HTC Vive XR Elite Virtual Reality Headset + Controllers

Im pretty mad - the USB streaming was buggy and unreliable - Ive tried 4 different USB cables - and Im on the official one now - and its not able to work with the exact same everything that worked 2 days ago. I wish I could return it, but alas, its been more than 30 days - but the product simply does not work - as the other reviews also cover. Dont buy it.

Ive been a long time HTC fan, owning the Original, Pro and Pro 2. I was very excited about the XR Elite and pre-ordered it as soon as I was able to. But when it arrived, I couldnt have been any more disappointed. -Gray display. No black means flatter world, with a very little 3D effect. Its the worst 3D Ive seen in a headset. -Extremely cheap feel and make, especially the controllers. -The faceplate keeps falling off because the magnets are too weak. -Glasses mode squeezes your temples so hard, inducing a migraine headache. -Required VIVE software will crash or wont run unless you change your audio to stereo first. It cant handle 5.1, for example. -Wireless VR is all but impossible, even with the best Wifi. Low resolution, artifacts, blue screens, and eventual crashes. It doesnt take much or long for the crash. -Below-average see-thru camera. The world looks flat. I dont understand all the hoopla, as the cameras nowhere good enough for an XR experience. -Speakers sit too high, allowing in too much ambient noise. -Still has screen door effect. -Awful battery life. The only good thing about it is that its light and reasonably comfortable. Everything else about the unit is low quality and subpar. For example, the temples on my unit for glasses mode still had plastic extrusions with sharp edges that flowed over the mold. Apparently HTC couldnt even bother checking and polishing the units. Every time I looked at the Elite, I couldnt help but feel ripped off. Its sad, because I really wanted HTC to succeed.

Really enjoying the XR Elite. Great combination of form and performance. This VR headset is light and comfortable and as close to a pair of glasses as I’ve experienced. I’ve been wanting a high end headset with the convenience of being a standalone device, and this fits the bill. Resolution is clear, colors are vibrant, and refresh rate is very good. I’ve found the interface to be pretty intuitive so it’s relatively easy to use. Came with some interesting software and works with their own store and Steam. Looking forward for more mixed reality apps to take advantage of the color passthrough.

I wanted to like it, after about two hours I just couldnt get it to stay focused. It just doesnt feel right for someone with a wider head. I have the same problem with eyeglasses most are not wide enough for me. I returned it, but will have to wait 30 days plus up to 7 days for the banks to process the return. This is not the normal Amazon return efund policy.

The only pro is that its lightweight. The controller are cheap plastic, the tracking is awesome, the screen is fun and hard to see even on its brightest setting, no exclusive games, no virtual desktop, laggy despite my wifi 6e, did I already mention the controllers that feel like they will fall apart at any second and also have terrible battery life? This takes three place of the pico 4 as the worst headset on the market (with psvr2 taking 3rd. I HATE meta, but the meta pro has great lenses and the sweet spot is enormous, this thing feels like taking a step back in time to a colorized virtual boy with better graphics but just as useless. Already requested a return. This is an embarrassment to HTC. If you buy, have no expectations..... And youll still be disappointed. These lenses are awful.

Preface to this review: I have an extreme negative bias towards Meta and refuse to use their products, so Im completely unable to compare this product to any of the Quest offerings. Ill primarily be comparing against the Valve Index. Furthermore, as other reviews have pointed out, the standalone experience is sorely lacking, and in my opinion HTC should have delayed the launch of this headset until they were able to get more apps into their storefront. Because of this, Ill only be focusing on the PCVR experience here. The HTC Vive XR Elite is not the best headset in any one category. Its not the best looking image (PCVR), it doesnt have the best controllers, it doesnt have the best tracking, and its not the smoothest experience out of the box. What it does have, is portability; both portability in travel and portability between users. We have a Valve Index already in our house, and sharing that experience is tedious to say the least, which means in the year weve had it in our house of 4, weve pretty much never shared a VR experience all together. That changed only a few days after the XR Elite arrived. The ability to quickly swap between different users of differing prescriptions, the ability to adjust the IPD to fit my (admitted hey-Arnold-esque) head, and the lack of a top strap to accommodate the widest range of hair styles make it an actually fun and immersive experience you can ***enjoy with your friends and family*** instead of alone. Ill admit the Quest lineup is probably pretty similar here, but as I mentioned above, I refuse to in any way support their parent company, and thus here I am. I believe that this product is perfect for those looking for a higher-end product as their first foray into VR, and many of the flaws the XR Elite has, I hope HTC is able to solve (primarily the lack of apps in the storefront). If youre listening HTC, one thing I would love to see is the ability to integrate with other controllers. The XR Elite can already track my hands, but it cant pair with Index Knuckle controllers and track those instead? Of course Id be giving up some precision the Knuckle controllers usually have by removing the base stations, but I cant see why it isnt possible. That, or release some higher-quality feeling controllers. All in all, I really wanted this to be a 4-star or 5-star review, and I think for the right person (such as myself) it definitely is, but as for the general public... Its a hard sell given that they probably dont share the same aversion to Meta as I do.

In my opinion, XR Elite is not meant to be the best of any one thing, considering its compact form factor. Its meant to provide very decent specs while also maintaining the size and weight at a portable level, which I think is crucial for a standalone headset. The fact that the battery can be removed to transform the headset into a pair VR glasses is quite innovative. If you want something you can bring along for use cases outside your home but without sacrificing graphics quality, XR Elite is a suitable option. The UI experience has minor problems so far, but Im hopeful that software fixes are coming soon. Ive heard rumblings about more standalone content and games will be made available as well. Looking forward to putting this nice device’s passthrough mode to the test.

Marketing so aggressively to such a niche market is only risky if you are unable to deliver, and this headset falls very short of expectations they themselves set. The hardware has promise, in so far as I could be OK with it IF the software experience wasnt so underwhelming. I certainly would like to veer away from Meta to support privacy centric efforts and willing to pay a premium for that. However the state of the UI / UX is so rough, that I do not have the patience to cheerlead for future updates will sort this out. Not for $1200 after tax. I was ready to scoop up accessories and lean into this headset, but I will happily continue on with PCVR via the Quest 2 headset for now. It really boggles the mind how they could even ship a product with software in such a state as if there were no market leaders present currently highlighting the short coming so plainly. Hopefully they can get sorted on future iterations. Im increasingly interested in Big Screens product despite the workarounds for feature parity as I am not skeptical about their marketing. Unfortunately my opinion of HTC is now negatively informed by their willingness to ship a product that over promises and under delivers.

Im not sure this device deserves all this hate. A good buddy of mine is a quest fan, so Ive played with both the quest 2 and pro a bunch. My experience with the xr elite is without a doubt superior. For such a compact headset, the hardware specs are quite impressive: the displays are sharp, its light and comfortable, resolution in passthrough mode is so much better than quest pros, etc. Im confident that upcoming software updates will solve some of the little things people are bitching about (even iphones were glitchy when launched initially and required updates). Its a superior piece of hardware, and HTC is already rolling out software fixes.

The goods: 1. I love the futuristic form factor, it’s not as awkward as VR devices were. 2. I was amazed by how small it is, XR Elite is pretty legit 3. Wifi 6E is enabled 4. Stable and low-latency wireless streaming (tethered streaming as good as always) 5. I am excited for the MR gasket, please make it affordable The concerns: 1. The Android interface need to be polished more … 2. The passthrough mode in a low-light environment can be improved