It’s official: HTC has finally announced the Vive Flow, a lightweight and portable VR headset that offers users entertainment, wellness and gaming experiences while on the go.
Given the impressive internal specs boasted by the company’s more expensive VR offerings – like the Vive Focus 3 or mainline HTC Vive Pro 2 – it’s certainly a surprise to see HTC Vive divert to a much more stripped-back product that will do little to threaten the crowns of the best VR headsets on offer right now.
Instead, the brand has put all its eggs in the portability basket with the Vive Flow, a product that combines a lightweight and comfortable design with several use cases to bring to market a genuinely innovative VR alternative that is almost a jack of all trades, but most definitely a master of none.
It’s worth noting that, in our (very) brief hands-on time with the device, the Vive Flow was still in beta stage, so the below simply represents our early impressions – which are therefore subject to change upon review of the final product.
For starters, HTC makes no bold claims about the power of the Vive Flow. In fact, it doesn’t even describe the device as a headset, rather ‘immersive eyewear’ that straddles the line between headset and smart glasses.
As such, it’s difficult to compare the Vive Flow to other VR products on the market. Instead, the device occupies its own space as a portable, versatile yet unashamedly limited machine that can’t match its larger VR counterparts for power, but can trump the latest smart glasses for functionality.
It’s no surprise, then, that its internal specs aren’t anything to write home about. HTC Vive hasn't yet been totally clear about what hardware powers the Vive Flow under the hood, though we know it sports a 75hz refresh rate and two LCD screens that operate at 3.2k resolution, which, though passable for a VR device in 2021, restricts the fidelity of its games and wellness experiences.
Admittedly, we didn’t get to try a whole load of those experiences, but those we did play were more like glorified mobile games and apps than bona fide VR showstoppers. Part of that insubstantial feel definitely comes from the Flow’s lack of controller – with the device instead requiring an Android-enabled smartphone to function – but both this and its lack of power mark just a few of the many trade-offs the Flow is forced to make in its commitment to portability.
Read more - TechRadar.com
Given the impressive internal specs boasted by the company’s more expensive VR offerings – like the Vive Focus 3 or mainline HTC Vive Pro 2 – it’s certainly a surprise to see HTC Vive divert to a much more stripped-back product that will do little to threaten the crowns of the best VR headsets on offer right now.
Instead, the brand has put all its eggs in the portability basket with the Vive Flow, a product that combines a lightweight and comfortable design with several use cases to bring to market a genuinely innovative VR alternative that is almost a jack of all trades, but most definitely a master of none.
It’s worth noting that, in our (very) brief hands-on time with the device, the Vive Flow was still in beta stage, so the below simply represents our early impressions – which are therefore subject to change upon review of the final product.
For starters, HTC makes no bold claims about the power of the Vive Flow. In fact, it doesn’t even describe the device as a headset, rather ‘immersive eyewear’ that straddles the line between headset and smart glasses.
As such, it’s difficult to compare the Vive Flow to other VR products on the market. Instead, the device occupies its own space as a portable, versatile yet unashamedly limited machine that can’t match its larger VR counterparts for power, but can trump the latest smart glasses for functionality.
It’s no surprise, then, that its internal specs aren’t anything to write home about. HTC Vive hasn't yet been totally clear about what hardware powers the Vive Flow under the hood, though we know it sports a 75hz refresh rate and two LCD screens that operate at 3.2k resolution, which, though passable for a VR device in 2021, restricts the fidelity of its games and wellness experiences.
Admittedly, we didn’t get to try a whole load of those experiences, but those we did play were more like glorified mobile games and apps than bona fide VR showstoppers. Part of that insubstantial feel definitely comes from the Flow’s lack of controller – with the device instead requiring an Android-enabled smartphone to function – but both this and its lack of power mark just a few of the many trade-offs the Flow is forced to make in its commitment to portability.
Read more - TechRadar.com
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TechTranscript
00:00 It's official, HTC has finally announced the Vive Flow, a lightweight and portable
00:06 VR headset that offers users entertainment, wellness and gaming experiences while on the
00:12 go. Before we go any further, it's worth noting that in our very brief hands-on time
00:17 with the device, the Vive Flow was still in a beta stage, so this video simply represents
00:22 our early impressions. HTC make no bold claims about the power of the Vive Flow, in fact
00:28 it doesn't even describe the device as a headset, rather immersive eyewear that straddles
00:33 the line between headset and smart glasses. As such, it's difficult to compare the Vive
00:38 Flow to other VR products on the market. Instead, the device occupies its own space as a portable,
00:44 versatile yet unashamedly limited machine that can't match its larger VR counterparts
00:50 for power, but can trump the latest smart glass for functionality. We didn't get to
00:55 try many of the experiences and games on the Vive Flow, but the ones we did play were more
01:00 like glorified mobile games and apps than bonafide VR programs. Part of that insubstantial
01:06 feel definitely comes from the Flow's lack of controller, with the device instead requiring
01:11 an Android enabled smartphone to function. But both this and the lack of power mark just
01:16 a few of the many trade-offs that the Flow is forced to make in its commitment to portability.
01:21 Luckily, the Vive Flow weighs in at just 189 grams, making the device refreshingly easy
01:27 to carry around, taking up a large pocket in a rucksack as opposed to the entire rucksack.
01:32 Its arms fold too, so the Flow can be slipped into its accompanying storage canister and
01:37 placed on a desk or bedside table in a way that actually looks pretty smart. It's also
01:42 really comfortable to wear, the Vive Flow sports a dual hinge fit system and snap-on
01:47 face cushion. HTC Vive hasn't been totally clear about
01:52 the hardware that powers the Vive Flow, though we know it does sport a 75Hz refresh rate
01:57 and two LCD screens that operate at 3.2K resolution. Though this is passable for a VR device in
02:04 2021, it does restrict the fidelity of its games and wellness experiences. The LCD screens
02:09 offer an adequate 100 degree field of view, which does well to make the best of the Flow's
02:14 lackluster refresh rate and less impressive graphics.
02:17 The spatial audio that comes out of its arms isn't that great, though when paired with
02:22 Bluetooth connected earphones, the audio-visual experience is heightened dramatically.
02:27 Naturally, we haven't been able to test the Vive Flow's battery life, but HTC claims
02:32 you'll get up to 5 hours from its USB-compatible battery pack, which seems more than enough
02:37 for the headset's moment-to-moment use cases. And that last point really sums up the appeal
02:41 of the HTC Vive Flow. It didn't bowl us over with any of its varied virtual experiences,
02:47 but for a portable headset designed with casual use in mind, it's an undeniably innovative
02:52 VR device. The HTC Vive Flow will cost you $499 or £499,
03:00 making it even more expensive than some of the most popular VR headsets out there right
03:04 now like the Oculus Quest 2 and PlayStation VR. Admittedly, that's nowhere near the price
03:10 of other HTC devices in the mainline HTC Vive series, but $499 for a VR device that should
03:17 really have the "Lite" moniker attached to its name is just a little too expensive for
03:23 our eyes. Thanks for watching our hands-on of the HTC
03:26 Vive Flow. Let us know down in the comments below what you think of HTC's latest VR device,
03:31 and remember to subscribe to TechRadar on YouTube so you don't miss any of our future
03:35 content.
03:35 [MUSIC PLAYING]