Oculus Rift Founder Apologizes to Reddit Users for Price Confusion
The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset finally has a price and a release date, but many potential buyers are upset about the $599 cost. Users on the forum website Reddit are demanding answers from Oculus' founder.
The Oculus team originally stated last year that the Rift virtual reality headset would cost about $350, but acknowledged the price could rise a little higher, CNet reports. Now, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey is trying to explain the confusion to Reddit users.
Luckey posted on Reddit on Wednesday to explain the pricing change. He told Reddit users that he was sorry that customers were upset about the final price for the virtual reality headset and said he "handled the messaging poorly."
The future has arrived for virtual reality. Oculus is just one of the many companies planning to help people explore the virtual reality experience in coming days. Sony's PlayStation VR, the HTC Vive, as well as budget headsets like the Samsung Gear VR and Google's Cardboard, are all promising virtual reality to consumers.
Oculus started with a Kickstarter campaign back in 2012. Backers were excited to support the company's plans for a virtual reality headset. In 2014, Facebook bought Oculus, frustrating early backers. Oculus is now offering those early backers free Oculus Rift headsets for their support.
As supporters of the Oculus Rift waited for an official price on the device, rumors indicated several possible price tags. Developer editions priced out between $300 and $350, but rumors suggested the final version could cost as much as $1,500.
Luckey told Reddit users he was frustrated by the rumors of the device costing so much. He said that the $350 number was just a ballpark estimate for the headset alone. He acknowledged that a full setup for the Oculus Rift could cost close to $1,500 because users will need a PC with all of the advanced specifications for the virtual reality experience to work properly.
Luckey also promised to be more careful when making future price announcements. He would not make an estimate on the cost of the upcoming Oculus Touch controllers.
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