HTC Vive VR Headset Goes Completely Wireless With $220 TPCast Accessory
TPCast is a startup company that was birthed from the HTC Vive X accelerator program, and its accessory for the HTC Vive severs the wired connection with your PC and instead allows you to go completely wireless. Although details of the wireless connection haven’t been disclosed at this time, Alvin W. Graylin, who serves as China Regional President for HTC’s Vive business, says that the it will “greatly improve” the VR experience for gamers, and that there will be no “noticeable difference” with regards to lag compared to using a wired connection.
A video of the wireless accessory for the HTC Vive in action can be seen below (that’s Graylin who is demoing the hardware):
The TPCast accessory will come with a standard battery in the box, which is good enough for 90 minutes of VR gameplay (exactly the same as the MSI VR One). According to Graylin, work is currently underway on a larger battery that would slip into your pocket to further boost runtimes.
Pre-orders are already live via the Chinese site for the HTC Vive. It’s available in limited quantities with a price tag of roughly $220. There are currently no plans to offer the device outside of the Chinese market — for now — but we’re hopeful that it could arrive stateside. This is truly a useful option for the HTC Vive, and is a much better bargain than purchasing a $2,000 PC backpack.
As for whether such a feature could be integrated into upcoming versions of the HTC Vive, Graylin adds, “imagine technologies like this will become an option for future products.”
