HTC VIVE vs Meta Oculus Rift

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

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VIVE compared with Oculus Rift

	HTCVIVE	MetaOculus Rift
Overview
Released
Released	April 2016	March 2016
Display
Resolution per eye
Resolution per eye	1080 × 1200	1080 × 1200
Panel
Panel	OLED	OLED
Refresh rate
Refresh rate	90 Hz	90 Hz
Display details
Display details	Dual 3.6-inch AMOLED displays; 1080 × 1200 per eye at 90 Hz. HTC's stated 110° field of view has no specified axis.	Two OLED displays; 1080 × 1200 per eye at 90 Hz. Physical display specifications from Meta's Rift developer overview.
Lenses
Lenses	Fresnel lenses (PC Gamer); separate eye-relief adjustment	Hybrid Fresnel lenses (Tom's Hardware); no manufacturer horizontal field-of-view figure used
Lens spacing (IPD)
Lens spacing (IPD)	Physical lens-spacing knob; 60.2–74.5 mm range reported by Ars Technica	Physical lens and display spacing adjustment, 58–72 mm (Tom's Hardware); Meta confirms adjustable lens distance
Tracking and input
Eye tracking
Eye tracking	No	No
Hand tracking
Hand tracking	Yes	No
Controllers in the box
Controllers in the box	Yes	Yes
Colour passthrough
Colour passthrough	Yes	No
Sensors
Sensors	SteamVR Lighthouse tracking with two external base stations; seated, standing and room-scale use. Later VIVE Hand Tracking SDK supports controller-free skeleton tracking in compatible apps; its 3D print mode is not supported on original VIVE. No built-in eye tracking.	Constellation external camera tracking of infrared LEDs on the headset; six degrees of freedom. Launch package has one sensor, with additional sensors needed for broader room-scale coverage (Tom's Hardware). No eye tracking or controller-free hand tracking.
Controllers
Controllers	Two wireless tracked wands with trackpads, grip buttons, dual-stage triggers and haptic feedback; Micro-USB charging. Controller battery life is separate from the PC-powered headset.	Original March 2016 package includes Xbox One controller and Oculus Remote; Touch motion controllers launched separately on 6 December 2016. Later retail bundles may differ.
Passthrough
Passthrough	Single front camera; SteamVR offers boundary outlines or a small full-colour live view (Ars Technica)	No built-in passthrough camera (Tom's Hardware)
Performance
Works
Works	Needs a PC or console	Needs a PC or console
Connections
Connections	PC connection through powered link box; HDMI 1.4 or DisplayPort 1.2 and USB 2.0 or newer. Original tether combines HDMI, USB and power (Ars Technica).	Compatible PC required; HDMI 1.3 and USB connections, with external tracking sensors also connected over USB. Meta specifies a 4 m headset cable and a minimum of two USB 3.0 connections; additional tracking sensors can use USB 2.0.
Design
Battery
Battery	None (powered by a PC or console)	None (powered by a PC or console)
Weight (headset)
Weight (headset)	555 g	470 g (better)
Audio
Audio	Integrated microphone, 3.5 mm headphone connection and separate earbuds; original headset has no integrated headphones. Deluxe Audio Strap is a separate later accessory.	Integrated microphone and removable on-ear headphones; no headset audio passthrough socket for replacement headphones (Tom's Hardware)
Strap
Strap	Adjustable fabric straps; original launch headset is 555 g without cables according to Ars Technica. Later hardware revisions may differ.	Three-point adjustable strap with spring-loaded side arms; 470 g excluding the detachable cable, weighed by Tom's Hardware and reported as matching Oculus's specification. WIRED measured 495 g without stating whether its cable was excluded.
In the box
In the box	Headset, two controllers, two base stations, link box, tether, earbuds, cables, chargers and mounting accessories; gaming PC separate	Launch package has headset with headphones and microphone, one sensor, Xbox One controller and Oculus Remote; PC and Touch controllers separate