The Vive Focus 3 is the perfect standalone VR headset and no, you shouldn’t purchase it | Engadget

As far as VR know-how goes, the Focus 3 has nearly every part you’d need in a contemporary headset. But there are easy, much less technical upgrades that I appreciated too, like its help for big 150mm-wide glasses. It often takes a little bit of effort for me to squeeze a headset over my frames, they usually inevitably get yanked out every time I step out of VR. But I by no means needed to take care of that on the Focus 3, because of its roomy inside. There’s additionally an IPD adjustment dial that will help you fine-tune precisely how its lenses hit your eyes; the Quest 2 solely provides you a number of choices to regulate IPD. The elaborate padding across the entrance and rear additionally goes a good distance towards making you overlook you are even sporting a VR headset.

Even the Focus 3’s controllers are higher than something we have seen from HTC Vive earlier than. They look just like Oculus’s, with a spherical monitoring ring, face buttons, in addition to the usual grip and set off buttons. Clearly, they’re gentle years past the big controllers that the unique HTC Vive got here with. Still, Oculus has the sting relating to total ergonomics. The Quest 2’s gamepads are contoured to higher suit your arms, particularly throughout fast-paced video games. Holding the Focus 3’s controllers, in the meantime, feels extra awkward throughout prolonged VR periods.

Thankfully, although, the headset itself is comfy to put on for hours at a time, and it delivers probably the most immersive standalone digital actuality experiences I’ve seen but. I wandered the Louvre in Mona Lisa Beyond the Glass, which let me get inches away from a number of traditional da Vinci work. If I attempted to do this in actual life, I’m positive some safety guards would swiftly kick me out. But in VR, I may admire the element in each murals. I used to be additionally shocked simply how nice every part seemed within the Focus 3. There was extra element than in any Quest 2 expertise I’ve seen, and the massive subject of view genuinely made me really feel like I used to be strolling by means of the Louvre’s ornate halls, as an alternative of simply peering in by means of a pair of VR binoculars.

Similarly, I had a real sense of strolling by means of meadows and tropical seashores within the Nature Treks VR expertise. The Focus 3’s sharp show as soon as once more shined once I peered at statues and wildlife up shut, however the element was restricted by its cell {hardware}. 360-degree YouTube movies additionally seemed improbable once I fired them up in Firefox VR, however the expertise will be hit and miss relying on the standard of the supply. And despite the fact that the headset does not have beefy near-field audio system just like the and

I used to be shocked that the Focus 3 did not embody any form of built-in multimedia app for watching VR movies, however that basically underscores one in every of its greatest issues: The Focus 3 has a much more restricted software program library than the Quest. While Oculus has pushed for high-profile exclusives and common video games, like Vader Immortal and Beat Saber, the HTC VivePort retailer really feel virtually anemic. There are a handful of shared titles throughout each platforms, like Last Labyrinth and Tokyo Chronos, but it surely’s clear they are not a giant focus for HTC Vive.

At this level, even putting in new experiences is extra of a ache on the Focus 3, since it is advisable take off the headset to buy apps and video games out of your net browser. Meanwhile, the Quest and Quest 2 allow you to purchase issues from inside the headset and a cell app. But I suppose that is not an enormous drawback for HTC Vive, because the Focus 3 is not meant for customers in any respect. Instead, IT departments will probably preload the software program their employees really want. (There’s additionally going to be a Vive Business App Store finally, although it is unclear if that may supply a greater buying expertise.)

That’s one cause why we’re not scoring this evaluate. This $1,300 headset is not meant to be shopper pleasant. And truthfully, I could not even check a number of the extra common enterprise apps, like Vive Sync’s digital collaboration device and Engage’s occasion app. HTC Vive’s earlier Focus headsets additionally gained a fame for being straightforward methods to coach workers utilizing apps like Virti. And whereas that app definitely appears cool within the Focus 3, I can not precisely inform if it is providing efficient coaching or not.

There are additionally options I have never been in a position to successfully check out. The Focus 3 provides Vive Business Streaming, which helps you to join the headset to a VR PC over a USB 3.2 cable or Wi-Fi. But it is apparently very choosy, as not one of the USB cables I used had been even acknowledged by the software program (and a few would simply throw an error saying they weren’t USB 3.0 succesful, despite the fact that I knew they had been). You also can stream PC VR over Wi-Fi, however that solely works in case your laptop is related on to your router over Ethernet, and when you’ve got a robust wi-fi reference to the headset. That simply wasn’t doable in my basement workplace. I’m hoping HTC Vive works out its connection necessities, particularly since Oculus Link on the Quest is .

No matter how you chop it, the Quest 2 continues to be the standalone VR headset most customers can purchase. But the Focus 3 is ideal for companies on the lookout for one thing a bit extra sturdy and highly effective. For them, a $1,300 system makes extra sense than investing tens of 1000’s on extra elaborate coaching instruments.