Voices of VR Podcast
Hello, I'm Ken Bye, and welcome to the Voices of VR podcast. Today, HTC's VIVE Flow will be released, which they call a VR tablet. So, you have PCVR, as well as another option, which is a standalone all-in-one (AIO) device. But now we have this middle ground and HTC calls it a more lifestyle immersive eyewear. They consider it a transitional phase for VR. So, for any hardcore VR users, they might go for fully standalone devices like Oculus Quest or Vifocus 3. Or if you want to use PCVR, there's Index and Vipro 2. So, this is an attempt to create a new market. However, it's more expensive than Quest 2, priced at $499, around $200 more than Quest 2. And HTC hasn't shared many specifications about the device, so we can only speculate about the actual specs until the official release on October 14th at 8 am. So, you may get some different answers, but this has led to me not being able to get the exact specifications of the chip. We don't know what chip it is, how much storage it has, it supports phone casting but not iOS, only Android. You have to bring your own battery, so either connect it to a power source or connect it to a battery pack. The resolution is probably similar to the first generation, although they haven't given specific numbers, they just say it's 1.6 per eye. But I'm not sure how that translates to total pixels on the display, and I don't think it's an XR2 chip. These are all the uncertain things. We have been talking to Shen Yi, the Senior Director of Global Hardware Product at HTC, to get more information about other aspects of the device, including why they created this device. In the end, he said some very interesting things. They know that eventually, there will be these lightweight portable immersive glasses that you could wear all day and even replace your smartphone, but they don't know what the exact next step is to reach that goal. So, in a sense, this is their best solution because the entire industry is moving in that direction. So, this form factor is different from any previous products, and I think they're trying to enter a different market and expand the market beyond the full immersive experience that we already have. Therefore, it doesn't have 6DOF controllers, and you need to use your phone as a pointer and controller, so you don't get the same immersive experience. If you want that kind of experience, there might be other VR headsets that are more suitable for you. But it's very lightweight, weighing 189g, and it provides a new option for media consumption. In the past, we had Oculus Go and Gear VR, but it's more expensive than both of them. So, it's hard to say whether there will be a market for it. One described important use case is having a 200-inch movie screen on a plane. Is it worth $499? And there are more AR, meditation, and productivity applications. People want a device that is even more lightweight than the Quest, something that can fit into a small thermos bottle and be used anywhere, anytime. If you have an extra power source or a battery pack, you can also see other use cases for VR. This is what I know so far. We will get more complete information from Shen Yi. I had a chance to talk to him yesterday, on Wednesday, October 13th. So, let's dive into it.该产品是一个进入虚拟现实(VR)的沉浸式眼镜,售价为499美元,将于11月初上市。尽管它的规格还有很多未知的问题,但可以通过观察其他媒体的报道,了解更多关于不同规格的信息。眼镜具有蓝牙连接功能和特殊音频,但缺乏耳机插孔,需要使用蓝牙耳机或将通知镜像到其他设备上听音频。在连接性方面,它可以与蓝牙耳机连接,并可以与Viflo等设备同步通知。大多数VR使用场景会在私人空间进行,但在公共场所使用可能会面临社会学上的禁忌。此外,该产品未明确支持5GHz Wi-Fi和Wi-Fi 6,也不支持5G网络。市场上可能会出现一些受欢迎的社交VR应用,例如Rec Room,但虽然它没有可行的输入设备,但目前还不清楚是否支持此类应用。整个VR生态系统已经发展成一个分叉系统,大部分有趣的事情都发生在PCVR端,但市场上可能出现引人注目的应用或杀手级应用,例如冥想应用Tripp。这个故事还需要等待市场反应和认可。