Ars Technica: Valve’s long-rumored VR headset is finally real: the Valve Index, coming in June

[EVIL]

So... speculation time..

just thinking about the Valve Index got me on two tracks. One would be.. why would valve make an HMD when they are already licensing to other hardware manufacturers and Why name it, Index

So first off, valve doesn't make hardware jut for the fun of it or to make lots of money. They make hardware to solve what they feel are problems.
- The Steam Controller and the Link where both solutions to bring PC gaming to the living room (Steam controller solved the issue of playing PC games - mouse and keyboard games - with the trackpads and haptic feedback, and the Link solved getting your PC games on your TV via a cheap way),
- The HTC Vive project was done as a test bed to see what Quality VR would be and to gain experience in the media that is VR.

Now I am wondering, what problems does the Index solve that other headsets are not solving. Its hard to think that Valve would just make another headset just to compete with HTC and Oculus.

Its not solving field of view issues, since there are other HMD's out there that aim for wide FOV's
Its not solving display resolution, since there are other HMD's out there that are aiming for higher resolution displays
Its not solving ergonomics, (Ergonomics will be something that while already good will have to be solved by making smaller HMD's and the Index doesnt look that small)
Its not solving Tracking (They already solved it with lighthouse)

So what problem does the Index solve as a hardware product?

Second.. the name index.. I have some hunches as to what it might refer to but I wonder if anyone here has any idea what they could mean with the name index. Normally you don't just call a product a certain name because it sounds cool. Often its a reference to its core function. What would index refer to?

 

[collige]

So... speculation time..

just thinking about the Valve Index got me on two tracks. One would be.. why would valve make an HMD when they are already licensing to other hardware manufacturers

Click to shrink...

Because not having a middle man gives them more control and money. Also HTC fucking blows

and Why name it, Index

Click to shrink...

Because the controllers have finger tracking

 

[Wowfunhappy]

One would be.. why would valve make an HMD when they are already licensing to other hardware manufacturers and Why name it, Index

Click to shrink...

Like who?

As far as I'm aware, there's only two licensees, HTC and Pimax. Pimax is super niche, and HTC doesn't seem interested in releasing an updated Vive at consumer prices.

It may well be that Valve would have preferred working with a hardware partner, but couldn't find anyone acceptable.

 

[Deleted member 48434]

So far, nothing about this headset screams "BUY ME", it just looks like a better Vive.
I do hope Valve has some killer games lined up to reveal when they properly unveil this thing.

 

[Arebours]

No. It's perfectly fine for desktop/sims and even 180 degree gaming (ie standing and facing forward), but not 360 degree roomscale. I have my lighthouses hooked up to power switches and only turn on one if it's 180 degree or less gaming. But for true roomscale, you need 2.

Click to shrink...

Thanks, that's what I thought(considering I need three sensors for my rift setup to have robust room scale). I really hope valve will have an affordable bundle including two stations then.

 

[Shinobido Heart]

I'm really digging the design of this headset.

I have the latest Oculus Rift model but I'm wondering if I should upgrade to the Valve Index. It sounds really cool and I would love to have those knuckle controllers.

 

[west]

Now I am wondering, what problems does the Index solve that other headsets are not solving. Its hard to think that Valve would just make another headset just to compete with HTC and Oculus.

Click to shrink...

I think it's pretty simple. Valve worked with both Oculus and HTC before and got burnt both times. They realize that if they want to have a consumer device that is 100% on the steam platform they need to do it themselves. If you look at Valve hardware historically, it's always about keeping their main product, Steam, relevant.

And about the name, Index can also mean a measure or reference for something. It's most likely the Valves minimum target for headsets going forward for Valve VR software and games.

 

[Candescence]

Frankly, if it's reasonably affordable, I think the Index would be my next headset for the controllers alone, but if the FOV is improved and the lenses improve the clarity, that would be a huge bonus as well. I only have a PSVR and that Acer WMR headset I got for free with my laptop, and I think getting a headset with the Knuckles controllers will have me basically set in terms of PC VR for years. Knuckles basically has most of what I want out of a PC VR controller.

I'm not expecting the world out of the Index, but I really just want the damn Knuckles and the lighthouse tracking.

 

[ASaiyan]

Ah, so it's got a tether. Understandable I guess. But now I feel a lot better about buying a Vive last winter. After using the Wireless Adapter I simply can't go back.

 

[Dr.Phibes]

Haven't used my Vive in while but for some reason I'm really looking forward to this.

 

[Rygar 8Bit]

Wonder if they'll shadow drop one of their big games they are working on for VR with the headset release.

 

[Aztechnology]

Ah, so it's got a tether. Understandable I guess. But now I feel a lot better about buying a Vive last winter. After using the Wireless Adapter I simply can't go back.

Click to shrink...

Well assumably you'll probably be able to get a wireless adapter for this as well. If not the current one.

 

[Candescence]

I seriously don't think this thing won't have a wireless adaptor as a separate thing. The technology already exists, and considering TPCast and the Vive Pro adaptor already exist, I'd be surprised if Valve wasn't working on something similar as well (as stated earlier in the thread, Gabe has said wireless is a "solved problem"). It's just not in the base package due to cost.

 

[Mechaplum]

Even though I won't be needing wireless, I hope there's an add on for those who wants it.

 

[Setsune]

I'll definitely go for the wireless add-on once they offer it. Totally understandable not including it in the base kit for cost reasons, though.

 

[gozu]

Its not solving field of view issues, since there are other HMD's out there that aim for wide FOV's
Its not solving display resolution, since there are other HMD's out there that are aiming for higher resolution displays
Its not solving ergonomics, (Ergonomics will be something that while already good will have to be solved by making smaller HMD's and the Index doesnt look that small)
Its not solving Tracking (They already solved it with lighthouse)

So what problem does the Index solve as a hardware product?

Second.. the name index..What would index refer to?

Click to shrink...

I think it's pretty simple. Valve worked with both Oculus and HTC before and got burnt both times. They realize that if they want to have a consumer device that is 100% on the steam platform they need to do it themselves. If you look at Valve hardware historically, it's always about keeping their main product, Steam, relevant.

And about the name, Index can also mean a measure or reference for something. It's most likely the Valves minimum target for headsets going forward for Valve VR software and games.

Click to shrink...

I like the way you think. When did HTC really burn Valve though? By (i'm assuming) opening their own store front or by not delivering good enough hardware/revisions on time? I am not convinced this was enough. It might have just been Valve deciding they knew enough to do it alone, better.

A quality "Index" makes sense. Valve obviously wants a reference next-gen* headset to code for that doesn't suck. Better FOV, better controller, sharper image with a modest 25% boost in pixel count.

PSVR still remains the one to beat comfort-wise. Will this beat it? Doubtful. The rez bump is also disappointing, fov or no fov. for anyone who owns an Oculus Rift, this is an underwhelming upgrade. I want 2 x 2160x2160 screens (shared 4k, or s4k). The s4k LG VR headset coming out is $1000, so it may take another couple of years before s4k is under $500. Valve needs to sell headsets, and VR-optimized s4k screens are prohibitively expensive.

*As a rift owner, I am happy with the progress on controllers and fov and unhappy with the progress on resolution, wireless-ness and comfort/size so I wouldn't really call it next-gen. More of a ps4pro situation.

 

[Kalentan]

So I've been debating getting a Rift. Now obvious the Index is still quite the mystery.

But what are the chances it's better?

 

[Creation_Scapes]

So I've been debating getting a Rift. Now obvious the Index is still quite the mystery.

But what are the chances it's better?

Click to shrink...

The controller like others in here have mentioned should be the best yet as far as VR controller go. The rest of the specs? Sounds like it's going to be a mixed bag.

 

[1-D_FE]

So I've been debating getting a Rift. Now obvious the Index is still quite the mystery.

But what are the chances it's better?

Click to shrink...

Significantly better. But how much better and what do you prioritize?

If you don't want Lighthouses on your wall, Rift S has a major selling point in it's favor.

The screens look like they'll be a bump up from the S, but nothing earth-shattering (both will be downgrades in the contrast department over current OLED models). It will have IPD adjustements, though, in case you're not a standard 63 IPD.

Knuckles should be an upgrade over Touch.

Audio should definitely be an upgrade over what's shipping with S. And rumors of haptics in the headphones seem credible given the recent Chaperone patent that describes the HMD giving vibratory warnings.

FOV, if they really do 135, will be a definite upgrade. It's no Pimax, but it'll go a long way towards further enhancing your immersion.

Price is the biggie. It's unlikely to match the S's price, but I also don't think Valve can afford to price it rediculiously either. And none of the rumors are pointing at any super expensive tech. So it seems like this product is Valve understanding that HTC could exit the "budget" space at any point, and they'd be left with no mainstream SteamVR products in the marketplace. I believe it was designed for aggressive pricing (relatively speaking considering the cost of Lighthouse) and this is not going to be priced stupidly. Not when you consider the pricing of competitive VR HMDs and not when you consider it's likely to be the only mainstream SteamVR HMD in the consumer market in a year from now. This has to be aimed at mainstream consumers or SteamVR will be dead soon.

 

[Kalentan]

The controller like others in here have mentioned should be the best yet as far as VR controller go.

Click to shrink...

Well that's good.

I should have a powerful enough rig to handle PCVR so hopefully the Index is great.

 

[Kalentan]

Significantly better. But how much better and what do you prioritize?

If you don't want Lighthouses on your wall, Rift S has a major selling point in it's favor.

The screens look like they'll be a bump up from the S, but nothing earth-shattering (both will be downgrades in the contrast department over current OLED models). It will have IPD adjustements, though, in case you're not a standard 63 IPD.

Knuckles should be an upgrade over Touch.

Audio should definitely be an upgrade over what's shipping with S. And rumors of haptics in the headphones seem credible given the recent Chaperone patent that describes the HMD giving vibratory warnings.

FOV, if they really do 135, will be a definite upgrade. It's no Pimax, but it'll go a long way towards further enhancing your immersion.

Price is the biggie. It's unlikely to match the S's price, but I also don't think Valve can afford to price it rediculiously either. And none of the rumors are pointing at any super expensive tech. So it seems like this product is Valve understanding that HTC could exit the "budget" space at any point, and they'd be left with no mainstream SteamVR products in the marketplace. I believe it was designed for aggressive pricing (relatively speaking considering the cost of Lighthouse) and this is not going to be priced stupidly. Not when you consider the pricing of competitive VR HMDs and not when you consider it's likely to be the only mainstream SteamVR HMD in the consumer market in a year from now. This has to be aimed at mainstream consumers or SteamVR will be dead soon.

Click to shrink...

Hm... Overall I think I do like what I hear.

Is there a chance there will be a Wireless option? I think for me that is a big factor. At least with my current setup, my computer isn't sitting in a location that is VR friendly.

Correct me if I'm wrong but are the cameras for the Vive and Rift wireless already or do those plug into the desktop proper?

 

[the-pi-guy]

Just for fun since people were talking about it. The video where Valve is showing off headsets.

https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/valvesoftware/images/videos/hardware-hmd_fullsize.webm

 

[1-D_FE]

Hm... Overall I think I do like what I hear.

Is there a chance there will be a Wireless option? I think for me that is a big factor. At least with my current setup, my computer isn't sitting in a location that is VR friendly.

Correct me if I'm wrong but are the cameras for the Vive and Rift wireless already or do those plug into the desktop proper?

Click to shrink...

One would assume they'll be a wireless option, but it's definitely not a given.

Not sure what you mean by cameras. If you mean the tracking devices scattered in the room: The current Rift requires the cameras be plugged into your computer. The new Rift S doesn't require anything else in your room. It's done by the cameras on the HMD. The Vive Lighthouse's need to be plugged into a power outlet, but don't connect to the PC.

 

[Arthands]

I doubt it have wireless

 

[Kalentan]

One would assume they'll be a wireless option, but it's definitely not a given.

Not sure what you mean by cameras. If you mean the tracking devices scattered in the room: The current Rift requires the cameras be plugged into your computer. The new Rift S doesn't require anything else in your room. It's done by the cameras on the HMD. The Vive Lighthouse's need to be plugged into a power outlet, but don't connect to the PC.

Click to shrink...

Oh okay.

So what is more likely with the Index that it uses something like the Rift, Rift S, or the Vive Lighthouse?

 

[1-D_FE]

Oh okay.

So what is more likely with the Index that it uses something like the Rift, Rift S, or the Vive Lighthouse?

Click to shrink...

It's using Lighthouse. You'll have to mount those on your wall and they'll paint your room with invisible laser grids.

If you don't want anything on your walls, the Rift S will be using cameras inside the HMD (like the new Oculus Quest is using). It won't be quite as accurate, but it's definitely an advantage for certain people.

 

[Kalentan]

It's using Lighthouse. You'll have to mount those on your wall and they'll paint your room with invisible laser grids.

If you don't want anything on your walls, the Rift S will be using cameras inside the HMD (like the new Oculus Quest is using). It won't be quite as accurate, but it's definitely an advantage for certain people.

Click to shrink...

Ah. Well the Lighthouse method seems good!

Will continue to watch Index with interest.

 

[Candescence]

Yeah, the benefit of Lighthouse is that while it still needs power, it's significantly more flexible in terms of how to mount them to optimal positions in your room, since all you need is a power supply (I dunno why I thought they were battery-powered before, my bad). The original Vive lighthouse base stations came with mounting kits.

As long as you can mount them securely somewhere with a good view of the playspace and the opposite base station, you should be fine. Tripods are good for portability if you can get a good case for them - there are actual dedicated travel cases for the Vive now.

 

[Durante]

Now I am wondering, what problems does the Index solve that other headsets are not solving. Its hard to think that Valve would just make another headset just to compete with HTC and Oculus.

Its not solving field of view issues, since there are other HMD's out there that aim for wide FOV's
Its not solving display resolution, since there are other HMD's out there that are aiming for higher resolution displays
Its not solving ergonomics, (Ergonomics will be something that while already good will have to be solved by making smaller HMD's and the Index doesnt look that small)
Its not solving Tracking (They already solved it with lighthouse)

So what problem does the Index solve as a hardware product?

Click to shrink...

I'd argue it solves the "problem" of answering the question:
"I'm a "core" PC gamer and want to get into VR, what headset should I buy?"

Currently, the answer goes something like this:

• Do you want solid controller tracking in all situations? If so, your only options are Vive, Vive Pro, and Rift with 3 or more sensors. No WMR for you.
• Do you want a large field of view? Your only real option is Pimax, and honestly, while awesome, for most "normal" people that's not even an option.
• Do you have 4 high-bandwidth USB3 sockets? If not, room-scale Rift will be problematic.
• Do you want to spend $800+ on the complete setup? If not, that removes Vive Pro and Pimax from your set of options.
• Want joysticks? No Vive (Pro) or Pimax for you. Want touchpads? No Rift for you. Want both? Get WMR, but then your controllers don't track as well in several gaming scenarios.
• Do you want to use your HMD outside Windows 10? Scratch all WMR options.

With the Index, if it comes in at a decent price, it will boil down to this:

• Get a Valve Index.
• Unless you are specifically incapable of or unwilling to install lighthouses, then get a Rift S (and live with slightly worse controller tracking, slightly lower resolution, lower FoV and less advanced controllers).

 

[EVIL]

I like the way you think. When did HTC really burn Valve though? By (i'm assuming) opening their own store front or by not delivering good enough hardware/revisions on time? I am not convinced this was enough. It might have just been Valve deciding they knew enough to do it alone, better.

A quality "Index" makes sense. Valve obviously wants a reference next-gen* headset to code for that doesn't suck. Better FOV, better controller, sharper image with a modest 25% boost in pixel count.

PSVR still remains the one to beat comfort-wise. Will this beat it? Doubtful. The rez bump is also disappointing, fov or no fov. for anyone who owns an Oculus Rift, this is an underwhelming upgrade. I want 2 x 2160x2160 screens (shared 4k, or s4k). The s4k LG VR headset coming out is $1000, so it may take another couple of years before s4k is under $500. Valve needs to sell headsets, and VR-optimized s4k screens are prohibitively expensive.

*As a rift owner, I am happy with the progress on controllers and fov and unhappy with the progress on resolution, wireless-ness and comfort/size so I wouldn't really call it next-gen. More of a ps4pro situation.

Click to shrink...

Even when not using the full resolution of 2k displays, you can still have a far better image quality by running lower resolution on high resolution displays which will minimize the visible sub pixels and minimize screendoor effect. This way you also future proof a product to when people can run higher resolutions they will be able to push it trough he displays.

 

[west]

I like the way you think. When did HTC really burn Valve though? By (i'm assuming) opening their own store front or by not delivering good enough hardware/revisions on time? I am not convinced this was enough. It might have just been Valve deciding they knew enough to do it alone, better.

Click to shrink...

It's more about control. "Burnt" as in HTC wants to make a healthy profit on each device even if it slows adoption. HTC is also now focusing on business customer with even higher margins for the pro. Business customers are cool and all, but it wont push Steam to the mass audience. With Oculus moving further away from the pc segments with the Quest, Valve sees the need to pick up the slack. They cannot afford to give the VR market mindshare to Oculus and their ecosystem. Valve can also do it at cost if they can push software sales.

 

[EVIL]

It's more about control. "Burnt" as in HTC wants to make a healthy profit on each device even if it slows adoption. HTC is also now focusing on business customer with even higher margins for the pro. Business customers are cool and all, but it wont push Steam to the mass audience. With Oculus moving further away from the pc segments with the Quest, Valve sees the need to pick up the slack. They cannot afford to give the VR market mindshare to Oculus and their ecosystem. Valve can also do it at cost if they can push software sales.

Click to shrink...

I am just very skeptical them developing an HMD with just a slightly higher res and FOV over the original hardware reference they gave HTC for the Vive. Valve has always done things differently, and I expect them to very much take their own road when it comes what would be for them the perfect HMD.

 

[1-D_FE]

I am just very skeptical them developing an HMD with just a slightly higher res and FOV over the original hardware reference they gave HTC for the Vive. Valve has always done things differently, and I expect them to very much take their own road when it comes what would be for them the perfect HMD.

Click to shrink...

HTC doesn't seem very interested in the consumer side of SteamVR anymore. Their new lineup pretty much says it all. And I can't really blame them. Not with the margins they were forced into to try and stay close to Rift. Valve focusing solely on the niche high end when your only partner could leave at any moment is a recipe for disaster.

In my heart of hearts, I was hoping for the super high-end, 120hz panels too. Even though my 1070 would have choked to death on it (and wouldn't have even had the bandwidth to try and choke to death on it). But in reality, my selfishness aside, this probably would have been the death of the SteamVR hardware platform. The market has clearly spoken. Unless Valve can come up with a compelling product that's somewhat competitive with Rift's pricing, SteamVR hardware is finished.

Also, we don't know anything about this other than the fact the dev headset, when set to 90 percent scaling, is the exact same render resolution as Vive Pro (1440X1600). How do you get mad at Valve for not thinking differently when your only criteria in this is resolution? VR hasn't failed to go mainstream because we've lacked 2k X 2k screens. That's at the very bottom of its issues.

 

[copelandmaster]

It's more about control. "Burnt" as in HTC wants to make a healthy profit on each device even if it slows adoption. HTC is also now focusing on business customer with even higher margins for the pro. Business customers are cool and all, but it wont push Steam to the mass audience. With Oculus moving further away from the pc segments with the Quest, Valve sees the need to pick up the slack. They cannot afford to give the VR market mindshare to Oculus and their ecosystem. Valve can also do it at cost if they can push software sales.

Click to shrink...

I've been thinking about this a bit. Future stuff.

Valve's the biggest when it comes to PC gaming, absolutely dominate. But in VR, they're not quite there - they've got to contend with Facebook, Playstation, HTC, Microsoft (if WMR stops primarily relying on SteamVR), and Google Android (eventually).
In 5 to 15 years, long after the first Index ships, they might have a several problems - 1) being attached to x86 PCs, which can't shrink as well as ARM 2) Being attached to Lighthouse base stations. Everyone else wants to switch to a bazillion cameras and has the game plan of going ARM/Qualcomm at any point, even Sony.

Base stations could be solved by just switching to cameras, or the SSBase station becomes real. But what does Valve do when VR goes dedicated standalone, untethered to a big box and with no need for a designated VR space? Most VR games are multiplatform now, but whose to say they will be in the future? How do you solve x86 not being very shrinkable to the size of a cellphone Soc, RPi or Jetson Nano sized thing?

I mean, it could be just like it is now with current console, pc, and mobile gaming - more options = great - and I might be overthinking.

BUT WHAT IF?

 

[ArnoldJRimmer]

I mean, it could be just like it is now with current console, pc, and mobile gaming - more options = great - and I might be overthinking.

BUT WHAT IF?

Click to shrink...

I figure that's exactly what ti will be like, at least in the relative short term.

The PC VR space will continue to deliver the top-notch experience (outside of commercial level hardware) along with some more middle of the road options, while console will pick up the rest of the more mainstream, but also more hardcore VR gaming audience. And Oculus/Google will pick up everyone else.

 

[HylianSeven]

Yeah, the benefit of Lighthouse is that while it still needs power, it's significantly more flexible in terms of how to mount them to optimal positions in your room, since all you need is a power supply (I dunno why I thought they were battery-powered before, my bad). The original Vive lighthouse base stations came with mounting kits.

As long as you can mount them securely somewhere with a good view of the playspace and the opposite base station, you should be fine. Tripods are good for portability if you can get a good case for them - there are actual dedicated travel cases for the Vive now.

Click to shrink...

Yeah I got a set of tripods off Amazon for my base stations. Works really well, easy to set up and take down. I much prefer it to mounting them on a wall, especially since I live in an apartment.

 

[Nzyme32]

So... speculation time..

just thinking about the Valve Index got me on two tracks. One would be.. why would valve make an HMD when they are already licensing to other hardware manufacturers and Why name it, Index

So first off, valve doesn't make hardware jut for the fun of it or to make lots of money. They make hardware to solve what they feel are problems.
- The Steam Controller and the Link where both solutions to bring PC gaming to the living room (Steam controller solved the issue of playing PC games - mouse and keyboard games - with the trackpads and haptic feedback, and the Link solved getting your PC games on your TV via a cheap way),
- The HTC Vive project was done as a test bed to see what Quality VR would be and to gain experience in the media that is VR.

Now I am wondering, what problems does the Index solve that other headsets are not solving. Its hard to think that Valve would just make another headset just to compete with HTC and Oculus.

Its not solving field of view issues, since there are other HMD's out there that aim for wide FOV's
Its not solving display resolution, since there are other HMD's out there that are aiming for higher resolution displays
Its not solving ergonomics, (Ergonomics will be something that while already good will have to be solved by making smaller HMD's and the Index doesnt look that small)
Its not solving Tracking (They already solved it with lighthouse)

So what problem does the Index solve as a hardware product?

Click to shrink...

It isn't so black and white.
They are a business wanting to stay dominant. Valve were interested in making VR a component of Steam and were not interested in being the hardware Vendor, deciding to work with Oculus. Facebook got involved, and according to Ben Krasnow who was at Valve at the time:

I was a hardware engineer at Valve during the early VR days, working mostly on Lighthouse and the internal dev headset. There were a few employees who insisted that the Valve VR group give away both hardware and software to Oculus with the hope that they would work together with Valve on VR. The tech was literally given away -- no contract, no license. After the facebook acquisition, these folks presumably received large financial incentives to join facebook, which they did. It was the most questionable thing I've seen in my whole career, and was partially caused by Valve's flat management structure and general lack of oversight. I left shortly after

Click to shrink...

Valve's own lack of oversight bit them. Later on Alan Yates seemed to clarify much of the Rift was just an off shoot of Valve's own "Steam Sight" design, which the Vive was also based on as well. Moving into hardware itself, and partnering with HTC to bring Vive into existence was in a large part a move to protect themselves from a huge competitor in somewhat new market and a threat to them. Vive's development and even reveal shows that to an extent. Perhaps the greater threat was once again the fear of a VR as medium being controlled by a closed ecosystem - something that Valve can't survive in.

Valve moving properly into hardware and remaking itself to support that, is probably both expansion of their R&D efforts and to solve problems they have and see in VR / game development, and (as I think will become clear) probably be very aggressive in how price hardware if they subsidise, which a normal OEM can't do. Importantly they are arguing the Nintendo method will benefit them - having full control of hardware development in tandem with development of the games.

Those investments, Newell said, meant they hadn't released a new game since Dota 2—but that work wasn't wasted time. "The positive thing about the Vive is, in addition to making sure that nobody created an iOS closed platform for it, was also that it gave us the opportunity to develop our in-house expertise in hardware design. Five years ago, we didn't have electrical engineers and people who know how to do robots. Now there's pretty much no project in the hardware space that we wouldn't be comfortable taking on. We can design chips if we need to, we can do industrial design, and so on. So that added to that."

With Valve's new hardware chops, it seems like we can expect more than new games from the company. "We've always been a little bit jealous of companies like Nintendo," Newell said. "When Miyamoto is sitting down and thinking about the next version of Zelda or Mario, he's thinking what is the controller going to look like, what sort of graphics and other capabilities. He can introduce new capabilities like motion input because he controls both of those things. And he can make the hardware look as good as possible because he's designing the software at the same time that's really going to take advantage of it. So that is something we've been jealous of, and that's something that you'll see us taking advantage of subsequently.

Click to shrink...

As Durante has already described well, there is plenty for Valve to iterate, innovate and solve for many of VR's components, design, inputs and game development.

Second.. the name index.. I have some hunches as to what it might refer to but I wonder if anyone here has any idea what they could mean with the name index. Normally you don't just call a product a certain name because it sounds cool. Often its a reference to its core function. What would index refer to?

Click to shrink...

I think I nailed this on the head when the trademark came out - the logo and name suggest relation to refractive indices, likely relating to the lenses being used; optics and eye relief. That fits nicely with some of their published patents for the very same, fitting the name. Potentially this could improve effective resolution, reduce the requirement of barrel distortion, improve field of view... that's not entirely clear yet.

 

[EVIL]

In my heart of hearts, I was hoping for the super high-end, 120hz panels too. Even though my 1070 would have choked to death on it (and wouldn't have even had the bandwidth to try and choke to death on it). But in reality, my selfishness aside, this probably would have been the death of the SteamVR hardware platform. The market has clearly spoken. Unless Valve can come up with a compelling product that's somewhat competitive with Rift's pricing, SteamVR hardware is finished.

Click to shrink...

Still you dont need a 1070 to drive a 2k display. you can totally render your game at a lower resolution and use the full resolution for UI elements, text to get the advantage of a denser ppi display for image quality

anyway, the coming month will be excruciatingly long and I hope to learn more about the actual headset before the first of may

 

[Nzyme32]

This is a nice interview, but there's a bit of a tease for Index in here.
Still looks like Cloudhead will have something to go along side Index

 

[EVIL]

This is a nice interview, but there's a bit of a tease for Index in here.
Still looks like Cloudhead will have something to go along side Index

Click to shrink...

Since the stream didnt work for me, this one did


Mentions that oculus and valve are targeting opposite markets. Oculus wants to build an eco system for every man with quest and rift s, while:
"Valve wants to build something thats higher-end and will deliver AAA type experiences in VR"
Also mentiones that HTC is moving to the professional market and education while building them less for games.

 

[Moebius]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

 

[Arthands]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

Click to shrink...

Most likely.

 

[EVIL]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

Click to shrink...

I doubt it honestly, at the moment it is rumored to be the same resolution as the Vive pro

the reverb has a per eye resolution of 2160 x 2160 at a FOV of 115 .. that is almost double the resolution of the vive pro (1,440 by 1,600) - which at the moment looks like that will also be the resolution of the Valve index at a FOV of 135. But again, nothing has been confirmed, just deducted from leaks

 

[Deleted member 12790]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

Click to shrink...

I very much expect valve to provide best-in-industry VR.

 

[EVIL]

I did notice when checking out the HP reverb, is that they also recommend a 1070 with their 2k panels ... just like the index which we all expected to share vive pro resolution panels because of that same recommended system specs which makes me think resolution is still very much up in the air.

 

[I KILL PXLS]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

Click to shrink...

Better resolution? Probably not. Better comfort? Maybe on par. That said, there might be other factors that otherwise put it ahead. The double fresnel lenses might be adding some secret sauce. The FoV will probably be wider. The haptic headphones might be adding something we're not thinking about. The fact it has two cameras now means there will probably be 3D AR capability. Not to mention the Index will be compatible with the Knuckles controllers while Reverb won't and the tracking will be better. Plus there might be more to the headset that Valve is currently keeping secret (though I wouldn't put too much stock in that).

 

[Randomly Generated]

Better resolution? Probably not. Better comfort? Maybe on par. That said, there might be other factors that otherwise put it ahead. The double fresnel lenses might be adding some secret sauce. The FoV will probably be wider. The haptic headphones might be adding something we're not thinking about. The fact it has two cameras now means there will probably be 3D AR capability. Not to mention the Index will be compatible with the Knuckles controllers while Reverb won't and the tracking will be better. Plus there might be more to the headset that Valve is currently keeping secret (though I wouldn't put too much stock in that).

Click to shrink...

This would be enough to make me not bother with Reverb.

 

[the-pi-guy]

Do we think this will be better than the HP Reverb?

Click to shrink...

I think the only thing the Reverb will do better in, is have a higher resolution and maybe comfort. Unless something changes.

Everything else though, I have strong faith that the Index will be better at.

 

[Durante]

I did notice when checking out the HP reverb, is that they also recommend a 1070 with their 2k panels ... just like the index which we all expected to share vive pro resolution panels because of that same recommended system specs which makes me think resolution is still very much up in the air.

Click to shrink...

Personally, my resolution expectation is not because of recommended specs (you can always scale, and per-HW rather than per-game recommendations are stupid anyway), but because of (i) how well it fits with the leak, (ii) DisplayPort 1.2, and (iii) since I think that Valve is interested in growing VR just as much as they are interested in providing a high-end device (and it would still be that, just not super-high-end in terms of resolution).

 

[Tailzo]

Please make a Knuckles game for it. It's been too long since Chaotix.