HTC Vive Cosmos, the company’s upcoming PC VR headset, is officially going into pre-order starting September 12th.

HTC announced the news via Twitter, saying that more information, including specs, price, and special offers will be made public at the time when pre-orders go live.

As far as headset releases go, this is an entirely new strategy for HTC. The media hasn’t publicly had the opportunity to go hands-on with Cosmos yet, so there’s still no telling how well the inside-out optical tracking works, how comfortable the headset is, and what actual level of display clarity it boasts over HTC’s past devices, including Vive, Vive Pro, and its enterprise-facing mobile VR headset Vive Focus.

HTC has previously stated that Cosmos boasts “40% improved lens clarity over the original Vive,” although that’s not exactly a telling figure.

There’s also the mystery of price. There’s been some supposed leaks, most notable of which was a price listing by British high street shop Argos that put Cosmos at £700. HTC told Road to VR shortly after the listing was removed that it was “listed by mistake” on its retail partner’s website, although didn’t specifically comment on whether the price was accurate or not.

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Whatever the case may be, HTC has gone on the books to strike down at rumor that Vive Cosmos would sell for $900, stating that the figure was “incorrect (and high).”

Cosmos, which publicly debuted back at CES 2019 in January, was also teased to work with smartphones in addition to its primary use as a tethered PC VR headset. The company has yet to mention smartphone compatibility outside of the image below, which was showed at its unveiling.

Image courtesy HTC

We’re sure to have more solid information in the next two days, but in the meantime, here’s some of the specs we do know:

  • Resolution – 1,440 × 1,700 per-eye (2,880 × 1,700 total), an 88% increase in pixel count over the original Vive at 1,080 × 1,200 per-eye
  • Display type – RGB LCD displays
  • Refresh rate – 90Hz
  • Tracking – 6 inside-out sensors
  • Controllers – optically tracked
  • Audio – integrated, flip-up design
  • Input – USB & DisplayPort, Vive Wireless Adapter, teased connectivity with smartphone

Check out the reveal video below, which shows off a slight redesign from the version initially shown at CES earlier this year.

Newsletter graphic

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Scott Hayden
Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 4,000 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.