The time has come! After more than half a year of work and multiple teases, we’re proud to announce SlimeVR Butterfly Trackers!
Based on the Smol Slime that we teased almost a year ago in Update 25, SlimeVR Butterfly Trackers are Nordic Semi’s MCU-based IMU Full-Body Trackers with the main focus on comfort. Like the original version, these new SlimeVR Butterfly Trackers are open hardware sensors with open-source software that can track the movement of your body. They require no base station, can’t be occluded, last for days on a single charge, and are completely wireless. Now, with the brand-new, unique, ultra-light split design inspired by butterflies, they’re less than 7 mm thick and weigh less than 12 grams, making them the most comfortable solution for full-body tracking on the market today.
We have a lot to say about them on our new Crowd Supply pre-launch page and we ask you to subscribe to learn more. Subscribing means you’ll be first to know when the campaign officially launches. Before the launch of the crowdfunding campaign and after, we will be there, showing our progress on making Slimes even better and smaller, so stay tuned to that page and our socials!
When And How Much?
But we know that it can affect your purchasing decision about the current SlimeVR generation, so we can share what we’re aiming for: We want to start the crowdfunding campaign around September 2025, with delivery by spring 2026.
Now, we know what you all are thinking about: haven’t you promised a spring shipping date last time and also started the campaign around September? Yes. Yes, we did. This time though, we have already almost finished the design of the trackers, we have amazing software, there are no chip shortages, we have a five-times bigger team and, the most important part, we know what it takes to make it happen.
With our experience, we believe that we can safely deliver in spring 2026 if the campaign launches in September. We plan to have final PCB, enclosure, and box designs before we even finish crowdfunding, with molds being made as we raise the funds. We hope we have proven over four years that we can deliver things, even if a bit later than expected, and we appreciate your trust and will do our best for all backers.
Please subscribe to the SlimeVR Butterfly Trackers pre-launch page, it will mean the world to us! We have so much we will be sharing there soon, like a new design revision that’s even smaller and more comfortable!
New Cave!
It’s been only a year since we moved to our new Cave and we’re moving again! Our team has grown, our ambitions are growing with it, and we found a really nice place that we couldn’t pass on!
The New Cave is over 1000 m² and it has Miku! And a cat who visits us sometimes!
We spent the whole month of June moving into it, installing over 50 smart lights and sensors, redoing wiring, drawing Miku, cleaning carpets. It was a lot of (mostly) fun work! But we’re very excited to get back to engineering and work on Butterfly Trackers and more cool stuff, so stay tuned!
Set Upgrades
You can now order Set Upgrades! We offer a Hip Upgrade (one main tracker), a Feet Upgrade (two extension trackers), and an Elbow Upgrade (two main trackers). Both Hip and Elbow upgrades are already out of stock and the preorders are open for v1.2 of the trackers. There are still some Feet Upgrades v1.0/v1.1 in stock while it lasts and then it will be a preorder for v1.2.
Next Shipment
The last shipment of SlimeVR Trackers v1.0/v1.1 arrived at Mouser last month and the Trackers have already shipped to backers. All current and outstanding orders will be v1.2 and will come in the next shipment. It’s already in production by our assembly partners, Chain Assembly, and we expect them to finish by the end of July, after which they will be shipped to Mouser and then to all of you. There are still a lot of sets that haven’t been sold out in this shipment, so if you order any set (except DIY) right now, you will be getting your SlimeVR sometime in August!
Stay Aligned
Server Update v0.16.0 is out and it includes highly anticipated feature Stay Aligned!
Stay Aligned is a smart way to combat IMU tracker drift that is aware of human behavior and is tuned specifically for you! By carefully adjusting your trackers closer to your rest poses, it can eliminate drift for a lot of use cases of SlimeVR. This includes normal social usage that mostly consists of standing, walking, sitting, laying down, and similar movements! It has been in development by one of our contributors, Jaberrock, for more than half a year, with extensive testing and feedback from our beta-testers and community. Trust us, it’s as cool as it sounds and it’s still being improved!
If you already have your trackers, try it out in the settings right now!
See Ya Soon
Please subscribe to keep in the loop about the upcoming SlimeVR Butterfly Trackers campaign ! And as usual, join our Discord server for weekly updates and other news! If you don’t have Discord or don’t want to join the server, we have started to post updates and other cool stuff to our social networks as well! Follow us on Bluesky, Reddit, and YouTube for regular updates, news, and other cool stuff! We’re also on TikTok, Mastodon and Tumblr!
Or come to Open Sauce and see our joined booth with Babble!
Bye!