With 2016 seeing the launch of virtual reality headsets, HTC made its mark with the Vive. Garnering awards left and right and earning praise for reviews, the HTC Vive was dubbed as the VR Headset of the Year by Trusted Reviews Awards and Wearable Tech Awards. But being a first generation hardware of its kind, it’s not without any issues. This year, at CES, HTC announced new accessories to potentially address some of the Vive’s problems and improve upon its hardware ecosystem.
HTC announced a new tracker to pair with the headset. The Vive Tracker can turn anything in your household into a VR controller: a baseball bat lying around, your lightsaber replica, even a spoon can be connected to the Vive Tracker. You just attach the Vive Tracker to any object and let the laser towers do the tracking. Just make sure that you have a wide enough space as swinging a bat in a headset in a confined space is a formula for disaster. Daniel O’Brien, Vive’s GM for US and EMEA stated that they will be providing 1,000 units of the Vive Tracker to developers to encourage developers and help grow an ecosystem of third-party accessories that can change the VR experience.
A new add-on to the headset is the Vive Deluxe Audio Strap. Improving on the comfort and wearability of the old strap, HTC improved upon it by integrating adjustable earphones and providing a 360-degree realistic sound. The Vive Deluxe Audio Strap features more padding for longer hours of use and an adjustment dial for the right fit. The new strap will also route the 3-in-1 cable in a more concealed and cleaner look for a more comfortable VR experience.
HTC also announced a VR subscription service for its Viveport app store that will enable users to download any number of apps from developers that partners with the service.
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