Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality has been around for a while now, but the tech still feels like it has a long way to go. HTC has focused on VR for some time now and their product lineup and service offerings show dedication to it. Here I review the HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite.
Before you continue reading, note that the HTC VR lineup naming is a bit confusing. There is a device called the HTV VIVE, another called the HTC VIVE Cosmos and yet another called HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite. This review is for the HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite. I will be referring to it as the Cosmos Elite or VIVE Cosmos Elite in order to compare it with the Cosmos and the base VIVE. Hope this helps clarify any possible confusion.
Requirements
Before we get into the actual review, first let’s address the elephant in the review. To run any VR experience worth your time, you need to first have a computer that can run it. Yes the Elite Cosmos itself costs AED 4,299 (~$1,170), but to truly get the most out of your money, you need to spend another AED 7,000 to AED 15,000 (~ $ 1,900 to $ 4,000) on a computer that can really get the most out of the VR experience.
For our review the lovely people at MSI provided us with one of their laptops, the MSI GE66 Raider, which was both VR ready and a delight to use, but more on that later.
Going back to the elephant, hopefully you have a room big enough so that an elephant can actually stand in it. While this is not a deal breaker, to truly enjoy the experience you should have a 3.5m x 3.5m space available. The reason it’s not a deal breaker, is because the VIVE actually has a “standing” setup, which allows you to experience VR by just standing in one place. But I ask you, is that truly immersive?
Both of these things are not a direct issue caused by HTC or the VIVE, but it’s something you must know before getting into VR. You can’t simply buy a VIVE, get home and start playing.
Design & Build
The Cosmos Elite continues with HTC’s VR design language, and it even includes a few components from other models. Since the Cosmos Elite is a generational upgrade, this makes sense.
The headset comes with a bunch of padding all around. For your face, for your forehead, the back of your head and a band for the top of your head. The cushions help keep the headset snug on your face without putting excessive pressure.
The overall look of the headset is almost a merge of the regular VIVE and the Cosmos. While the Cosmos looks a bit more modern the Elite doesn’t look all that bad. Honestly, it’s not about how it looks on the outside, but how it makes things look from the inside.
With the Cosmos Elite you also get the inbuilt headphones, which are removable. These sound great and very comfortable to use as they rest on your ears without enclosing them. However, for daily use I would probably remove them and put in a pair of noise cancelling headphones for best of sound and immersion.
The controllers are the tried and tested VIVE controllers, which is far removed from the more modern looking Cosmos controllers. The most disappointing thing about these controllers is that they charge via Micro-USB, not a deal breaker, but USB-C should be standard at this point, maybe in the next update.
Finally the base station are also really well made. They look the same as those of the VIVE, while the Cosmos has more modern looking base stations.
If you notice there is a strange disconnect between the Cosmos and the Cosmos Elite, as the Cosmos looks more modern and different frmo the VIVE, while the Cosmos Elite looks like the VIVE’s big brother with less similarities to the Cosmos. Still, I would probably pick the Elite, with the included base station and face plate it turns out to be “better value”.
In the Box
The HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite has loads of things in the box.
- 2x Base Stations
- 2x Base Station Power Adapters
- 2x Base Station Wall Mounts
- 1x Connector
- 1x MiniDisplay to DisplayPort Adapter
- 1x VIVE Cosmos Elite Headset (with the cable attached)
- 1x Headset Power Adapter
- 2x Controllers
- 2x USB Charging Power Adapters
- 2x USB-A to Micro-USB wires
That’s 16 things in the box, not counting all the guides and literature etc. When you open the box it actually comes with a 5 step guide on what is in the box.
The thing that’s quite overwhelming is that you get 5 power adapters. 3 of which are permanent fixtures in the system. You really need to be convinced you want to do VR so as to setup a physical space in your house for it.
Setup
The HTV VIVE system with its base station system always requires a bit of setup. There are two parts to the setup, hardware and software.
This doesn’t mean that it is hard, lengthy or complicated. HTC has gone to great lengths to make the experience quick, easy and even enjoyable.
Of course you also need to setup your computer, in our case we had the MSI GE66 Raider, which simply required to be turned on, plugged in and it was ready to run some VR (after installing Steam, Viveport and any updates).
When you start the VIVE Setup guide, it will run you through every single step you need to do in order to get the most out of the system. From the hardware setup to the software setup.
In my experience it is best to go through the setup guide step by step and take your time with it. If you have any prior experience, then you can go ahead and clear up the space, mount the base stations and then follow along with the setup process which then becomes quick.
Before you begin, identify the room/space where you will be fixing up the VR system. Then you have the option to use the included wall mounts to permanently fix the base stations to the wall. This is probably the best case scenario as then you don’t have strangely positioned furniture or tripods that need to be moved around when guests come over.
In my case, I use one tripod positioned precariously on my sofa with one base station, while the other base station was put on a tiny tripod on one of my shelves. This meant that every time I was done playing, I had to remove the tripod from the sofa. Ideally I would have wall mounted one base station while the other was quite well concealed in the shelf.
Note, you do need to give the base stations room to breath as they can get hot and need to vent. Also, remember to keep the controllers charged.
Not counting the actual time for putting up the wall mounts, the actual setup takes around 20-30 minutes all in all.
After doing the first two parts and setting up your computer, the rest of the setup takes less than 3 minutes and you are good to go. Which includes, calibration of the entire system and the usable/explorable space.
Yes you might think it’s cumbersome, but honestly you set it up once, and then you’re done. So take your time here so you can enjoy your Cosmos Elite for months (if not years) to come.
Comfort and Control
The VIVE Cosmos Elite has a very comfortable headset, you can adjust it enough to fit your head perfectly.
It can get a bit heavy and hot over time but overall it is quite comfortable. Many people tried this headset from all genders, sizes, head shapes and types of hair. Everyone got comfortable with the headset and eventually forgot it was even on them.
Even if you wear glasses, like me, the headset feels quite comfortable. My biggest issue was that my glasses would fog up. For this I had to stop playing, bring my body temperature down, crank up the air conditioner and resume playing after a few minutes. I did however end up playing without my glasses as that was just much more comfortable. This did mean I lost some clarity but it was still good enough for me.
The controllers are very good as well. They fit well in the hand and have enough buttons to fulfil the requirements of all the games. The side button was the only one that seemed a bit difficult for some people to use, and for those people with small hands might find the overall fit a bit cumbersome.
Other than that, the trigger is really good and the quality of the other buttons is great with just the right amount of tactile feel. The vibration motors in the controllers are also good enough.
The controllers ran for about 3 days of testing after which they needed to be recharged, which in my opinion is sufficient. I just wish they charged via USB-C.
Gameplay
I don’t know about you, but I would get a VR system for it’s real world applications in engineering, science and biology… who am I kidding, I just wanna shoot some zombies in 3 dimensions and hurl some birds at green pigs.
Before we talk about the playing experience, let’s talk about the game availability. The best place to get games for VR is Steam. It has a huge library and most developers are publishing directly on Steam. However, HTC has their own library called Viveport, where you can either purchase individual games or subscribe to their Infinity membership. This gives you unlimited access to their entire game library, which is no slouch.
It is missing some top VR titles like Half-Life Alyx and Beat Saber.
Here are a list of games we tried out with the VIVE Cosmos Elite:
- Richie’s Plank Experience
- Arizona Sunshine
- Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs
- Half-Life Alyx
We also tried out the following apps:
- Tilt Brush by Google
- Mona Lisa: Beyond the Glass
My first VR outing was with Richie’s Plank Experience many years ago. It is possible the best, simplest and most basic way to introduce someone to VR, building your way up to the high-fidelity world of Half-Life Alyx.
However, one of the most fun games we played was Angry Birds which allows you to relax and really enjoy the cartoonish world that VR can offer. The game is good for people of all ages, from kids to people 60+. And yes we tried it with that wide range of people.
They all loved playing with the HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite. The experience is quite immersive. Even though you know you are in a game, your mind plays tricks on you in a way that’s bizarre. Thanks to the provided headphones, bringing the audio to the experience adds an extra level of depth.
The tracking of the Cosmos Elite was perfect, the movement felt fluid and things in your view seemed to be at the right position in the real world. At no point did you feel like it was not moving correctly.
While trying to take accurate aim with guns, it did feel like the gun was moving around more than it should, but that was a minor issue which, for me, didn’t take away from the gameplay.
As a casual gamer and tech enthusiast, I knew I would love the experience, and the HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite did not disappoint. What was more impressive was when I tried the system on the tech-challenged or people who are 60+ who think it’s all for kids, they lost their reality and really got into the game. To the point where they played for a few hours, losing track of time. This to me was the real test of the Cosmos Elite.
I wouldn’t expect them to set-up the system, but once it is in place, they intuitively understood the “new world” they were in and started to enjoy the games/apps presented to them.
The gameplay, of-course, isn’t possible without the help of a great computer that can handle VR. Thankfully the MSI GE66 Raider that was sent to us was the perfect companion. MSI is one of HTC certified brands that make VR ready computers which are not only great at VR but also great at gaming in general.
The model we got has the Intel i7-10750H and Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 with 16GB of RAM. While having the i9 and a RTX 2080 would have been preferred, this laptop actually nailed everything we threw at it.
The only place where it started showing a bit of strain was while playing Half-Life and the TV was connected. The moment you unplug the TV, put the laptop on gaming mode and set the fans ablaze, the laptop suddenly comes alive and you are raring to go.
For all the other games, the laptop was fine even with the TV on and on it’s normal setting. However we noticed better framerates when we put the fans on high, even if we didn’t put the laptop into gaming mode. Truly a beast of a laptop.
Just keep in mind, you do need to keep ample space around the laptop while gaming so that it can push out all the heat, because it does get hot. THankfully the fans do a brilliant job of airing out the system and dissipating the heat.
You can read the full review here: https://www.absolutegeeks.com/article/reviews/laptops-reviews/msi-ge66-raider-impressions-of-a-vr-ready-laptop/
VR Considerations
There are a few caveats when it comes to playing VR, and I don’t think it has to do with the VIVE Cosmos Elite per say, but it’s worth pointing out.
Firstly, I suffer from motion sickness, which means games like Richie’s Plank Experience, where you get to fly around, made me extremely giddy. I could play it once per day, but anything beyond that and I would not be able to play anything more without lying down for a while. Thankfully the motion sickness doesn’t get triggered as much by the other games, allowing me to play for a few hours without feeling nauseous. However, that doesn’t mean I could play as long as I could play a regular console game. If you suffer from even the mildest of motion sickness you should definitely try before you buy.
Secondly, the headset while it is actually pretty light, after playing for a while it can seem a bit heavy. Along with the weight, the cushions can also make the system a bit hotter than you would like. But honestly if you are immersed enough you won’t feel the headset and you can crank up the AC or put a fan on to not sweat or feel hot.
Lastly, The headset has a wired connection to the laptop. The wire can get entangled in your leg and while most people are able to navigate it safely, the wire takes away from the experience a bit. While HTC has a wireless adapter for all the various products, at the time of writing this review the wireless adapter for the Cosmos and Cosmos Elite is not out. Additionally, adding an adapter will add to the weight, while I haven’t tried it, I would be weary of that. Still a wireless adapter is a must. You can expect that to cost around AED 1,500 based on the adapters available for the other VIVE systems.
Price
Getting into VR is an excessive affair. You can’t expect to truly enjoy the experience without spending on a good laptop in addition to the Cosmos Elite.
Here is the cost breakdown:
HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite: AED 4,299
MSI GE66 Raider: ~ AED 7,500 for our configuration
All in you are looking at about: AED 11,800 AED to get a future proof, smooth running VR system.
Thought we would spring an additional AED 2,500 to get the RTX 2080 with 32GB RAM, bringing the total up to AED 14,300.
Verdict
The HTC VIVE Cosmos Elite is an amazing VR experience. The initial setup is a very small hurdle to overcome in order to truly enjoy VR at home. Paired with the amazing MSI GE66 Raider you can’t go wrong. We highly recommend jumping into VR with this if you have the space and the cash.
Our only suggestion is, try it out before you buy it.
