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The HTC Vive and HTC Vive Pro may still be the most advanced consumer VR headsets on the market, but their chunky, wand-like motion controllers are starting to feel a bit long in the tooth.
Thankfully then, HTC's next VR headset, the HTC Vive Cosmos, will come equipped with a pair of svelte new motion controllers, which have just been revealed in a Twitter post shared by the company itself:
Loco motion
As seen in the video above, the Vive Cosmos controllers are more similar to the Oculus Rift's Oculus Touch controllers, with their knuckle-wrapping design, than the HTC sticks that preceded them.
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Working with all your existing Vive experiences and games (presumably meaning they can also be paired with a Vive or Vive Pro headset as well as the Cosmos), the video explains that the lights built into the controllers are what enable its tracking to be as precise as HTC claims. It states that "every flick of your wrist" can be measured by the new Vive controllers.
Just as the lights differ from the Oculus Touch system, so to does button placement. Whereas the Touch's loop goes underneath your hand, with control sticks and buttons sat on top, the new Vive pads have their loop wrapping over the upper part of your hand, with the physical buttons and sticks sat inside the ring.
HTC has yet to price the Vive Cosmos headset, or these new controllers, or whatever inevitable bundle there will be. But we'll keep you posted as soon as we find out. Note however that the Cosmos won't be a standalone headset like the Oculus Go – while HTC has yet to fully reveal what devices can power it, you're going to need at least a smartphone to get this working. So consider that if you're doing some mental arithmetic on a projected overall price.
- Want more on the HTC Vive Cosmos? Check out our hands-on first impressions