HTC has revealed its plan of taking preorders for Vive VR head-mounted display starting on Feb. 29.
The device will arrive in April, four months after its intended release date. However, there is no pricing detail or even its global availability.
In March, HTC and Valve gaming company announced a partnership to turn virtual dreams into reality. The Vive VR headset sets itself apart by providing a system that allows users to get up and walk around a small area, according to CNet. Other systems have focused on keeping the person standing or sitting.
Two separate sensors in the room track the motion of the headset and the two wireless controllers dedicated for hands, allowing users to move freely in the virtual world. The Vive Pre adds a front-facing camera that lets users see the real world in front of them to help prevent collisions with obstructions like a wall or couch.
The gadget also boasts 360-degree head tracking and a 90Hz refresh rate, as well as built-in sensors that allow users to interact with real environments around them. It is also expected that Vive VR will include dual OLED displays at or around a combined screen resolution of 2160 x 1200.
HTC showed off the latest version of the Vive, a developer-only iteration called the Vive Pre, at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2016 last week in Las Vegas.
The Taiwanese company is best known for making slick-looking phones such as the HTC One M9. HTC CEO Cher Wang said her company has turned its attention away from smartphones and toward virtual reality, PC Mag reported.
"With virtual reality, technology becomes limitless. You can inhabit a different world with a head mount. Think how it could change surgery, education, science, even shopping," CEO Wang said in an interview with Telegraph.
The Vive was initially supposed to ship last year, but HTC and co-developer Valve chose to delay its launch in order to add the camera, which provides limited augmented reality options. The April release will fall shortly after the Oculus Rift shipping date which is March 28. The Oculus opened up pre-orders for its Rift VR headset last week with a price tag of $599.
This VR device will most likely appeal to early adopters. In addition to its price, it requires a high-end gaming machine similar to the one Oculus recommends.