Though both products were announced back at CES, HTC showed off the Vive Pro and the Vive Wireless adapter used together for the first time today at MWC 2018.
Back at CES, we went hands on with the Vive Wireless Adapter and the original Vive headset, but the company wasn’t showing the Adapter in use with the newer, higher resolution Vive Pro.
Here at MWC 2018, they put the pair together for the first time, demonstrated with a unique VR experience which put the user in a hot air balloon basket and sent them soaring through a canyon.
I got to step into the hot air balloon experience to try out the Vive Pro with the Vive Wireless Adapter. Very similar to my time with the Adapter and the original Vive at CES, I did seem to notice some added latency, but it was minimal enough that typical users may not spot it. The hot air balloon experience didn’t require any quick motions (and thus wasn’t an ideal stress test for the wireless connection by any means), and I didn’t spot any noticeable reduction in visual quality or framerate, so it seems the Vive Wireless adapter doesn’t have any obvious issues pushing the 1,600 × 1,440 per-eye resolution of the Vive Pro.
With the Vive Pro, only two cables needed to be plugged into the Vive Wireless adapter: a short HDMI cable from the headset, and a USB cable for power (attached to a battery worn in the pocket). When used with the original Vive, the Adapter requires four cables (three from the headset, and USB from the power pack).
HTC still isn’t saying precisely when the Vive Pro and Vive Wireless Adapter will be available, nor what they will cost.