CES is the first big event of the year for VR fans. We’re not too sure what to expect from this year’s show but you can be sure that there’ll be news at the HTC Vive CES press conference today.
HTC’s latest showcase will kick off at 1pm PT in Vegas today. In the past the company hasn’t streamed its shows and we wouldn’t expect this to be any different. We will, however, be on-site to bring you the latest updates. Expect breaking headlines from our home page, hopefully followed up with some hands-on time with new kit.
Last year’s press conference saw HTC announce its Vive Pro headset. We’re hoping for some equally big announcements in 2019. HTC is certainly teasing some kind of exciting reveal, but what is it?
The truck is loaded and we’re excited be on our way to #CES2019. The cases are packed with some new gear we can’t wait to unbox for you. Keep tuned to @htcvive social media during CES for announcements, news and daily coverage. #HTCVIVE #VIVEPORT pic.twitter.com/lkwKE7plPw
— HTC VIVE (@htcvive) January 3, 2019
Vive Gl…something
In the image above you can see a blurred logo, though the letters seem to resemble at least a G and an L. Some people say this might mean ‘Vive Gloves’, suggesting HTC is working on gloves for VR input. My personal favorite suggestion is ‘Vive Glados’ for a new VR Portal game but I wouldn’t hold my breath on that.
Vive Cosmos
The more common theory is that this pertains to the ‘Vive Cosmos’ trademark the company filed last year. HTC may well have altered the lettering in the image as a red herring. We have plenty of ideas about what Cosmo could be. It might be a new PC VR headset using inside-out tracking. Or it could be HTC’s consumer-level standalone headset to compete with Oculus Quest. Or it could be something entirely different and we’re getting too carried away just thinking about it.
Third Party Hardware
HTC has gradually begun positioning itself as a VR service provider as much as it is a hardware maker. Its new Vive Wave OS is being used in a handful of third-party VR headsets already. We wouldn’t be surprised to see more announcements of this kind today.
New Software
It’s not all about hardware, of course. Last year at the HTC Vive CES press conference the company revamped its Viveport digital store with a VR interface. Viveport was a big focus for HTC in 2018 and we’d expect to see more improvements in 2019. We’d also like to hear about what’s new from Vive Studios.
