HTC Vive Cosmos Elite

The Cosmos Elite is the most advanced (and expensive) model of HTC’s modular line of Cosmos VR headsets. The standard Cosmos is only $200 less but is actually a very different product.

The core Vive Cosmos headset doesn’t change across the different model tiers. Instead, each comes with a different faceplate. The standard Cosmos model has a six-camera inside-out tracking array.

The Cosmos Play has a less accurate 4-camera tracking system, the Cosmos XR has a stereo-pass through camera pair for AR and so on.

The big difference between the Elite and the other models of Cosmos is that it doesn’t come with inside-out tracking as standard. It IS capable of this, but you’ll need to buy Cosmos controllers, which don’t come in the box as they do with the other models.

Instead, you’ll get a set of Vive Wand controllers and external tracking base stations. The idea behind the Elite model is that external tracking is the most accurate, high-end solution. So “elite” PC VR customers might be more inclined to buy this model. It is about $100 less expensive than the Valve Index and trades blows with it when it comes to specifications.

Having the option for inside-out tracking by buying additional controllers later makes it more flexible than the Index as well. At the same time, I feel the reliance on external tracking in both the Cosmos Elite and Vive Index is quickly becoming an archaic feature.

Most users, even “elite” ones would probably be happy to trade some tracking accuracy for the much more elegant, portable and versatile inside-out solution. That’s the future of VR.

So instead of getting the Cosmos Elite or even the Valve Index, the standard Cosmos, Rift-S and Quest 2 may all be more future proof as an overall package. They are certainly much less trouble to set up.

If, on the other hand, you do want both the option of a permanent room-scale setup with external tracking and the ability to stuff your headset into a bag with your laptop and using inside-out tracking, that’s a niche only the Elite fills at this point in time.