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Vive Focus 3 Eye Tracker

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Vive Focus 3 Eye Tracker
Basic Info
VR/AR Virtual Reality
Type Eye-tracking accessory
Subtype Add-on module
Platform HTC Vive Focus 3
Creator HTC
Developer HTC (VIVE)
Manufacturer HTC
Announcement Date September 2022
Release Date September 2022
Price US$249
Website https://business.vive.com/us/product/vive-focus-3-eye-tracker/
Versions Vive Focus 3 Eye Tracker
Requires HTC Vive Focus 3 headset
Predecessor N/A
Successor N/A
System
Operating System N/A
Chipset N/A
CPU N/A
GPU N/A
Storage
Storage N/A
Memory N/A
SD Card Slot No
Display
Display N/A
Resolution N/A
Refresh Rate N/A
Image
Field of View N/A
Horizontal FoV N/A
Vertical FoV N/A
Foveated Rendering Supports dynamic foveated rendering
Optics
Optics N/A
Ocularity N/A
IPD Range Compatible with the headset's IPD adjustment range
Adjustable Diopter N/A
Passthrough N/A
Tracking
Tracking Optical eye tracking (two 60 Hz IR cameras with IR illuminators)
Base Stations N/A
Eye Tracking Yes (120 Hz gaze data output; 0.5-1.1 degree accuracy after 9-point calibration)
Face Tracking No
Hand Tracking N/A
Body Tracking N/A
Rotational Tracking N/A
Positional Tracking N/A
Audio
Audio N/A
Microphone N/A
Camera Two infrared eye-tracking cameras
Connectivity
Connectivity Magnetic mount, USB Type-C
Ports USB Type-C
WiFi N/A
Bluetooth N/A
Power Powered by host headset via USB-C
Battery Capacity N/A
Battery Life N/A
Charge Time N/A
Device
Dimensions N/A
Weight 54 g (plus or minus 3 g)
Material Plastic housing
Headstrap N/A
Haptics N/A
Color Black
Sensors Two IR cameras, IR illuminators
Input N/A
Compliance Compatible with VIVE Wave SDK, OpenXR

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The Vive Focus 3 Eye Tracker is an aftermarket eye tracking accessory developed by HTC for its Vive Focus 3 standalone virtual reality headset. Announced in September 2022 at a price of US$249, the module attaches magnetically inside the headset and adds dual infrared eye-tracking cameras, enabling gaze tracking, foveated rendering, and richer social and analytics applications on a headset that originally shipped without eye tracking. It launched alongside a companion Vive Focus 3 Facial Tracker and arrived several weeks before Meta unveiled the Quest Pro, its first consumer headset with built-in eye and face tracking.[1][2][3]

The accessory is aimed primarily at the enterprise and research markets that the Vive Focus 3 itself targets, where eye tracking is used for training analytics, attention heatmaps, accessibility, and performance optimization. Because the host headset is sold mainly through HTC's VIVE Business channel, the Eye Tracker is positioned as a modular upgrade rather than a consumer gaming peripheral.[1][4]

Background

The Vive Focus 3 is a standalone enterprise VR headset that HTC announced in May 2021. It pairs a Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 processor with high-resolution LCD panels and a magnesium-alloy frame, and it shipped at roughly US$1,300 without any eye- or face-tracking hardware.[5] HTC had previously built eye tracking directly into the PC-tethered Vive Pro Eye in 2019, so the company already had experience with the technology, but the Focus 3 launched without it to keep cost and weight down.[1]

In September 2022 HTC addressed that gap by releasing two snap-in modules for the Focus 3: the Eye Tracker and a separate Facial Tracker. Rather than requiring a new headset revision, both add-ons clip into the existing hardware, an approach HTC framed as letting Focus 3 owners upgrade their fleets incrementally.[2][3] The timing drew attention because Meta unveiled the eye- and face-tracking Quest Pro in October 2022; commentators noted that HTC's modular trackers let the Focus 3 match those input capabilities without buyers replacing their headsets.[2][1]

Design and hardware

The Eye Tracker is a lightweight module that mounts magnetically inside the Vive Focus 3, sitting behind the facial gasket and in front of the lenses. HTC designed it so that installation does not disturb the headset's weight balance or block its mechanical interpupillary distance (IPD) adjustment, allowing users to keep adjusting lens spacing after the tracker is fitted. The module connects to the headset through a USB Type-C interface and is powered by the host device, so it carries no battery of its own.[1][2][6]

The tracker uses two infrared cameras, each operating at 60 Hz, surrounded by infrared illuminators that light the eyes so the cameras can resolve the pupil and reflections regardless of ambient lighting. The combined system outputs gaze data at 120 Hz. HTC rates tracking accuracy at 0.5 to 1.1 degrees after a 9-point calibration routine. The module weighs 54 grams, with a stated tolerance of plus or minus 3 grams.[6][2][7]

Specification Detail
Manufacturer HTC (VIVE)
Host headset Vive Focus 3
Announced September 2022
Launch price US$249
Cameras Two infrared cameras at 60 Hz, with IR illuminators
Gaze data output rate 120 Hz
Accuracy 0.5-1.1 degrees (after 9-point calibration)
Calibration 9-point
Data captured Gaze origin and direction, pupil size and position, eye openness
Foveated rendering Supported (dynamic foveated rendering)
Attachment Magnetic, internal mount
Connector USB Type-C
Power Drawn from the headset
Weight 54 g (plus or minus 3 g)
SDK support VIVE Wave SDK, OpenXR, with Unity, Unreal Engine, and Native development

Tracking data and features

The Eye Tracker reports a range of per-eye measurements rather than a single gaze point. According to HTC and contemporary coverage, it captures gaze origin and direction, pupil size and position, and eye openness, the last of which allows applications to detect blinks and winks. These outputs let developers build attention analytics, gaze-based interaction, expressive avatars, and accessibility features such as look-to-select input.[2][1][6]

A central use case is foveated rendering. By knowing where the wearer is looking, the headset can render the small foveal region at full resolution while reducing detail in the periphery, lowering the Snapdragon XR2's GPU load and freeing headroom for higher fidelity or steadier frame rates. HTC documents this as dynamic foveated rendering exposed through its developer SDK.[7][8]

Software and developer support

HTC exposes the Eye Tracker to developers primarily through the VIVE Wave software development kit, the native SDK for its standalone headsets, with support extended to the OpenXR standard so that applications can read gaze data through cross-vendor extensions. The company lists Unity, Unreal Engine, and native development as supported environments. On the PC-tethered side of HTC's ecosystem, eye- and face-tracking integrations are also associated with the VIVE SRanipal SDK, and HTC has published migration guidance for developers moving eye-tracking projects from the older Vive Pro Eye to the Focus 3 using Unity and OpenXR.[2][8][9]

Relationship to the Facial Tracker

The Eye Tracker was launched in tandem with the Vive Focus 3 Facial Tracker, a separate US$99 module that mounts on the front underside of the headset and uses a single 60 Hz wide-angle camera to read lower-face movement. The Facial Tracker captures 38 blend shapes spanning the lips, jaw, cheeks, chin, teeth, and tongue, enabling lip-synced avatars and facial expression capture. The two accessories are independent: a Focus 3 owner can fit one, the other, or both, with the Facial Tracker connecting through a separate USB Type-C port. Used together they give the Focus 3 a combination of eye and face tracking comparable to what Meta later integrated into the Quest Pro.[2][1][3]

Reception

Coverage of the Eye Tracker focused on its modular, retrofit approach and its enterprise positioning. Outlets including Road to VR, UploadVR, and Engadget noted that the add-ons let existing Focus 3 customers gain eye and face tracking without replacing their headsets, and several framed the launch in the context of the imminent Quest Pro, observing that HTC was not simply playing catch-up given its earlier eye-tracking work on the Vive Pro Eye.[1][2][3] Reviewers generally treated the trackers as practical, business-oriented upgrades rather than mass-market consumer features, consistent with the Focus 3's own enterprise focus.[4]

HTC continued to develop eye tracking for its standalone line after the Focus 3 add-ons. The later Vive Focus Vision, announced in 2024, integrated eye tracking directly into the headset rather than relying on a separate module, reflecting a broader industry shift toward building the sensors in by default.[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named rtvr
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named uploadvr
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named engadget
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named xda
  5. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named rtvr-focus3
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named vrc
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named knoxlabs
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named vive-dev
  9. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named vive-openxr
  10. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named rtvr-vision
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