Yes, TPCast’s Wireless VR Solution Does Work with Vive’s New Deluxe Headstrap

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Jan 5, 2017

Wondering if Vive’s newly announced powered up Deluxe Audio Strap upgrade will work with TPCast’s promising wireless VR solution? Wonder no longer.

With the huge wave of accessories announced by HTC for it’s SteamVR powered Vive headset at CES yesterday, we were wondering if any thought had been put to the interoperability of each. Chief among those were whether two of the most desirable upgrades, TPCast’s recently revealed wireless VR add-on and HTC’s official Deluxe Audio Strap. Will the replacement head harness, now packing integrated audio, and its bulkier form factor fit TPCasts’s headset mounted device?

Vive Deluxe Audio Strap Gets June 6th Release Date

Well, to quell those concerns, Daniel O’Brien, HTC Vive’s GM, just tweeted visual confirmation that yes, they do indeed co-exist just fine. The tweet included O’Brien holding a Vive complete with Deluxe Audio Strap fitted and the TPCast wireless receiver and video / IO module fastened securely. This means those who are considering both accessories can buy with confidence, and from what we’ve seen from community feedback, it’s likely this pairing will be a huge hit with the hardcore fans at least.

More Details Surface on Wireless Vive Upgrade Accessory, Global Orders May Be on the Way

How much will the pair cost together? Unfortunately we can only tell you that the TPCast wireless add-on, which uses 60Ghz Wireless HD transmitter and receiver as well as a compressed video stream to beam low latency imagery to the Vive headset, will cost $249 once it goes on general release this year. HTC are already taking pre-orders in some regions for the device.

Get Schwifty!

I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief ;)
- Sam Illingworth
  
  Except for our wallets…
OgreTactics

The more I hear about the Vive the more I hate it. It’s tracking system is the most advanced for sure, but overall this product is going nowhere, no budget want to invest in it, and it’s launch sales were so underwhelming what does this say about next-gen if they don’t step their game up…

Anyway TPCast is a good sign will get 2×802.11ad with whatever coded (AV1) in the next iteration. Design seem to be pretty much figured out given what Lenovo recently showed, now it’s a matter of external tracking, and we’ll finally have real usable Virtual Headsets.
- RockstarRepublic
  
  I agree for the most part, its got great tech driving it but I do not think HTC is in the right mind to take it where it needs to be. Some of their decisions as of late feel poor, and I wouldnt be surprised to see a different tech company step in to take their place.
  - OgreTactics
    
    That’s exactly what I fear, and you put it in the best way in terms of pre-prospective: they do not seem to be in the right mind to take where it needs to be.
- Rogue_Transfer
  
  They do need to step up their design to reach better & lighter comfort + improved panels without screen-door & lense fringing.
  
  Perhaps we’ll get the best of both worlds and another hardware manufacturer will produce a better SteamVR tracked solution this year, since it’s planned to be fully open and already partly.
  
  I’m still wondering though on when we’ll hear about the other partner headsets of Microsoft announced as coming in Spring. They’re cutting it fine without demoing actual functional VR hardware to date. I guess we have a few days left of CES though to see what’s announced by Acer, etc.
- David Herrington
  
  Why don’t you post about something you do like instead of things you don’t like? Or maybe buy a Starbreeze if the Vive is too “mediocre” for you.
  - OgreTactics
    
    Because I’m not one of those hysterical “positive attitude” hypocrite that everyone is starting to hate with their guts and I do too almost to the point where want to support them. As for what I like, I posted in the same comment you’re replying to. Starbreeze is not one of them unfortunately.
  - OOLuigiOo
    
    Negative Nancy, he is :)
- Andrew Jakobs
  
  HTC is very pleased with the sales, so to them it’s not underwhelming.. It was some stupid marketing company that projected a specific sale and later said it was much less than expected, but none of the projected sales was actually confirmed as being projected by the actual manufacturers, just as they projected the PSVR to sell millions, and Sony only ever told they’d expected a couple of hundred thousands, and guess what, Sony surpasses the sales they said in the interview..
  - OgreTactics
    
    These are lies my friend. They ALL have representatives or PR who made projections along the lines of unrealistic (not because of magic, because of the actual products they released that couldn’t convinced anywhere near projected numbers to buy it). “Analytics” (read investment PR cabinets) companies just lied in accordance.
    - Andrew Jakobs
      
      BS, Oculus, HTC and Sony never really said anything about how much they expected to sell (ok, Sony did, but it was in the hundreds of thousands, not the couple of millions those “analytics” said).. The only one who is lying are the “analytics” to get people to come to their site and you just talking BS..
      - OOLuigiOo
        
        You tell’ em! :)
      - OgreTactics
        
        I remember Oculus clearly targeting the 1 millions sales for the first year. And having targets and projections is part of their job. Funny enough the PSVR is the only one I dubbed to be undertargeted, obviously they would sell potentially around 1/1.5m.
        
        Anyway do not confuse analysts, actual ones, who already had accurate sale frames they got on point because it’s their jobs otherwise they wouldn’t be paid millions or billions for it, with the many PR analysts crooks, that just use false prediction as a kool-aid to make people believe their investment will be fructified like it had any magical effect on consumers willing to buy them.
        
        There are legit analysts, except we never see their prospective analysis in medias. In fact if you see “analyst” in medias, it doesn’t mean that a an advanced, PhD, institutional or military domain worth billions exists for nothing, it means that the media is referencing PR marketing BS not analysis.
Sam Illingworth

What I really want to know is how good those speakers are. The lack of any sort of foam kinda suggests they’re going to have absolutely no isolation at all, which doesn’t seem like what you want from VR. Should help keep your head cool though I suppose…
David Herrington

With HTC pushing all these upgrades to Vive 1.0 for release in Q2-Q3(?), I expect it to be at least another year (probably 1.5 years) before we see Vive 2.0.
- DougP
  
  I’m fine with that. Give GPUs a chance to catch-up, as well as explore eye-tracking/foveated rendering/etc.
  
  Heck, just current Vive with SS on all titles at 2.0+ would like gorgeous & “next gen” on the current display.
  Bring-on add-ons: wireless, optional integrated headphones (for those who want/don’t have good headphones), controller options, controllers v2 (the prototype they showed off)?, maybe throw some ankle strap option for tracking legs?
Craig1287

Now that I know this combination works, I just need to know if the TPCast connects to a receiver that plugs into the standard breakout box that comes with the Vive? My Vive activities happen in a different room than my PC is in, so I hope it does connect to the breakout box.