sensing |
Current owners of the HTC Vive may feel somewhat frustrated given they just dumped $799 into the headset when it hit the market in 2017, but there is good news. HTC says the Vive Pro headset will be sold stand-alone, as well, and will work with existing Vive Tracker and Vive Controller hardware. What the company didn’t say, though, is how much the Vive Pro headset will cost alone, or when it’ll be available outside the bundle
The difference between the Vive and Vive Pro might be a game changer for VR enthusiasts. In our hands-on with the Pro unit at CES 2018 in January, moving from Vive to Vive Pro was similar to moving from a traditional SD television set to an HDTV. The visuals are “crisp and clear” although the Pro model still doesn’t expand your field of view, limiting the experience to 110 degrees. The human eye has a natural field of view of over 210 degrees.
Right now, there are no known minimum and recommended system specifications outside what you need to run the original Vive headset. Still, it will require a better machine to reach its maximum capabilities.
