Could 5G streaming be the future of VR entertainment?
With the 2019 Mobile World Congress currently underway in Barcelona, Spain, HTC has been busying themselves with a slew of exciting announcements and demonstrations ranging from a smartphone aimed at cryptocurrency fanatics, to their HTC Vive Focus Plus VR headset.
Yesterday, the company used MWC’s stage to reveal yet another new product, the HTC 5G Hub – a combination smart hub/mobile hotspot that brings 5G streaming to up to 20 connected devices. Not only that, but the device also serves as a digital assistant, as well as a media streaming platform with corporate VPN configuration.
HTC’s potential cloud-based VR network / Image Credit: HTC
Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 with Android 9 Pie support, the mobile hotspots 5G infrastructure is capable of streaming high-quality 4K video and gaming content to multiple devices simultaneously. The service is so strong in fact, HTC claims the infrastructure will soon provide support for low-latency cloud-based VR, allowing users to stream their favorite AAA experiences and games to their Vive headsets without the need of a PC, cables, or smartphone device.
Take a look a the full specs below:
- DISPLAY: 5.0 inch HD capacitive touch screen (720×1280 pixels).
- CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Octacore, with Snapdragon X50 5G modem.
- CONNECTIVITY: Bluetooth 5.0 Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ad. Up to 20 Wi-Fi connections.
- SIZE: 129mm(length) x 100mm(width) x 43mm(edge).
- BATTERY: Capacity: 7,660 mAh. DC charging (12V/2.5A). USB-C (QC 3.0 & PD 9V/2A).
- WEIGHT: 340g.
- PLATFORM: ANdroid 9.0 with HTC Sense.
- MEMORY: RAM: 4GB / ROM: 32GB. Extended Memory: microSD (up to 512GB) Flex Storage.
- SENSOR: Motion G-sensor.
HTC’s potential cloud-based VR network / Image Credit: HTC
With major video game corporations such as Nintendo and Microsoft having already begun experimenting with high-quality game streaming, it comes as no surprise VR providers would begin exploring this technology as well.
Ditching the need of an expensive PC and cumbersome cables would no doubt make VR a more approachable platform, and the ability to connect multiple headsets at once would certainly make an impression with location-based VR providers.
