This High Tech Neckband Is The Ultimate Way To Play Starfield

The first time I tried the Viture XR glasses I was blown away by the technology. As a frequent reviewer of tech, I’m often underwhelmed by devices that overpromise, but the Viture glasses are the real deal. The experience they offer for playing games and streaming is truly transformative. Wearing these glasses is like having a movie theater strapped to your face. It’s immersive, flexible, and just plain cool. No flight has been the same since I got these glasses, and I wish I never had to take them off.

In the months since I reviewed the glasses, though, limitations have started to cause some friction. It’s great that they don’t have their own battery – once less thing for me to worry about charging – but they do put a big strain on the battery of whatever they’re plugged into, like my tablet or Steam Deck. The dock helps with that, but even with the mounting bracket it can be quite cumbersome to deal with all the extra cables and bulk that introduces. The fact that you can’t even use the glasses with the Switch is a bit annoying and makes the setup a lot less portable, and I can’t use the glasses with my phone at all, since Pixel devices don’t support video out. It’s also difficult to navigate menus on a tablet or phone while wearing the glasses, so I have to take them off more than I’d like. There’s a bunch of little things that have started to pile up that make the user experience less than ideal. The neckband fixes virtually all of those problems.

The Viture Neckband is a smart device you wear around your neck that powers the XR glasses. Think of it like a Chromecast or an Apple TV that you can wear, but with a few unique features that make the glasses ever better. The neckband runs an Android-based OS, so alongside your basic streaming apps like Netflix, Max, and Disney+, you have access to cloud gaming services like Game Pass, Geforce Now, and PlayStation Remote play. You can connect any bluetooth controller to the neckband wirelessly and stream games directly to the glasses.

The neckband eliminates the need to use your own devices to power the glasses. You don’t have to stream from your phone or run a long cable to it that drains your battery. The neckband attaches to the glasses with a short, unobtrusive cable that you’ll forget even exists once the glasses are on. With a controller in hand I’ve streamed hours of games on Game Pass while lying in bed, looking at a giant 120’ screen on my ceiling. This neckband makes this compact, portable system even more easy to use and travel with. This is how I’ll be spending a majority of my time in Starfield next month, no matter whether I’m traveling for work or chilling at home. It’s fittingly futuristic, but more importantly, makes playing games easier and more comfortable too.

The neckband has a built-in remote, which took me some time to get used to. The navigation buttons were oriented incorrectly for my brain, and there’s a lot of buttons you have to memorize, including some with different functions depending on how many times you tap them. The menu lets you change the direction of the buttons, thankfully, but it’d be nice if some of the shortcuts were different shapes, just to make it easier to remember what does what.

There’s an internal fan next to the battery that will keep it cool and extend your watch time, but it’s pretty close to your face, so it’s pretty loud. You can manually lower the speed of the fans to make them quieter, but this isn’t recommended for gaming. I tended to turn the volume of my games up to compensate for the fan noise. It’s not a deal breaker, but it’s definitely noticeable.

There’s also no audio jack, so you’ll have to connect bluetooth headphones if you’re using the glasses out in public, like on a plane. I use the Razer Hammerhead True Wireless Pros, and I haven’t noticed any additional battery drain from the bluetooth connection. It may even be more energy efficient than using the built-in speakers.

Speaking of battery life, you’re only going to get about three hours from the neckband, which isn’t ideal for long trips. Luckily, the carrying case is also a 7,680mAh power bank, which charges the neckband while they’re stored. It even has passthrough charging, so you can plug the neckband into an outlet, the charging dock, or the carrying case and continue watching or playing while it charges. With a full charge, I expect the case and the dock together can keep the glasses powered for at least ten hours, if not longer.

With such a big battery inside, the case is fairly bulky, and there’s no way to fit the glasses in it. For a portable device, it would be nice to have an all-in-one way to carry it around. Between the neckband case, the glasses case, and the charging dock, half my travel bag is filled up with Viture devices – and that’s before I pack my Stitch and/or Steam Deck. Still, it’s as portable of a setup as I can imagine having, at least until batteries get a lot smaller.

The Viture neckband is sold as a bundle with the XR glasses in the Cloud Pack, or separately for $179. Having used the glasses with and without the neckband, I would consider it an essential accessory. It’s a cleaner setup with fewer dangling cables that allows you to navigate menus and select your media without ever having to take the glasses off. It’s great for streaming games through remote play or Game Pass, and thanks to the built-in charger in the case, has an impressively long battery life. I’ve dreamed of having smart glasses like this for so long, and Viture has delivered a thoughtfully designed package that is easy to use, and looks amazing.