Oculus Rift vs HTC Vive: What’s the Best VR for Sim Racing?

Oculus Rift vs HTC Vive: What's the Best VR for Sim Racing?
Author Alessio Lorandi
Alessio Lorandi
March 13, 2022

It’s been a few years since virtual reality first hit the mainstream, and in that time, there have been two major players in the VR space: Oculus and Vive.

But when it comes to sim racing, which VR headset is better?

Which one is going to give an immersive driver experience?

Remember that in order to be fast and win online races you’ll want to have high resolution, high FPS and an overall flawless experience.

Having said that, we’ll take a look at the pros and cons of each to see which one comes out on top.

Oculus Rift vs HTC Vive: What's the Best VR for Sim Racing?

We’re going to discuss the following aspects of each one so that you can make an informed decision:

  • Prices
  • Graphics quality
  • Device Compatibility
  • FOV & Realism
  • PC Requirements

So let’s get started with the first comparison aspect, prices.

Prices

There are many different models for each of these VR headsets, and the price will differ depending on the model that you choose.

The Oculus Rift S is the most recent and best Oculus model, and it retails at $399.

The HTC Vive Pro is the most recent and best HTC model, and it currently retails at $799.

As you can see there’s a pretty large price gap between the two, with the Vive Pro being nearly two times more expensive.

That of course comes with great quality and added features as you will see, though Oculus does still have a pretty good headset for those on a budget.

Graphics Quality

When it comes to graphics quality, both headsets offer a great experience, though the Vive Pro does have a slight edge.

It’s got a higher resolution, meaning that you can see more details and it’s less likely to cause driving mistakes.

Moreover, the colors are richer and more accurate, making for a more immersive experience.

Graphics Quality

Finally, the Vive Pro headsets tend to have a slightly wider field of view, meaning that you can see more of the track at once.

On the other hand the Oculus headsets are still very good, and still offer a great VR experience. They’re just not quite as good as the Vive Pro when it comes to graphics quality.

Their resolution is still very high, thanks to the new Oculus Insight Tracking system, and this means that you can see more details in the racing world.

The colors are also very accurate and intense, making the race tracks very realistic to drive.

Device Compatibility

Both the headsets are compatible with SteamVR which is fundamental for running the majority of racing games in VR (Assetto Corsa, ACC, iRacing, rFactor 2, AMS 2 etc…).

That’s great news because it means that there will lots of different racing games to choose from with your new VR headsets.

Device Compatibility

The other great thing is that both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive Pro are backwards compatible with all the games that were released for the original Rift and Vive.

This is important because it means that if you already own a Rift or Vive, you can still use it with your new headset.

FOV & Realism

The field of view (FOV) is basically how much of the track you can see at any given time.

Higher values mean that you can see much more from the track, and that is particularly important for racing games as you need to be aware of what’s going on around you.

The Vive Pro has a pretty big advantage here because it offers around 120 degrees of FOV available, while the Oculus Rift is at around 95 t0 100 degrees.

That’s a pretty staggering difference since it means that with the Vive Pro you can see up to 20% more of the track and cars surrounding you.

FOV & Realism

This is very important for making quick decisions, and it also helps with the sense of immersion.

Racing games are all about realism, and the Vive Pro headsets manage to offer a more realistic experience than the Oculus Rift.

PC Requirements

When it comes to having a powerful PC, the Vive Pro is a bit more demanding than the Oculus Rift.

The Vive Pro needs a machine that has a very powerful Graphics card (GPU) as well as a PC processor (CPU) to really get the most out of it.

The Oculus Rift on the other hand can be used with a wider range of less-performing computers, as long as they meet the minimum requirements.

This is a bit of a downside to the Vive Pro, as it means that you need a more powerful PC to be able to use it.

PC Requirements

However, if you do have a powerful PC then the Vive Pro is definitely the headset to go for.

What’s the best VR headset for sim racing?

The HTC Vive Pro is the best VR headset for sim racing thanks to its higher resolution, wider field of view, and more accurate colors. It also works with all the major sim racing games thanks to its compatibility with SteamVR.

However, it does require a more powerful PC to run and it’s nearly twice more expensive than the Oculus Rift.

Conclusion

So here were some of the main differences between the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive Pro.

Both headsets are great for racing games, but the Vive Pro has a bit of an edge when it comes to graphics quality, FOV and realism.

The Oculus Rift is a bit less demanding in terms of PC requirements, but it’s still a great headset for VR racing.

So, what would you pick? 🙂

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About the autor

Alessio Lorandi

Alessio has been involved at the highest levels in racing since the age of 5 (2003). He won a CIK-FIA World Championship in 2013 and then raced in F3, F2, and finally GT3s before now dedicating himself to SOLOX. He’s now on a mission to help thousands of sim racers around the world achieve their fullest potential through his ACC setups.

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