HTC has released its VR headset iPhone companion app on the App Store, enabling HTC Vive owners to receive real-world notifications from their phone while immersed in virtual reality.

The HTC Vive app brings some of the headset's unique features to iPhone owners for the first time, such as the ability to receive calls, text messages, and calendar reminders within the relative isolation of immersive VR.

HTC Vive app
Notifications forwarded by the app appear momentarily in the headset's HUD, and remain available in the HTC Vive dashboard for later perusal. Third-party app notifications are not currently supported.

In addition to downloading the free app, headset owners must install the HTC Vive client on their PC. At present, the Android app's facility to send preset responses to calls or texts from within the virtual world is not supported in the iOS version.

HTC Vive owners can download the app for iPhone from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Tag: HTC

Top Rated Comments

Keane16 Avatar
97 months ago
VR is going to be so great in a few years. Lower barriers to entry, killer apps, better software. Exciting times ahead.

Good to see this from HTC. Also supported AirPlay on their latest flagship phone.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
1129708 Avatar
97 months ago
When Apple takes graphics seriously enough to put something high-end enough in their machines.
This is the real answer. VR is very susceptible to framerate fluctuation, meaning that you need enough horsepower to maintain max FPS, or you run the risk of getting sick. Obviously this won't effect everyone equally, but at the end of the day, Apple is going to have to care about performance instead of thinness and make a move back to non-laptop parts in their desktop machines.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
1129708 Avatar
97 months ago
The FPS thing is true—but oversimplified by many. It matters for some game types more than others, and "magic numbers" thrown out are somewhat arbitrary. A game where your body holds still is VERY different needs from a game in a vehicle vs (worst-case) a walking game. Likewise, the speed of the action, the need (or not) to turn suddenly, etc. all impact what kind of framerate is truly needed.

FPS does matter, but Macs CAN hold a terrific FPS. Even low-end Macs. It's the same as any game: you balance detail settings against FPS. So, a top-end PC can handle specific VR games and detail levels most if any Macs can't. But not every game needs that kind of detail to be fun. In fact, immersion in a cartoon or Tron-like world can be even more fun than a "sort of almost" uncanny-valley attempt at "realism," which is the best ANY PC can deliver. (For the record, I love bootcamping my Mac and trying the "realistic" VR experiences. But the other visual styles ARE fun too.)

So even your measly first-get MacBook can put out a steady framerate great for VR. Just not for every title. It's up to the game designer whether to target only the high end or not. (Which is applies to PCs too: most PCs cannot handle top-end detail.)

Again, that's why low-cost phone-based VR (when done right) works decently: GPU power is a piece of the puzzle, but it's simply not the the whole story.

Try Proton Pulse on iPhone with Google Cardboard. Then tell me you can't have fun with VR on a Mac :)
It is oversimplified, and you're right, low-end VR like what's been done with phone GPUs is fun to play around with. But when most people are talking about something being VR ready, they're talking about games and more advanced VR such as what we're seeing on the OR and Vive, and that's simply not going to happen with the current level of GPUs in any Apple product, or for the foreseeable future unless they start making performance a priority in some of their lineup.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Mock Header With Dynamic Island

Skipping the iPhone 15 Pro? Here's What's Rumored for iPhone 16 Pro

Friday September 22, 2023 9:29 am PDT by
Are you skipping the iPhone 15 Pro and waiting another year to upgrade? If so, we already have some iPhone 16 Pro rumors for you. Below, we recap new features rumored for the iPhone 16 Pro models so far:Larger displays: The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be equipped with larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays, respectively, according to Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain...
Apple WWDC23 macOS Sonoma hero

macOS Sonoma Launching This Week With These New Features

Sunday September 24, 2023 12:45 pm PDT by
Apple previously announced that macOS Sonoma will be released this Tuesday, September 26. The free software update includes many new features and changes for the Mac, including the five that we have highlighted below. In addition to these five features, we have shared the full release notes for macOS Sonoma below for a complete overview of everything new. Desktop Widgets macOS Sonoma...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 double tap gesture 230912

watchOS 10.1 to Enable Apple Watch's New 'Double Tap' Gesture

Thursday September 21, 2023 12:52 pm PDT by
The new Double Tap gesture for the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be enabled starting with watchOS 10.1, according to Marques Brownlee, host of the popular tech-focused YouTube channel MKBHD. The first beta of watchOS 10.1 will likely be available by next week, and Apple announced that the software update will be released next month. Brownlee shared his impressions...