HTC Vive Pre

The front of the headset is covered with 32 individual motion sensors, along with a front-facing video camera for detecting obstacles.

The Vive Pre comes in a comprehensive package that includes everything except the PC needed to run it. Inside the box you get the VR headset, two motion controllers, two base stations for setting up the VR area, a link box that connects the necessary hardware to your PC, and a variety of cables and power supplies to get everything up and running.

A bundle of cables run over the top strap and down behind your head from the display, trailing in a very long (at least 10 feet) wire that terminates in HDMI, USB, and power connectors. A fourth connector, a 3.5mm port for headphones, ends just behind the back of your head instead of following the cable.

Ninja Trainer Vive is basically a VR version of Fruit Ninja, only much simpler. There is only a basic attack mode where the game throws fruit and bombs at you, and you have to slash at them with your sword, which is the motion controller.

I played nearly a full 18 holes of miniature golf in the game Cloudlands. The Vive Pre put me in the middle of a graphically simple fantasy minigolf course, turning one of the motion controllers into a golf club.

The triple cable of the headset connects to a small link box. It's a small, black rectangle with curved sides, almost identical in size and shape to the PlayStation TV. One side of the link box plugs into the headset, and is denoted by orange-ringed ports. The other side of the link box connects to your computer and the included power adapter, with black ports.

The Vive Pre includes two motion controllers, designed to offer precision and flexibility of control similar to human hands.

Valve and HTC promote the Vive as whole-room virtual reality, which means that in theory you can walk around a designated space as a virtual world rather than being confined to a single sitting or standing position. This virtual space is defined with the two included base stations, which are black cubes filled with sensors and emitters to track the position of both the headset and the motion controllers.

The system uses a 2,160-by-1,200 LCD with a 90Hz refresh rate to produce a high-definition picture for each eye.

A multi-purpose button sits on the left side of the headset, and is primarily used for setup rather than controlling your virtual experience. An indicator LED sits next to the button, and glows white when the Vive is working correctly and displaying VR content.