HTC Vive Flow

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HTC presented the Vive Flow on October 14th. It is a very slim VR headset, the design of which is based on normal glasses and the temples can be folded up like normal glasses. Perfect to be taken anywhere. One question in advance: How can it be possible to design such a compact VR headset? You just leave the battery out … (?) More on that later. First of all, here are the specifications at a glance:

• Resolution: 3.2k combined (2x 2.1 ”LCD 1600×1600 per eye) , results in approx. 1077 ppi per eye
• Viewing angle: “Up to 100 °”
• Tracking: 6DOF with only 2 cameras
• Refresh rate: 75 Hz
• Weight: 189g (+50 g for the 1.2 meter long cable or additional weight for the battery pack used)
• Speakers: Built-in stereo speakers
• Microphones: Built-in dual microphones with noise cancellation
• RAM: 4 GB Ram
• Storage space on the VR headset: 64 GB
• Battery: Just a small “how swap” battery to change the power source within 5 minutes
• Video pass-through : You can look through the VR headset with the help of the 2 cameras
• Controller: Not available, the smartphone is used as a controller
• Smartphone compatibility: from. Android 9 (iPhone is not yet supported and smartphones with Samsung Exynos CPUs, i.e. Samsung Galaxy smartphones)

Watch the HTC Vive Flow video here:

The HTC Vive Flow should still be able to achieve a viewing angle of up to 100 ° with relatively small displays (2 x 2.1 inch LCD). The lenses can be set separately in 6 levels for each eye. With an active cooling system, the eye area should not work up a sweat, as is unfortunately the case with some other VR headsets (especially VR headsets for smartphones), especially in summer. However, the face pads can still be removed and simply washed off or exchanged.

The sound comes from the built-in stereo speakers, similar to the Meta Quest / Oculus Quest or Meta Quest 2 / Oculus Quest 2, which turned out to be surprisingly satisfactory. But you can also connect via Bluetooth headphones. There is no jack connection. In addition, dual microphones are built in, which are well suited to communicate with friends in the Metaverse.

The smartphone is used as the controller. Another nice feature is the video pass-through, which allows you to look through the VR headset via the two built-in cameras.

Sharp display

The HTC Vive Flow has 2x 2.1 inch displays built into it, each with a resolution of 1600×1600 pixels. That gives a display density of around 1077 ppi per eye, which is pretty sharp.

What is the HTC Flow Vive used for?

Due to its low weight and the limited control via the smartphone, the HTC Vive Flow is primarily used for entertainment, such as. B. Watch films or as a meditation aid.

Virtual Reality as a Help Against Depression?

Cher Wang, CEO of HTC, opened the event with a little glimpse into our stressful age, in which we are clearly exposed to an excess of information. In this information age, it is becoming increasingly difficult to consume the correct and relevant information and not suffer from an overabundance of information. This leads to stress and depression, which also restricts productivity, both in the universe and in the metaverse (info: the metaverse is virtual reality).

Caffeine and pills of all kinds are not supposed to be the solution and the corona pandemic in particular has shown how bad it is for people to always stay in their own four walls. Cher Wang then even quotes from the Bible “A cheeful heart is the best medicine”.

The HTC Vive Flow is designed to help reduce stress and block out the many things around us. You should be able to focus again. Breaking out of your own four walls should help.

But how healthy are you in the end if you have to escape from reality with the help of virtual reality in order to get mentally healthy? Later in the video, Jeff Pohlman goes on to say that they believe the HTC Vive Flow can help “everyone” (at a price of 569 €?). You can read more about this topic here: Cure burnout and depression through virtual reality?

Vive Sync – working together

The HTC Vive Flow can also be used for collaborative work with Vive Sync. With this software you can meet in virtual reality.

Smartphone as a remote control for the HTC Vive Flow

With the HTC Vive Flow, there are no controllers, but the VR headset for smartphone is operated.

In addition, the image from the smartphone can be streamed and operated on the VR headset via Miracast.

No battery

As already mentioned at the beginning, the Vive Flow does not have a real battery, but only a small battery that allows the power source to be changed for about 5 minutes so that the application is not interrupted.

So if you want to meditate comfortably, you have to do it a meter from the socket, or you can get yourself a power bank, which means that the VR headset is not so light after all.

Tracking: 6DOF with two cameras

The HTV Vive Flow has 6DOF (6 Dimensions of Freedom), which is made possible with only 2 cameras. For comparison: Smartphone VR only works with 3DOF (look left to right; look up and down; rotate your view by tilting your head). With 6DOF, the absolute position is also tracked, that is, you can move through the room, which increases the immersion a lot.

Conclusion: how useful is the HTC Vive Flow?

A small comparison: HTC Vive Flow against Meta Quest 2 / Oculus Quest 2 – The Vive Flow costs €569, the Meta Quest 2 / Oculus Quest 2 currently around €349 for the 128 GB version. With the Vive Flow you don’t get a controller because you use the smartphone. The Vive Flow does not have a battery, you have to attach a battery pack or sit one meter away from a power source. With the Meta Quest 2 / Oculus Quest 2 you can easily do what the Vive Flow is capable of for several hours.

However, the Vive Flow is really very light compared to the Meta Quest 2 / Oculus Quest 2, has a sharper display and is very easy to take anywhere.

HTC Vive Flow vs. Smartphone VR headsets

There is also the option of simply using VR headsets for smartphones (you can find out how this works here: How does VR work with a cell phone? ).

Except for a lower resolution and only 3DOF tracking, you can also consume meditation apps for around 30 € and a reasonably good smartphone. In our opinion, the price of € 569 for the HTC Vive Flow is not worthwhile for these applications.