Vive Preorders: HTC's Pricey Virtual Reality Headset On Sale Monday

HTC Vive preorders begin Monday. The virtual reality headset from HTC and Valve is priced at $799 in the U.S., but international pricing will differ. HTC announced the VR headset will include Google's "Tilt Brush" painting simulator as part of the preorder.

The HTC Vive ships with the VR headset, two wireless controllers and two 360-degree tracking and room movement sensors. For managing all of the software, Valve developed SteamVR to keep consumers updated on new features and content. Each headset includes a front-mounted camera and microphone that can be used with Vive Phone Services. In the virtual world, users can answer calls or respond to texts.

HTC previously announced Vive would be bundled with "Job Simulator" and "Fantastic Contraption." In "Job Simulator," players are transported to the future where robots have eliminated the need for human jobs. Because human jobs are obsolete, there's a hilarious misunderstanding of what people did at work in the past. "Fantastic Contraption" puts players in the middle of the world to build new objects. Vive preorders will now be bundled with "Tilt Brush," a painting simulator that lets players create works of art with complete freedom.

The Vive's $799 price tag in the U.S. does not include sales tax. International customers can find the price of HTC's VR system here. Unlike the Oculus Rift preorder, money will be exchanged Monday. Credit card users will have a hold placed on their card when they order the Vive. Paypal users will be charged the total amount at the time of checkout.

The HTC Vive is the second VR headset to announce a ship date and price. Facebook's Oculus Rift announced a price of $599 with units shipping in March. The Rift system consists of a VR headset, sensor and wireless Xbox One controller. The preorder bundle includes "Lucky's Tale" and "EVE Valkyrie." Sony has not announced a price or ship date for its PlayStation VR. Microsoft's Hololens Development Edition is reportedly available for preorder Monday at a price of $3,000 with a ship date of March 30. The Hololens available Monday is not the consumer edition that would be released to the public in the near future.