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Oculus Rift

Ever since the Oculus Rift debuted on Kickstarter, there have been questions about how much the headset would cost. The showtime dev kit cost $300 when purchased every bit part of the Kickstarter and the second dev kit, which improved on the platform in a number of ways, weighs in at $350. Analysts had expected that Oculus would attempt to bring the Oculus headset to market at around that cost point, since $350 is already an incredibly steep price for a nascent platform, but CEO Palmer Lucky has shattered that expectation.

World War Toons, one of a number of VR titles in development

Globe War Toons, ane of a number of VR titles in development

According to an new interview published by RoadtoVR, Lucky has now stated that the kits will be more than $350, though he'due south not willing to country how much. Lucky explains that the Oculus Rift has added a dandy deal of additional applied science since the days of the DK1 and DK2. According to him, the Rift is designed to be the best VR experience, hands downwards:

"Information technology would really suck if you put something out in that location and people were like 'Ah man… the Rift is good, but information technology's not quite at that place, you know? If only it was a little better, if the lenses were a fiddling better, if the resolution was a piffling ameliorate, if the screens had been a little fleck improve, then it would exist great because you'd you'd say God, we could have but charged a little more and put a little bit more than money into custom hardware and actually achieve that.'… I can't tell you lot that it'due south going to be $350, and I would say I think people are going to exist happy with what they get for the cost considering I actually do think it's going to be that best VR headset you tin can purchase."

How the perfect is the enemy of expert

There are multiple reasons why this price is unlikely to sit well with the company'due south fans. First, the unabridged point of the Facebook conquering was supposed to be to requite Oculus funds that would allow it to bring products to market that didn't cost this much money. $400 (the minimum likely price point) is the same as what people would shell out for a PS4 or Xbox One packet, which would contain multiple games. It'due south the cost of a high-end PC video card or a 42-inch 1080p Goggle box. That's a huge commitment for an utterly unproven technology with few-to-no shipping titles on launch mean solar day. I'm certain there'll be a game or two and some tech demos, but it'due south going to have years before VR is widely integrated in games, assuming it achieves critical mass at all.

Eve: Valkyrie

Eve: Valkyrie

Next, at that place's the unflattering comparing against other VR solutions. Information technology's all well and good to aim for the top of the market, but that tends to only piece of work when yous've got a track tape of delivering premium products. Companies similar Apple accept pulled this off earlier, but Oculus isn't Apple. Mayhap more than importantly, committing to a $400 Oculus as well means buying a system capable of using that hardware effectively. The Oculus Rift may offering a vastly superior experience to, say, the Gear VR, simply y'all can buy four Gear VR headsets for the price of a single Oculus Rift. That comparing isn't flattering.

The concluding problem is this: Oculus wants to deliver the premiere VR experience, only a $400 price tag guarantees that if the mass market adopts VR, it won't use Oculus hardware — information technology'll employ equipment from Samsung or some other low-cost manufacturer. This, in plow, means that whether VR sinks or fails volition depend entirely on the feel of using VR on someone else'southward hardware. If consumers buy low-end VR hardware and hate it, they'll blame VR as a poor use of technology.

I'm torn on this bespeak, because I think high-quality VR experiences are critical to achieving credence for the platform — merely if those experiences toll $400 or more, it's unlikely that VR volition always accomplish disquisitional mass.

Sensible maneuver or Oculus Grift?

I believe Lucky when he says he wants to build the premiere VR headset experience you can have today, but I'm not at all convinced he's made the right call on this one. Much will depend on how Sony'south PlayStation VR and the HTC Vive are priced. If Oculus comes in nether these solutions, information technology could notwithstanding win meaning marketshare for itself, even if the loftier price tag keeps most users on the sidelines.

Right now, it looks as though Oculus has priced itself neatly out of the market place. At $400+, users are going to expect for other solutions — and companies like HTC could make a killing on selling "good plenty" hardware. By staking an early claim to best-in-class, Lucky may have ensured that the Rift becomes irrelevant.