Hardware

HalfDive VR Cancels Kickstarter After Hitting Funding Goal

January 31, 2022 From vrfocus

If you love the weird and wonderful ideas XR creators come up with then you’ll have likely caught wind of HalfDive, a virtual reality (VR) headset that’s used whilst laying down. Designed by Japanese startup Diver-X, the company launched a Kickstarter back in December to help fund the project. As unusual as the headset is this story gets even more bizarre, Diver-X canceled the campaign after hitting its initial funding goal.

Issuing a statement today to its backers, Diver-X CEO Yamato Sakoda gave three reasons for the sudden withdrawal of the campaign. The first was a “major change in product direction,” going on to say: “we came to the conclusion that HalfDive’s current specifications were not the best way to realize our goals of “completing life in-bed”.”

The biggest issue Sakoda mentioned revolved around the interface rather than the headset itself. Even focusing efforts towards gaming, this wasn’t enough to provide the innovative experience Diver-X was looking for. “We became skeptical of the current concept of HalfDive, our test-product, and its mass production,” Sakoda adds.

Reason two stems from the company’s own organizational structure, outsourcing the design of key components. This increased costs, especially where the optical system was concerned, attributing to around 50% of HalfDive’s cost. “We found out it would be extremely difficult to manufacture within an appropriate price range hardware components that meet our expected-quality.”

Lastly, as with a lot of startups, it comes down to cash flow. Even with the Kickstarter funds, Diver-X isn’t “in a financially stable position” to go into mass production. However, the company has sufficient funds to continue development so it’s not the end of HalfDive. Diver-X aims to address issues mentioned before coming back with an updated design.

The Kickstarter looked to raise ¥20,000,000 Yen (around $176,000 USD) and actually hit ¥24 million before the campaign was canceled. Due to the cancellation, the 248 backers weren’t charged so at least there’s no refund to chase and Diver-X has been honest about what’s occurred.

When gmw3 learns more about the future of the company and its unusual HalfDive headset we’ll let you know.

HTC Vive Unveils new Hardware Solutions at CES 2022, Including a Wrist Tracker & Charging Case

January 5, 2022 From vrfocus

HTC Vive had quite the 2021 releasing not one or two but three virtual reality (VR) headsets, the Vive Pro 2, Vive Focus 3 and Vive Flow. As part of CES 2022 today, the company has just unveiled a bunch of accessories specifically for the standalone Vive Focus 3, a wrist tracker, charging case and multi-battery charger.

The Vive Focus 3 is HTC Vive’s all-in-one (AIO) solution for businesses, whether that’s companies looking to conduct training sessions and meetings in VR, or location-based entertainment (LBE) venues after the latest cord-free technology. And it’s the latter that could benefit the most from these latest gadgets. The Vive Wrist Tracker provides a tracking solution specifically for the headset, 85% smaller and 50% lighter (63g) than the Vive Focus 3 controllers.

Worn either on the wrist or attached to objects so they can be tracked in VR, the Vive Wrist Tracker has LEDs that are picked up by the headset tracking cameras. Whilst the Wrist Tracker can aid hand tracking, HTC Vive says it can also improve tracking from your fingertips to your elbow, even when out of sight of the cameras. It does this by: “using high-frequency IMU data and an advanced kinematic model,” predicting a users hand position.

Offering four hours of continual use out of a single charge (charged via a USB-C connection), the Vive Wrist Tracker has a one-button pairing feature to the Vive Focus 3 as well as a removable strap for cleaning. It’ll arrive early in 2022 for US customers first, priced at $129 USD, €129 EUR, £119 GBP. HTC Vive has confirmed it’ll release the CAD files so that owners can build their own docking solutions for attaching the tracker to guns, sports equipment or other objects.

Then there’s the Vive Focus 3 Charging Case, ideal for when you want to take the headset out and about whilst keeping it fully charged. With an outer splash-proof rigid shell design, the charging case features lockable zips for security and an in-built storage area for chargers and cables. As for that charging capability, the original Vive Focus 3 charger plugs into the corner of the case to juice up the headset and both controllers.

There’s an additional feature that businesses and other organisations may find useful if they have multiple devices, auto-pairing. When placing the headset and controllers inside the case, all devices will pair instantly, ensuring no awkward mismatching of components if sets get muddled together.

Finally, there’s the Multi Battery Charger. The Vive Focus 3 features the ability to hot-swap batteries for continual use but in a busy setting like a classroom, operators will need to continually charge batteries. The Vive Focus 3 Multi Battery Charger can charge up to four batteries at once, all at full speed with LED indicators showing the charge status.

Currently, HTC Vive hasn’t said when the Charging Case or Multi Battery Charger will be available or how much they’ll cost. When those details are available VRFocus will let you know.

Got a Spare $10K? Teslasuit is Discounted for Cyber Monday

November 29, 2021 From vrfocus

As VRFocus reported last week, there have been a reasonable number of virtual reality (VR) deals over the course of the weekend for Black Friday, mostly on the software side. Nothing too unusual. Until today that is, with Teslasuit offering its first-ever sale on a limited number of developer kits, saving a few lucky customers almost $3,000 USD off the regular price.

Ok, so this particular Cyber Monday isn’t for your regular consumer product as the Teslasuit is generally only sold for commercial or enterprise applications, mostly because the product usually retails for $12,999. But for today only, if you are a developer or certified partner of Teslasuit then you can pick one up for the (almost) bargain price of $10,400. That deal does include the software and API license but excludes shipping and taxes – so you’ll need to budget a little bit more.

That 20% saving is for 24 Teslasuit Developer Kits only, so once they’re gone they’re gone, and you’ll need to apply directly to Teslasuit itself – you definitely won’t find this on Amazon. Plus, Teslasuit informs VRFocus that its: “team will assist in getting your suit ready to be shipped before Christmas,” making for a nice festive treat.

Parent company VR Electronics Ltd has been selling the Teslasuit for a couple of years now after the fully haptic suit made its debut during CES 2018. The suit is jammed packed full of sensors and haptics so that companies can utilise it for a range of use cases, whether that’s collecting data on performance training and next-generation rehabilitation to improving situational awareness or for motion capture purposes.

The Teslasuit features 10 internal motion capture sensors, 80 electrostimulation channels for tactile feedback, a rechargeable battery that can run between 8-10 hours. As you can see from the promotional images, the Teslasuit is a snug fit to ensure all that tech functions at an optimal level. Hence why the Teslasuit comes in XS, S, M, L, XL and XXL sizes as well as a custom made option if none of those suffices.

VR Electronics Ltd is also working on a haptic glove called the Teslasuit Glove. Unveiled last year, the company has been fairly quiet since then on its development and when it’ll go on sale. It’ll include force feedback so that users can feel digital objects, their shape and resistance to pressure.

With the current metaverse trend gaining steam, consumers may eventually want a device like the Teslasuit to fully immerse in these virtual universes. For continued updates keep reading VRFocus.