A few weeks ago we heard that HTC was working on a standalone wireless AR/VR (opens in new tab)headset to rival the Meta Quest 2. And here it is: At CES 2023, HTC unveiled the HTC XR Elite, an all-in-one XR headset that will be released next month. And it won’t be cheap.
The Vive XR Elite can achieve 4K resolution (2K per eye) at 90Hz with a 110-degree field of view. It also has an external camera for mixed reality hijinx. It is powered by a Snapdragon XR2 with 12 GB of RAM and 128 GB of onboard storage. On paper, the Vive XR Elite is about three times more powerful than Meta quest 2 (opens in new tab); it’s also three times the price at $1,099, so there’s that.
The Vive XR Elite goes for a comfort-oriented design with as little bulk as possible. The headrest on the back is removable and the rest of the headset can be folded up like sunglasses and stored in a carrying case.
I wear glasses with large frames, which makes wearing certain VR headsets very uncomfortable, so I’m pleased that the XR Elite has built-in diopters that adjust the focus so you can actually use the headset without glasses.
According to HTC, the expected battery life is around 15 hours and it offers 30W fast charging, which can charge the battery up to 50% in half an hour. The battery can also be swapped and replaced if you want to buy a second one for longer VR sessions.
With the battery, the XR Elite weighs about 625g (about 1.4 pounds), making it a fairly lightweight headset, while the Meta Quest 2 is still lighter at 503g. Both are significantly lighter than the Valve Index, which weighs 809 grams. Without the XR Elite’s battery, you’re looking at just 240g, which is pretty light when connected to a PC or phone. Though I imagine it wouldn’t last long if it’s connected to a phone.
The Vive XR Elite positions itself as a premium alternative to Meta’s wildly popular headset. It is expected to contain 100 games at launch digital store (opens in new tab)but you can also use it as a Steam VR headset.