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HTC tries to spur Vive VR demand with new laptop bundle
ZDNET Recommends
HTC announced Thursday that it's selling new Vive VR bundles with AORUS 15G gaming laptops. The company is pitching the bundle as a plug-and-play gaming setup optimized for virtual reality, but it's also a strategic play by HTC to spur demand for its Vive headset series.
HTC is offering two bundles: the Vive Cosmos x AORUS 15G bundle starting at $2,249, and the Vive Cosmos Elite x AORUS 15G bundle starting at $2,449. The Vive Elite offers higher Pixel resolution, room tracking, and more interoperability compared to the standard Vive headset.
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Both bundles will come with an AORUS laptop that's pre-installed with Vive software and drivers. The laptop will also come with an automatic "VR mode" that optimizes CPU, GPU, and fan usage when the headset is plugged into the laptop. There's also AI-Assisted VR mode that uses Microsoft Azure AI to optimize PC performance when connected to the headset.
"We've heard that one of the biggest barriers to adoption of PC-VR is the setup, so we're taking the hassle out of it by giving you everything you need to get started in one package," said Daniel O'Brien, GM of HTC Americas. "The Cosmos Series x AORUS 15G bundle delivers the best possible VR experience by pairing stunning visuals with a powerful laptop, and the option for either the convenient inside-out tracking of a VIVE Cosmos or the precise external tracking of a VIVE Cosmos Elite."