HTC and HP have teamed up to try and make the Vive virtual reality system a little more accessible. Now, if you’re in the market for a VR-ready PC, you can soon buy a HP Envy desktop and the full Vive package for $1,499. The Vive normally retails for $800, and a VR-ready PC costs around $800 to $1,000, so you'll save a couple hundred dollars here. Over time, the cost of VR should continue to decrease as the hardware and software is optimized to work with less powerful machines.

The HP Envy — the full product name is the HP Envy 750-415VHR — comes with a Radeon RX 480 graphics card, 8GB of memory, and a dual drive with 128GB of flash store and 1TB of hard drive space. You’ll also get a keyboard and a mouse, meaning the only other thing you’ll need to purchase is a monitor, in the event you don’t already own one. You’ll also get two free games with the bundle: theBlu: Encounter by developer Wevr and The Lab by HTC partner Valve. HTC says the bundle will be available through its website "this holiday season," which could mean any point in the next few months.

A VR-ready PC and a top-of-the-line headset is still an expensive purchase

While this is a more consumer-friendly price than the Vive’s initial cost of entry, it still goes without saying that VR is an expensive pursuit. Not only will you have to shell out for all this gear, but you’ll have to make sure you have the right living room or bedroom space to set up the Vive and its intricate Lighthouse tracking system. Still, if there were ever a time to get yourself a new PC, that time would appear to now.