Valve Index

Last updated

Valve Index
VI logo.svg
Developer Valve
ManufacturerValve
Type Virtual reality headset
GenerationSecond
Release dateJune 28, 2019
Availability2019
Introductory priceUS$999 [1] [2]
Operating system Windows, Linux
DisplayTwo 1440×1600 LCD IPS Fast Switching Type Displays @ 80 Hz, 90 Hz, 120 Hz, or 144 Hz [3]
SoundIntegrated headphones, 3.5mm audio jack, built-in dual microphone array [3]
Controller inputValve Index Controllers
CameraFront-facing 960×960 stereo cameras [3]
Connectivity DisplayPort 1.2, USB 3.0 expansion port [3]
Backward
compatibility 		Supports HTC Vive and Vive Pro Controllers and HTC Vive and Vive Pro Base Stations [4]
Related HTC Vive, HP Reverb G2 [5]
Website www.valvesoftware.com/index

The Valve Index is a consumer virtual reality headset created and manufactured by Valve. Announced on April 30, 2019, the headset was released on June 28 of the same year. [6] [7] The Index is a second-generation headset and the first to be manufactured completely by Valve. Half-Life: Alyx is bundled in with the headset.

Contents

Technical specifications

Display

The headset uses an IPS fast switching [8] 1440×1600 LCD panel for each eye for a combined resolution of 2880×1600. The panels are full RGB and can operate at refresh rates of 80, 90, 120, or 144 Hz. [3] The specified field of view is 130°, but users report a practical field of view of 120°. [9] The panels and lenses can be moved horizontally to adjust the user's inter-pupillary distance (IPD) using a physical slider underneath the displays. The allowable IPD adjustment ranges between 58 and 70mm.

Tracking

The headset and controllers both support Valve's Lighthouse 2.0 tracking system, [6] while retaining full compatibility with all previous HTC Vive base stations, [10] using SteamVR.

Controls

The headset is intended to be used with the Valve Index Controllers—known during development as the Knuckles Controllers [11] —but is also backward compatible with the HTC Vive and HTC Vive Pro controllers. [4] The Valve Index Controllers have a thumbstick, touchpad, two face buttons, a menu button, a trigger, and an array of 87 sensors that allow the controllers to track hand position, finger position, motion, and pressure to create an accurate representation of the user's hand in virtual reality. [12] In addition, the controllers include an accelerometer for additional measurements. In 2018, a tech demo called Moondust was made to showcase the capabilities of an early version of the Knuckles. [13]

Audio

The Index includes "a pair of ultra near-field, full range, off-ear (extra-aural) headphones", [14] which use BMR drivers to create accurate and immersive low frequency sounds, as well as a microphone.

History

Development

A senior U.S. Air Force member using Valve Index headset Air Force officer using Valve Index.jpg
A senior U.S. Air Force member using Valve Index headset

The Valve Index is Valve's first virtual reality headset developed and manufactured in house, and is planned to be the launch console for Valve's upcoming virtual reality games. Development on a completely first party headset started some time around 2015 according to interviews with staff, before the release of their Vive headset with HTC. In February 2021, Valve registered patents for a new VR headset, describing the improvements over the previous model. [15]

Release

It sold an estimated 149,000 sets in 2019, 103,000 of which were in the fourth quarter due to the announcement of Half-Life: Alyx , which buyers received for free. [16] The sudden demand caused the unit to be sold out in all 31 countries except Japan in January 2020. [17] As of December 2019, 6.67% of the VR units connected to Steam are Valve Index sets. [18] While Valve had anticipated supply for many of those that had ordered the Index in time for the March 2020 release of Half-Life: Alyx, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted production of the Index which left Valve with a reduced number of units available on the release date. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virtual reality</span> Computer-simulated experience

Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment, education and business. VR is one of the key technologies in the reality-virtuality continuum. As such, it is different from other digital visualization solutions, such as augmented virtuality and augmented reality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valve Corporation</span> American video game company

Valve Corporation, also known as Valve Software, is an American video game developer, publisher, and digital distribution company headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. It is the developer of the software distribution platform Steam and the game franchises Half-Life, Counter-Strike, Portal, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress, Left 4 Dead, and Dota.

<i>The Gallery</i> (video game) 2016 video game

The Gallery is an episodic virtual reality video game developed and published by Cloudhead Games for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift with Oculus Touch. The game uses the Unity game engine, and was inspired by 80s fantasy adventures like The Goonies and The Dark Crystal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HTC Vive</span> Virtual reality headset

HTC Vive is a line of virtual and mixed reality headsets produced by HTC Corporation. The brand currently encompasses headsets designed for use with personal computers as well as standalone headsets such as the Vive Focus line, Vive Flow glasses, and the Vive Elite XR mixed reality headset.

OpenVR is a software development kit (SDK) and application programming interface (API) developed by Valve for supporting the SteamVR and other virtual reality headset devices. The SteamVR platform uses it as the default application programming interface and runtime. It serves as the interface between the virtual reality hardware and software and is implemented by SteamVR.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virtual reality headset</span> Head-mounted device that provides virtual reality for the wearer

A virtual reality headset is a head-mounted device that uses 3D near-eye displays and positional tracking to provide a virtual reality environment for the user. VR headsets are widely used with VR video games, but they are also used in other applications, including simulators and trainers. VR headsets typically include a stereoscopic display, stereo sound, and sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes for tracking the pose of the user's head to match the orientation of the virtual camera with the user's eye positions in the real world.

<i>The Lab</i> (video game) 2016 video game

The Lab is a virtual reality (VR) video game developed by Valve and released for Windows on April 5, 2016. It uses VR technology to showcase a series of play experiences accessed through a hub room. The game is set in the Portal universe and offers eight different game types that involve short demo experiences that use different aspects of the VR capabilities. Variety is also offered beyond the experiences themselves by the amount of interactability with objects in the environment that is included. During the 20th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated The Lab for "Immersive Reality Game of the Year".

Virtual Desktop is remote control software for Android-based virtual reality headsets. It allows users to control a PC over a wireless LAN from the headset, including the ability to stream VR games and software.

<i>Job Simulator</i> 2016 video game

Job Simulator: The 2050 Archives, commonly referred to as simply Job Simulator, is a virtual reality simulation video game developed and published by Owlchemy Labs for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Oculus Quest, Oculus Quest 2 and Meta Quest 3, in which players participate in comical approximations of real-world jobs. A sequel, Vacation Simulator, was released in 2019.

Foveated rendering is a rendering technique which uses an eye tracker integrated with a virtual reality headset to reduce the rendering workload by greatly reducing the image quality in the peripheral vision.

OpenXR is an open-source, royalty-free standard for access to virtual reality and augmented reality platforms and devices. It is developed by a working group managed by the Khronos Group consortium. OpenXR was announced by the Khronos Group on February 27, 2017, during GDC 2017. A provisional version of the standard was released on March 18, 2019, to enable developers and implementers to provide feedback on it. On July 29, 2019, OpenXR 1.0 was released to the public by Khronos Group at SIGGRAPH 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virtual reality game</span> Video game played in virtual reality

A virtual reality game or VR games is a video game played on virtual reality (VR) hardware. Most VR games are based on player immersion, typically through head-mounted display unit or headset with stereoscopic displays and one or more controllers.

<i>VRChat</i> Virtual reality social platform

VRChat is an online virtual world platform created by Graham Gaylor and Jesse Joudrey and operated by VRChat, Inc. The platform allows users to interact with others with user-created 3D avatars and worlds. VRChat is designed primarily for use with virtual reality headsets, being available for Microsoft Windows PCs and as a native app for Android-based headsets such as Meta Quest, Pico 4, and HTC Vive XR Elite. It is also usable without VR in a "desktop" mode designed for either a mouse and keyboard or gamepad, and in an Android app for touchscreen devices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pimax</span> Chinese virtual reality company

Pimax is a technology company specializing in virtual reality hardware products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oculus Rift S</span> Virtual reality head-mounted display

Oculus Rift S is a discontinued virtual reality headset co-developed by Lenovo Technologies and Oculus VR. Announced in March 2019 and released that May, it is a successor to the original Oculus Rift CV1 model, with noted changes including a new "inside-out" positional tracking system with cameras embedded inside the headset unit, a higher-resolution display, and a new "halo" head strap.

<i>Half-Life: Alyx</i> 2020 video game

Half-Life: Alyx is a 2020 virtual reality (VR) first-person shooter game developed and published by Valve. It was released for Windows and Linux, with support for most PC-compatible VR headsets. Set five years before Half-Life 2 (2004), players control Alyx Vance on a mission to seize a superweapon belonging to the alien Combine. Like previous Half-Life games, Alyx incorporates combat, puzzles and exploration. Players use VR to interact with the environment and fight enemies, using "gravity gloves" to snatch objects from a distance, similarly to the gravity gun from Half-Life 2.

<i>Aperture Hand Lab</i> 2019 video game

Aperture Hand Lab is a virtual reality (VR) game developed by Canadian studio Cloudhead Games and published by Valve, released for Windows on June 25, 2019. It is a tech demo that showcases the functions of the hand, knuckle, and finger tracking technology used by the Valve Index VR headset. The HTC Vive headset is also supported. The game is set in the Portal universe.

<i>NeosVR</i> Virtual reality application

NeosVR is a free-to-play, massively multiplayer online, virtual reality application created by Solirax. It was released for free on Microsoft Windows via Steam on May 4, 2018, with support for several VR headsets.

VIVE XR Elite is an extended reality (XR) headset developed and manufactured by HTC. Released in February 2023, the headset combines virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) functionalities.

References

  1. ↑ Tucker, Jake (April 30, 2019). "Valve Index Headset: Price, release date, specs for Valve's new VR headset". Trusted Reviews. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  2. ↑ Hollister, Sean (April 30, 2019). "Valve's Index VR headset will officially cost $999, and here's what it's all about". The Verge. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Headset – Valve Index – Upgrade your experience". Valvesoftware.com. Valve. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Valve Index Headset on Steam". Steam Store. Valve. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  5. ↑ Robertson, Adi (March 23, 2020). "HP is teasing a new VR headset in partnership with Valve and Microsoft". The Verge. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Machkovech, Sam (April 30, 2019). "Valve Index reveal: The best of VR's first generation—but is it worth $999?". ArsTechnica . Conde Nast. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  7. ↑ Higham, Michael. "Valve Index Impressions – A Necessary But Incremental Step For PC VR". GameSpot. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  8. ↑ Tiger, Leon (May 20, 2021). "Fun fact, the index's display panels are IPS". Reddit. tigerleon10. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Valve Index vs Vive Pro vs Reverb G2: Do We Have a VR King?". Circuit Stream. Circuit Stream. October 22, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2020. Compared to other headsets on the market, Valve Index currently has the highest field of view (FOV) of 130 degrees (perceived as 120)[ unreliable source? ]
  10. ↑ "Do HTC Vive lighthouse base stations work with the Valve Index headset?". Windows Central. September 4, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  11. ↑ Lang, Ben (April 1, 2019). "Valve Index and Knuckles Pre-orders Confirmed for May 1st, Shipping in June". Road to VR. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Controllers – Valve Index – Upgrade your experience". Valvesoftware.com. Valve. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  13. ↑ Dayus, Oscar (June 22, 2018). "Valve Releases New Portal VR Demo, Moondust". Gamespot. Oscar Dayus. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  14. ↑ Ridgway, Emily. "Ear Speakers - Research, Design, and Evolution". Valve Corporation. Valve Software. Retrieved April 19, 2021. a pair of ultra near-field, full range, off-ear (extra-aural) headphones
  15. ↑ "A Successor To Valve Index VR Headset Could Be In The Works". eXputer.com. August 13, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
  16. ↑ "SuperData XR Quarterly Update". SuperData, a Nielsen Company. Archived from the original on March 8, 2020. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Valve Index out of stock around the globe ahead of Half-Life: Alyx launch". GamesIndustry.biz. January 15, 2020.
  18. ↑ Lang, Ben (January 29, 2020). "Analysis: Monthly-connected VR Headsets on Steam Reach Record High of 1.3 Million".
  19. ↑ Nunneley, Stephany (February 21, 2020). "Coronavirus has affected the production schedule for Valve Index, fewer units to be made available". VG247 . Retrieved February 21, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.