HTC is ramping up the hype ahead of next week's ViveCon 2021 by releasing more trailers for its next virtual reality headset. The company is sending out promotional emails containing glimpses of what could be its next VR product for the masses.

HTC already has three strong lineups of VR devices aimed at consumers and businesses, offering multiple choices in each category HTC is looking to expand its lineup with the launch of several VR headsets at ViveCon on May 11 and has released several sneak peeks leading up to the event.

With the Oculus Quest 2 currently at the top of our best VR headsets list, HTC will need to pull out something special. With the Oculus Quest 2 Pro also on the horizon, competition in the mind-range VR world could get very tough.

However, based on the previews so far, HTC may have some pretty interesting VR headsets in the works.

The first teaser was a still image shared on Twitter last month that showed what looked like a camera module in the corner of the visor. The image was accompanied by the caption "Enough with the accessories, let's get down to business," suggesting that it may be for business rather than for the casual consumer.

Or perhaps we are reading too much into it. The same angle is used in the GIF below (Andrew Jakobs via Road to VR).

Two more gifs were emailed to us, painting a vague picture of what we're supposed to be doing. This headset does not resemble the Project Proton glasses we saw last year. In fact, looking at the camera modules in the corners, it looks more like the Oculus Quest 2 than the current HTC Vive Cosmos, Vive Pro, or Vive Focus.

The newly unveiled headset appears to be considerably less bulky than HTC's existing lineup. We know, thanks to the ViveCon website, that the company plans to unveil multiple VR headsets: "This event is where HTC VIVE will unveil its game-changing VR headsets, software, and platform, taking your experience to a new level. It will take your experience to a new level.

While there will be a lot of speculation over the next week, Alvin Wang Graylin, HTC's president of China Vive, told TeliportMe: "I think we have said in the past that we will release a new AIO [all-in-one] this year. I don't think it will be positioned as a competitor to Quest. I think it's our next generation stand-alone.

While these gifs are not grounded, it looks like a much more streamlined and slimmed-down VR headset than HTC's current offerings. The frustratingly mysterious previews will continue over the next week or so, as we tune in to ViveCon 2021 on Tuesday, May 11 at 9am PT/12pm ET/5pm BST for the big announcement.