Games/Interactive

NEW YORK — Chinese TV and phone manufacturer LeEco is planning to bring its virtual reality (VR) headsets to the U.S. market in 2017 and is exploring its overall hardware, software and retail VR strategy for the market. That’s according to comments made by Rick Lau, senior director of VR/Android engineering, during an interview at a product showcase event that LeEco held for the media Nov. 9.

The company already brought VR headsets — along with content — to market in China, sold at the company’s web site and its own retail stores, he said. There are three units in all that have been made available there, including a unit that doesn’t require a smartphone.

LeEco’s primary VR headset, Explore VR, was demonstrated at the Nov. 9 event, using two short animated movies. The white and black headset has an attached band that goes over the top of the user’s head with a smartphone dropped into the slot in front, similar to other mobile VR headsets. The headset is known as the Pro 1 in China, where it sells for about $60.

Pricing, launch timing, smartphone compatibility outside of LeEco models, and other details are not available yet for the U.S., as LeEco continues to develop its VR strategy for the market, Lau said. The company is looking for game and other content partners, he added.

LeEco also operates several VR arcades in China, where consumers can use VR headsets from LeEco and the HTC Vive for a small fee, Dustin Wish, senior manager of LeVR, LeEco’s global VR content and platform, said.

The arcades make good sense, in part, because many Chinese consumers can’t afford a “full VR experience” yet, he said, adding they are a good way to drive revenue and increase the amount of VR content available. But he said there’s “no plans” for VR arcades in the U.S. at this time.

Despite the company’s aggressive VR plans, the main product focus for LeEco at the Nov. 19 event was its initial line of four 4K TVs for the U.S. market. LeEco, at a San Francisco news conference last month, also introduced a U.S. video service for its TVs and phones that includes partnerships with content suppliers including A&E Networks, Lionsgate, MGM, Showtime and Vice Media.

LeEco’s 85-inch uMax85ecotv costs $4,999 and comes with a 12-month free membership to the company’s EcoPass entertainment and cloud services platform. The same 12 free months of service are included with the 55-inch and 65-inch Super4 X Series ecotvs, at $899 and $1,399, respectively. The 43-inch, Super4 X Series Eco TV costs $649 and comes with three free months of EcoPass.

The smaller TVs feature HDR 10, while the 85-inch TV features HDR 10 as well as Dolby Vision. There’s not much of a need for Dolby Vision support on most TVs right now due to the lack of content that supports it, Himanshu Mittal, senior product manager of TVs at LeEco, said.