HP, Microsoft and Valve are making a VR headset together

The trio is working on a "no-compromise VR headset", but there's no clear indication of when it will be brought to market.
Text: Jonas Mäki
Published 2020-03-24

Valve has really been pushing the envelope for virtual reality, and yesterday the studio finally released the next instalment in the Half-Life series - and that's also a VR exclusive. Microsoft, on the other hand, has been one of the least interested companies when it comes to VR (although they have been looking closely at augmented reality). However, now both companies have been brought together by HP, and this somewhat unlikely trio will now create a virtual reality headset together.

According to HP themselves, this new headset is a "more immersive, comfortable and compatible experience than the previous generation" and they even go as far as calling it "the new standard in VR". In a mail to The Verge, HP also reveals that this will be a "no-compromise VR headset".

We have no idea when it will be released and what the price tag will be, or if thanks to Microsoft's involvement it will also work with Xbox Series X. The Verge does believe something good can come out of this collaboration though and notes that "Windows Mixed Reality has a convenient tracking system and mediocre controllers, while the Valve Index has an inconvenient tracking system and the best controllers in VR".

Maybe the best of both worlds could lead to something really good here. What do you think?

Picture of HP's previous VR headset, the Reverb.

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