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HTC Vive Is $799, Ships From April 1st (arstechnica.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the intimately-starring-at-a-screen-pressed-up-against-your-face dept.

New submitter mobby_6kl writes: The HTC Vive VR headset, developed in partnership with Valve, has been announced ahead of schedule today to cost $799, with pre-orders opening on February 29th and shipping from April 1st. The Vive will ship with two games that take advantage of the system's two motion controllers and "room scale" capabilities, Job Simulator and Fantastic Contraption. The HTC Vive is $200 more expensive than its main competitor, Oculus Rift, but does include the two motion controllers as well as Bluetooth for smartphone connectivity. However, detailed specifications for either system are not yet known. When it's available for pre-order, it will launch in no less than 24 different markets on that day including the U.S., Canada, U.K., Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland, Sweden, Taiwan, China, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

83 comments

  1. At that price point... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 1

    Sounds like an April Fool's joke. It's a bit too early in the year for April Fool's jokes.

    1. Re:At that price point... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If it lives up to hype, I don't mind the price. Unfortunately, however, the card in my PC isn't powerful enough for this thing, and I don't plan on upgrading my PC anytime soon. I have heard rumors of future Xbox One compatibility....if that manifests I will probably buy a Vive.

    2. Re:At that price point... by JohnStock · · Score: 1

      Mr Obvious makes Mr Obvious jokes.

    3. Re: At that price point... by mSparks43 · · Score: 1

      just bought a gear vr yesterday. great for watching films and killing time some good free games and will probably buy a couple of the paid for ones. $100 incremental cost for the headset...

      but the vive will not be enough to get me back into PC gaming.

      if nvidia ever releases an sbs graphics driver I might. but right now most of the directx 3d games don't actually seem to render in 3d. never actually got the nvidia 3d play to work satisfactorily.

    4. Re:At that price point... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It contains rare earth minerals and gold.

    5. Re:At that price point... by NotDrWho · · Score: 1

      If you think that's expensive, you should see the price of the PC you will need to run it at a decent fps.

      --
      SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
  2. Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Whipslash must be making a killing on these paid submissions.

    Money up front, plus all the ad revenue from people who come to post asking why Slashdot is posting paid submissions without distinguishing them, like they still promise.

    1. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by SeaFox · · Score: 2

      I was pleasantly surprised, actually.

      I thought this would be a slashvertisement for a smartphone when I saw it in my RSS feed.
      Discussion of new VR gear is a little bit different. Maybe once VR is a common thing on the market I'll agree this is is just an ad, but for right now it's still News for Nerds.

    2. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by zenlessyank · · Score: 1

      If you pay him he will post your ad too. So, um, what is the problem? At least it's not about some political crap. See this thing has circuits and software and buttons on it with a display. I don't know too many nerdy types who WOULDN'T want to discuss it. Maybe you should try harder next time.

    3. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by BeauHD · · Score: 1

      Just an ad? JUST an ad? It can be yours for only 4 EASY PAYMENTS of $199!

    4. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by BeauHD · · Score: 2

      Exactly. What nerd isn't interested in virtual-reality? A 'nerd' who was fond of the idea before it was all over the press? There's another name for that.

    5. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      and one easy payment of $3.

    6. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by mobby_6kl · · Score: 4, Funny

      Submitter here. I am extremely disturbed by all the accusations that this is a paid advertisement. Because I have not yet received my cut.

      Who do I talk to in order to escalate this issue?!?

    7. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For a long time I have been interested in knowing what the price would be. This slashdot post was the first to inform me. So, at least one AC is appreciative of the post and is not making accusations based on the assumption that any post about a product that has geek-appeal must automatically be a paid advertisement.

    8. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Who do I talk to in order to escalate this issue?!?

      Your mom

    9. Re:Good stuff Whipslash by whipslash · · Score: 2

      Yes. A killing of $0 since this was not a paid submission.

    10. Re: Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Prove it. Show us that /. Has never in the past or present taken money from a website to post their article on the front page. Please if you are open and confident then show us proof that slashdot( new or old ) has never taken a cent from a company to promote them.

    11. Re: Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Burden of proof is on you.

    12. Re: Good stuff Whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Proof enough's in you saying that alone especially by an anonymous post "gotyourasswhippedslash" http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=8777063&cid=51564703

  3. I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    but not the Viva, and not the Rift either. Both the of them come with a far too narrow field-of-view. I want/need to be able to see what's going on behind myself, and I cannot do so by turning only my head, but need to turn my eyes, too. Hoping for the StarVR (regardless of price point).

  4. And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by zenlessyank · · Score: -1

    Wait until these idiots are walking around in public causing traffic jams and falling off bridges and balconies.

    1. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah It be hilarious watching people drag around a full sized case and a battery for their gtx970 and desktop...

    2. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by zenlessyank · · Score: 0

      Oh. I forgot about that. Didn't know you couldn't put your high end laptop in a backpack with a cable to the device. I also didn't know GTX 970's couldn't fit in laptops. And I sure didn't know laptops ran on batteries.

    3. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh. I forgot about that. Didn't know you couldn't put your high end laptop in a backpack with a cable to the device. I also didn't know GTX 970's couldn't fit in laptops. And I sure didn't know laptops ran on batteries.

      The Thinkpad P70, for example, limits its power consumption to 100W when running on battery, which then lasts 1h. Not sure what typical consumer gaming notebooks do... half the battery size and no limit? Out of juice in 15 minutes - and a glowing backpack?

    4. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by war4peace · · Score: 2

      Not to mention the excellent backpack (TM) airflow.

      --
      ...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
    5. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ok, the traffic jams could be a nuisance, but it's a small price to pay for a bit of Darwinism.

    6. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      My M7700 failed to hibernate when I put it in the bag once ... after a two hour train journey the outside of the bag was almost too hot to touch; you could have fried an egg on the computer. I'm amazed that it - and the Eurotunnel - survived intact and are both going strong to this day.

      The weight of the bloody thing could have caused it to derail.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    7. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Holi · · Score: 1

      Show me a laptop with a GTX970.
      Or did you mean the laptop version the GTX970m? Because you are looking at major performance differences between the 2.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    8. Re:And We Thought Idiots With Phones Are Bad. by Holi · · Score: 1

      Just so you know, there are no laptop versions of video cards that can push enough pixels to make VR work. Even Nvidia's flagship GTX980m cannot give you the 1680x1512 per eye at 90 fps needed for the Vive. You need to have a desktop card. And WHILE there are a couple of "laptops" on the market that can have a full desktop card, I would seriously hesitate to call them portable, and you are certainly not going to be running them on battery.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  5. Re:I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    None of the current tech VR headsets are good enough to take off and go mass-market. I'm going to wait for the next VR hype cycle, should be in about 6-8 years.

  6. Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    At $799, it is just too expensive for mainstream adoption. It is just too expensive for what you get. For that price point it needs to be either a full on suit like in Lawnmower man or they need to somehow get a full on Sword Art Online Nervgear which would command a much higher price.

    Sorry, but they will flop hardcore at this price point unless this is just to milk the first adopters with an intended huge price drop later.

    1. Re: Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It comes with two VR headsets. This is genius. Though the usefulness of VR is still highly in question...

      I'm also a supporter of anything not Facebook (Occulus) as they digust me. I just can't use anything that makes that little libertarian prick and crew money.

    2. Re: Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Come with 2 VR controllers, which isn't enough for that price. If it came with 2 VH Headsets, then it would be a nice price but also overkill.

    3. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by frnic · · Score: 1

      Nope, I recall the first flat screen TVs at big box stores were $16,000.

      This is pretty cheap for a startup. Once enough buy them, then companies will begin investing in volume production to bring the price down.

      I question the form factor, other than playing a game, I can't see wearing that anywhere for any reason - but, I could be wrong.

    4. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Market for tvs != market for vr headsets. There's more headroom for tvs.

    5. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Except that when flat-screen TVs came out there were already hundreds of millions of TV owners. The same isn't true for VT headsets.

    6. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Parafilmus · · Score: 1

      At $799, it is just too expensive for mainstream adoption.

      That's true. But new product categories always go through this. If a product catches on, economies of scale will drive the price down.

      Its not that HTC is gouging early adopters; this is just how mass production works. The per-unit cost is high at first, and drops as the market grows.

    7. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Hadlock · · Score: 1

      The original iPhone was $599 in 2007. That's $698 adjusted for inflation. How would you say the smart phone market is doing these days? Did you know you can buy a smart phone now for under $100?
       
      There are hoardes of first adopters for this product, and I think everyone knows that the price will come down over time. You can probably expect to see DK2 quality devices out of China starting in 2017, 2018 at the latest. I don't think anyone expects the price to stay static at over $500. The first sub-$400 headset will probably sell quite well.```

      --
      moox. for a new generation.
    8. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Holi · · Score: 1

      Since when is HTC a startup? Since when is Valve a startup?

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    9. Re:Too expensive for mainstream adoption. by Holi · · Score: 1

      Yet the price of the iPhone has stayed the same since day one, around $600.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  7. I'll take two by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

    I'll take two - one to keep for Sundays.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  8. Re:I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price. by vipw · · Score: 1

    I think the worst case is that VR is only interesting for gamers. Even then, VR will "take off" and not fade away. Some gamers always seem to have money available and will always upgrade to the latest and greatest.

  9. Lube? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is lube included?

    Captcha: exciton

  10. Just hit me in the head with a hammer by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

    $799 is too much for the worst headache of my life. I can last about 5 minutes in VR and then I need to lie down.

    I'm a stick with my Acer Predator XB270HU,

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
    1. Re:Just hit me in the head with a hammer by Parafilmus · · Score: 1

      $799 is too much for the worst headache of my life. I can last about 5 minutes in VR and then I need to lie down.

      Have you actually used the Vive?

      I get sickness from Oculus devkits, but the Vive has completely solved that problem, at least for me.

      Its a different experience than the Oculus devkits - Its worth trying before dismissing it.

    2. Re:Just hit me in the head with a hammer by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

      Have you actually used the Vive?

      No, just the Oculus. OK, you've convinced me. I'll try a Vive.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    3. Re:Just hit me in the head with a hammer by 3.5+stripes · · Score: 1

      They're both much better now, the Oculus EVT models and the Vive both massively improve on the DK level experience.

      --


      He tried to kill me with a forklift!
  11. Re:I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price. by BarbaraHudson · · Score: 0

    You mean like 3D TV? Another over-hyped niche product?

    --
    "Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
  12. Expensive, but at least its complete... by Parafilmus · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I appreciate that HTC is selling a complete VR product, including hand controls.

    They're making the right decision. If they deliver a solid experience for $800, they'll succeed as a high-end toy, and the price will eventually drop.

    By contrast, Oculus reached a lower price by leaving out hand controls. That was a mistake. A complete VR kit for $800 is a better proposition than an incomplete kit for $600.

    1. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      So you are saying that the HTC vive is a complete kit. Everything you need for VR, not a bad price at $800 of course if you still have to spend say another $1,500 dollars to actually get VR than not so much of a bargain. So for many people over a couple of thousand dollars in reality and you know what, for the vast majority, use it too long and you will, well and truly suffer (that too long being minutes for some and just a few hours for others). So where are the long term use product testing results and why are they keeping them secret (there is no way in hell they would have been stupid enough to not do those).

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    2. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      To be honest, I am not entirely impressed with the controllers.

      If I am paying $800 for a controller, I want something that looks more like the old NES Powerglove where I have more articulate actions to go with it.

    3. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by Parafilmus · · Score: 1

      ...of course if you still have to spend say another $1,500 dollars to actually get VR than not so much of a bargain.

      True, it's definitely not a bargain. Its an expensive product. But I do think an expensive complete product is the right path, in contrast to the incomplete products Occulus and Samsung have brought to market.

      ...use it too long and you will, well and truly suffer

      My anecdotal observation is that they seem to have solved or at least greatly reduced the nausea problem. Using an oculus, I get nausea after about 30 minutes. But I've never felt it with a vive, even after a couple hours. But that's just anecdotal. I wouldn't mind seeing some actual test results.

    4. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by Sperbels · · Score: 1

      Two motion controllers makes for a complete kit? When I played around with the DK1 I was pretty happy with the mouse and keyboard.

    5. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      On gaming days, I can spend twelve hours gaming, is that even possible with VR, considering the capital investment or is a twelve hour session with VR something that will put you off VR for the rest of your gaming life. Lets see some endurance testing, a VR gamer vs a mouse keyboard and display gamer, the first hour, the second hour and the twelfth hour. That no, zero, zilch, long term use has been shown, is a fairly solid indication that the tests conducted have not gone well at all, seriously no one is stupid enough to invest billions without that kind of testing or are they?!?

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    6. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by Parafilmus · · Score: 1

      That no, zero, zilch, long term use has been shown, is a fairly solid indication that the tests conducted have not gone well

      I'm not sure that's a safe conclusion. Do hardware companies normally release the results of their internal user-testing? But they are betting their own money on the product, which suggests their in-house testing can't have gone gone too badly, can it?

      I can tell you the Vive doesn't induce sickness is me, while the DK1 and DK2 do. I'm not sure if that's down to the accurate tracking, or the "room-scale" environments or what. I'm not sure how universal my experience is, but I think there's a real chance Valve has solved the problem for most users.

      On the subject of extreme long-term use... its not a study, but they recently held a publicity stunt to show that they had "cured vr sickness."
      http://arstechnica.com/gaming/...

    7. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by Parafilmus · · Score: 1

      Two motion controllers makes for a complete kit? When I played around with the DK1 I was pretty happy with the mouse and keyboard.

      For me, having my hands in the virtual space, to pick up and manipulate objects, is a different experience.

      With headset + gamepad/mouse, I feel like I'm sticking my head into a video game. Its an amazing view, but I'm not really "occupying" the virtual space. I'm keenly aware that my body is somewhere else.

      With headset + hand controllers, I feel like I'm occupying a virtual space, rather than just looking into it. I can look down and see my hands, right where they should be. I can pick things up, put things down, throw things across the room. Force feedback even adds crude sense of touch.

      Its not perfect. I can't see my body. I can't see my individual fingers - Its like I'm wearing bulky gloves. But the difference between having hands and not having hands... its huge. I can't overstate it.

    8. Re:Expensive, but at least its complete... by 3.5+stripes · · Score: 1

      It has a lot to do with frame rate, Vive asks devs to maintain at LEAST 90fps, and I think the oculus (pre release) does as well.

      --


      He tried to kill me with a forklift!
  13. Re:I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...well, gamers ...and porn. Considering the multi-billion dollar sex industry, and the fact VR porn is enough of a 'quantum leap' over regular, the second genre should be enough to help VR reach critical mass... even if no one admits to it outside mom's basement.

  14. Better than could be hoped by vix86 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    For everything in this package and the technology involved, I'm blown away by this price point. My original guess was that the HTC Vive was going to cost $1000 at launch. The lighthouses are a particularly complicated and likely expensive piece of hardware. From what I could gather from releases, they are using similar Laser mapping technology as can be seen on the Google Car. Because of this I was suspecting each lighthouse to cost at least $100-150 each.

    If anything, this makes Oculus look really bad. The Rift is launching with a controller, built in headphones, a basic IR tracker (not laser), the HMD, and a dinky remote. The CV1 isn't even going to have the Touch controllers for a better experience included and those have to be purchased separately which I'm expecting to cost in the range of $50-100 which puts the Rift CV1 at a price around $700.

    If we're talking about who we think might come out on top though. I think the Touch controllers on the Oculus are a better overall form factor and will fit better with the kind of games that benefit from a VR experience. The Vive controllers just seem about as clunky as the Playstation Move controllers. I think the HMD are probably going to be fairly similar in quality but I have a sinking suspicion that the Oculus might turn out better simply because of how much time they've put into the process. In terms of games, I think the Vive has a chance to come out way ahead since they have Valve's backing and because SteamVR is integrated right into Steam. Steam is going to provide a huge platform for indie devs looking to build experiences for VR. The big worry for anyone looking at getting the Oculus though will be whether Valve makes it a point to make sure the SteamVR releases are always up to date with the Oculus SDK or not. If they aren't, then the Vive will always be ahead of the Oculus and that's going to lock a lot of people out of potential games. The best example to date is Elite: Dangerous, which in terms of most up to date VR versions, only works on SteamVR with Frontier stating that they plan to support V1.0 of Oculus sometime in the future.

    Taking all of this into consideration, I think overall Oculus stands the best chance of claiming VR on the PC. The Vive can do more I think, but the "more" that it can do seems almost "gimmicky" and not in tune with how I think most games will probably use VR (ie: sitting down). If we can get access to the camera on the Vive though, there are some potentially huge AR applications that the Vive can tap into that the Oculus just can't. All of the worries about the drivers/SDK will probably clear up after a year or two, and the Oculus has more room to come down in their price point as time goes on compared to the Vive which is probably tied down by the complicated lighthouse units.

    1. Re:Better than could be hoped by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The lighthouses are a particularly complicated and likely expensive piece of hardware.

      My understanding this is just lasers and spinning mirrors. All complexity is in the headset.

      I think the Vive has a chance to come out way ahead since they have Valve's backing and because SteamVR is integrated right into Steam. Steam is going to provide a huge platform for indie devs looking to build experiences for VR.

      My prediction: Software will not be an issue for any VR platform. Too easy to shim VR APIs and developers can't afford lost sales on platform exclusive titles unless exclusivity is subsidized by VR platform vendor.

      The big worry for anyone looking at getting the Oculus though will be whether Valve makes it a point to make sure the SteamVR releases are always up to date with the Oculus SDK or not. If they aren't, then the Vive will always be
      ahead of the Oculus and that's going to lock a lot of people out of potential games.

      Oculus has already stated version 1.0 forward of Oculus driver is backwards compatible. There will be no need for software developers to continuously update software to support incompatible changes in SDK unless they want to take advantage of some new feature introduced in a later version.

      The best example to date is Elite: Dangerous, which in terms of most up to date VR versions, only works on SteamVR with Frontier stating that they plan to support V1.0 of Oculus sometime in the future.

      It is a mistake to read anything into the beta drama of the past.

      If we can get access to the camera on the Vive though, there are some potentially huge AR applications that the Vive can tap into that the Oculus just can't.

      The camera is insufficient for any serious AR application. There just is not enough information to map physical reality into virtual reality. Those having tried the Vive pre demos have commented on this disconnect. You can try to address this with algorithms but to work across the board better sensors will be required for any kind of meaningful AR experience. The camera as currently configured is only useful for keeping tabs on what is happening in real life around you.

    2. Re:Better than could be hoped by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't want to get up and move about. The same way I didn't want to get up and play with a wiimote. Besides, what game can you play in a 4x4 foot bit of free space. maybe I could make a bit more room if I throw my furniture out.

    3. Re:Better than could be hoped by Theaetetus · · Score: 1

      For everything in this package and the technology involved, I'm blown away by this price point. My original guess was that the HTC Vive was going to cost $1000 at launch. The lighthouses are a particularly complicated and likely expensive piece of hardware. From what I could gather from releases, they are using similar Laser mapping technology as can be seen on the Google Car. Because of this I was suspecting each lighthouse to cost at least $100-150 each.

      Nope, even easier. Simulation here. They basically just do synchronized sweeps every couple milliseconds, and when the headset sees a pulse, it can figure out when during the sweep it received the pulse and therefore where along the axis it is. Sweep along the other axis, and you get your position. Two lighthouses so you can turn around, and you're set.

      ... which is the question I have. All of the dev kit and test versions we've seen show the Vive as being wired. Is the consumer version still going to be wired, and if so, are you going to end up tripping over the cable or ripping your computer off the desk? All of the reviews I've read about CES demos and such had a dedicated "cable management guy" following the reviewer around and making sure he didn't trip. I don't have one of those... is the Vive still going to be right for me?

      I think you're mostly right, though... The Oculus controllers do seem a bit better, although the Vive controllers don't seem bad. The ability to move around with the Vive may be less important, with most people playing games while sitting down. However, dat front facing camera tho...

    4. Re:Better than could be hoped by hockeyrink · · Score: 1

      It's not laser mapping at all. I have some contacts on the dev team, and had a hands-on demo of the unit.

      The Lighthouses are actually more of a "ping source", where they broadcast a bright IR sync flash, followed by a rastering modulated laser beam. So it's like a movie clapper board saying "Ok, I'm starting a raster sweep NOW (clap)", and the headset waits for the laser sweep to hit each of the sensor receivers. It detects the different lighthouses by the modulated signal in the laser sweep. Knowing the sweep rate of the lighthouses, and timing the difference between the receptors, it calculates the X/Y/Z/ of each sensor. Wicked cool.

      I was surprised by the effort they had to go through to get very smooth running motors (thanks HD motor manufacturer technology!) to reduce the jitter.

      --
      Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high...
    5. Re:Better than could be hoped by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      honestly I think both will fail if they don't get the price point down - I think consumers are over the form factor shock but they don't want to or can't pay close to 1k for the experience.

  15. Ohhh bluetooth..... by Lumpy · · Score: 1

    100% useless for video only control. You are NOT getting 720P video at a decent frame rate over bluetooth.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    1. Re:Ohhh bluetooth..... by mobby_6kl · · Score: 1

      I couldn't go into too much detail in the summary, but the BT connection is to allow you to receive and make phone calls as well as answer messages from your phone without taking off the headset. While this is a minor feature on first glance, I can imagine it could make a big difference in practice since taking off the headset every time your phone rings would be a huge pain in the ass.

  16. Buying two. by Noxal · · Score: 1

    Husband and I will both be pre-ordering one the very second pre-orders start. We've already reconfigured our entire living room in anticipation!

    1. Re:Buying two. by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      You mean you have sold your furniture in order to buy two?

    2. Re:Buying two. by Noxal · · Score: 1

      Haha no, we just shuffled things around. The worst part is how close the dog's crate is to the front door and even then it's no big deal!

    3. Re: Buying two. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I feel sorry for you and your husband. Seriously, you guys are adults right?

  17. Half Life 3 confirmed!!! by BLToday · · Score: 1

    half = 1/2, inverse is 2
    2^3 = 8

    $799 is almost $800, therefore Half Life 3 is coming.

    If Valve releases HL3 with support for Vive, it's going to make VR mainstream. HL2 helped Steam, HL3 would help VR.

  18. SteamOS? by sad_ · · Score: 1

    Does somebody know if it will have SteamOS/Linux support from day 1? There is no mention of this on the site (or i couldn't find it).

    --
    On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.
  19. VR is gonna crash SO hard by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    and I'm gonna be right there with the popcorn.

  20. Re:I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price. by NotDrWho · · Score: 1

    "But VR is just around the corner now!" said a guy in 1993.

    --
    SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
  21. Stop moaning about money. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The Oculus is ordered and a new PC. Which will cost way more that $1,500. The PC will also be used to make money. If I find the time!?!
    Don't let your finance hold back others with more money than sense. I cross that line about a penny.
    I'm looking forward to it and I hope it isn't shit. but if it is - meh.

  22. Fools by Holi · · Score: 1

    April first huh?

    --
    Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  23. Re: I'm going to buy one, for an even higher price by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If you are paying $700 to watch VR porn you might as well go on Craigslist and spend $100 or so to buy a real hooker.

    $700 is crazy expensive. I don't see anybody with any sense buying this. It's overhyped, overpriced garbage.

  24. Haven't tried VR yet but my money is on this one by iMadeGhostzilla · · Score: 1

    I'm probably in the majority of the tech minority -- somewhat curious about VR and never tried any system. My impression from the reviews at Ars and elsewhere is that Valve has figured out the use mode best. If I had the option to *try* just one, I'd try the HTC vive.

    That said I don't care much about the job simulator, but some sort of SimUniverse where you sit in the lab and experiment with different fundamental processes based on the technology pioneered by Aperture Sciences... that might be worh $800.

  25. Calling you out as the liar you are whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My program's != "commercialware" liar - it's FREEWARE! Your lie quoted:

    "We are just trying to stem the commercial spam he spews" - by whipslash (4433507) on Thursday February 18, 2016 @10:49AM (#51534765) FROM http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    TRUTH is you FEAR MY PROGRAM as it stops OpenBID ad networks from infecting others online & isn't paid off crippled like "AlmostALLAdsBlocked"! Never mind the fact it also stops MORE THREATS ONLINE than ANY other SINGLE "so-called 'solution'" does, for less too!

    * I never would've publicly released it but you & advertisers infected users by the ton.

    None of my 'detractors' here, webmasters or advertisers all, can VALIDLY TECHNICALLY PROVE MY POINTS WRONG either so you attempt to block me!

    I post about it on topic in response to inefficient, inferior SOLD OUT TO ADVERTISERS browser addons that are paid off to NOT WORK RIGHT by advertisers, the very thing they're SUPPOSED TO BLOCK & don't!

    APK

    P.S.=> HOW'S IT TASTE "EATING YOUR WORDS"?

    Like YOUR FOOT IN YOUR MOUTH -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ?

    Like THE BITTER TASTE of SELF-DEFEAT perhaps also? Yes -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    IF you wanted me gone?

    All you had to do was ask POLITELY here -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    Unlike your htaccess "filters"?

    APK Hosts File Engine 9.0++ SR-4 32/64-bit really WORKS... apk

    1. Re:Calling you out as the liar you are whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      None of my 'detractors' here, webmasters or advertisers all

      Does it comfort you to imagine this? It must, because deep down you know it isn't the truth at all.

      You're like Donald Trump without the success.

    2. Re:Calling you out as the liar you are whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Apk successfully made "gothisasswhipped" (by apk) slash eat his words. Malwarebytes hphosts recommends apk's program is more success for apk and they host it too which the feeble likes of you have nothing like either. Posting ac now whipslash? You've gone silent using your registered 'luser' account too I see! Out of shame or due to eating your words and for once showing manners not talking with your mouth full rather perhaps? Hahahahahaha "Savoir-Faire IS EVERYWHERE" & you can't stop him. Yes yes more downmods to hide your fails are forthcoming. It's about all you can manage but as apk's shown us time and again? All the king's horses (sockpuppets) and all the king's men (cronies) can't put whippedslashumptydumpty together again hahahahahaha. You fail. Apk, as always, is triumphant and quite the chef since you all seem to enjoy him making you EAT YOUR WORDS bigshot!

    3. Re:Calling you out as the liar you are whipslash by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Your use of the third person fools nobody. You are APK, and nobody is agreeing with you here.

      And I'm not whipslash, just like I'm not any of the other dozen or so people you've accused me of being.

  26. Eat your words again whipslash... apk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject & many users disagreeing with you http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    APK