Oculus Rift price slashed again amid concerns over sales

[ESPImperium]

http://news.sky.com/story/oculus-rift-price-slashed-again-amid-concerns-over-sales-10943409

 

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The VR headset discount is aimed at attracting people who "may have been sitting on the sideline because of price", the firm says.

 

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It is the second time this year Oculus' price has been reduced. In March the bundle's price was slashed by £140.

Before the discounts, the headset, which offers a 360-degree panoramic view, was described as "obscenely cheap" by its founder, Palmer Luckey.

But unlike consoles, the Rift cannot be used by itself - it requires a powerful gaming computer, which could set consumers back more than £1,000.

 

Is this the sign of the times that VR may not be the next big thing? Im sure it would be cool to pick one up for such a cheap price, but for that price, id rather invest that in a monitor upgrade as it would be much more useful long term, especially if it had touch screen functions as i think that touch screen monitors may be the next 'big' thing after 3D and now VR.

[porina]

Pricing had to drop over the long term if it was to gain mainstream traction. The question is if they will be making a loss on this price drop? Even if they break even, they could justify it as growing the business and ecosystem in the longer term. If they are taking a hit without another way to recover those cost, that would then be desperation.

 

If I understand the basic Rift out of box configuration, it is limited to single operator position, similar to Playstation VR right? You need more accessories to compare against Vive room scale. I'm seeing the pricing is getting pretty comparable to PSVR. If you were to get a PS4+PSVR+required accessories, I think the number would be close to a minimum spec self-build PC + Vive.

 

On the note of PSVR, wonder how many units that's shifted now... I already have a Vive but haven't used it in a while. I kinda debated PSVR but realistically there isn't anything "must have" on there.

[Sakkura]

25 minutes ago, ESPImperium said:

Is this the sign of the times that VR may not be the next big thing?

No, it's a sign of it becoming a bigger thing as it hits price points more and more people can afford. Remember we're still in gen 1. People have had wildly unrealistic expectations of sales figures.

 

By the way, Microsoft's partners are about to launch their headsets at $299 and $329.

14 minutes ago, porina said:

If I understand the basic Rift out of box configuration, it is limited to single operator position, similar to Playstation VR right? You need more accessories to compare against Vive room scale. I'm seeing the pricing is getting pretty comparable to PSVR. If you were to get a PS4+PSVR+required accessories, I think the number would be close to a minimum spec self-build PC + Vive.

This price is for the Rift + Touch, ie. the version that has comparable features to the Vive.

[porina]

19 minutes ago, Sakkura said:

This price is for the Rift + Touch, ie. the version that has comparable features to the Vive.

I understood you need to buy another tracking thing if you want room scale similar to Vive. Is that still the case?

 

As a Vive owner, I do kinda wonder how the Rift touch controller handles... I really hope the PC level industry at least will standardise so you can interchange accessories between them. MS might force them in that direction.

[tom_w141]

Unsurprising. "VR" is currently shit and super janky, very overpriced for what you get. It either had to get a lot more seamless/immersive or price drop. Personally i'll consider it in 10 or so years time, right now its just an overpriced gimmick.

[Sakkura]

1 minute ago, porina said:

I understood you need to buy another tracking thing if you want room scale similar to Vive. Is that still the case?

 

As a Vive owner, I do kinda wonder how the Rift touch controller handles... I really hope the PC level industry at least will standardise so you can interchange accessories between them. MS might force them in that direction.

For a little more tracking space it's typically a good idea to buy a third camera for $59. Not required though, and it's not like it wrecks the value proposition. And bear in mind the Vive needs a $100 upgrade to match the Rift's headstrap.

 

The Touch controllers are better than the Vive controllers. Oculus put those extra months of development time to good use, those controllers are absolutely amazing.

 

Of course, Valve has now had many months to work on their next-gen Knuckles controllers, which will likely leapfrog the Touch controllers. Competition is great.

[porina]

1 minute ago, Sakkura said:

And bear in mind the Vive needs a $100 upgrade to match the Rift's headstrap.

I have the original Vive and don't have any problem with the strap. Might not be best by current standards, but I wouldn't see replacing it as essential.

 

1 minute ago, Sakkura said:

The Touch controllers are better than the Vive controllers. Oculus put those extra months of development time to good use, those controllers are absolutely amazing.

Is it bad I'm thinking of the Rift with the price drop? I don't need it... I don't need it... I don't need it... but it could get used more than my Vive purely as I don't have space for room scale at the moment negating a lot of Vive's potential.

1 minute ago, Sakkura said:

Of course, Valve has now had many months to work on their next-gen Knuckles controllers, which will likely leapfrog the Touch controllers. Competition is great.

As long as they standardise so everyone can make use of them!

[BuckGup]

31 minutes ago, tom_w141 said:

Unsurprising. "VR" is currently shit and super janky, very overpriced for what you get. It either had to get a lot more seamless/immersive or price drop. Personally i'll consider it in 10 or so years time, right now its just an overpriced gimmick.

You sound like someone who has never tried VR. It is incredibly seamless on the Steam VR side. You never have to leave VR to change games and the only lacking part in VR now is screen res. Everything else has been covered. Wireless, full tactile suits, interaction with real objects, new controllers, glove controllers, and the list goes on and on. Vive has sold so many they don't need a price drop.

[Dabombinable]

....because of the price of graphics cards

[MEC-777]

If nobody can afford it, not many are going to buy it.  VR prices need to come down if the tech is to become mainstream. 

 

It's now $550 CAD. Better, but still too expensive for me.  

[Max_Settings]

Once the Vive gets down to this price I'm buying one

[lFaust]

I'm going to have to upgrade my GPU before that anyways and since I'm waiting for Vega ...  I hope prices will be down some more until then so it'll be worth considering as opposed to buying a second monitor. I just don't see myself using it for all that much and it's hard to justify spending 450€ for a better Elite:Dangerous experience. (for me at least)

[smartroad]

"Amid concerns over sales". Who's concerns? I mean in the article they say that "Jason Rubin said the latest sale is aimed at people who 'may have been sitting on the sideline because of price'", doesn't mention anything of anyone having concerns other than Sky News wanting have clickbait. I have a Vive and love it.

 

Does it get used everyday, no, but then I don't game every day either. Although it hasn't been used over the last few days as it is very hot in the UK (I know strange isn't it!!) and it makes my face sweaty LOL That's one of the few issues I have with it, other than the resolution. I play Elite Dangerous and it is a totally different game when in VR. Sitting in the cock pit or on an expansive bridge gives you so much more awareness of the environment you are playing in - now if only Frontier Developments could make more things to interact with but that is a different story LOL

 

At the end of the day, if the prices stay at £600-700 then it will always remain niche. With the price down to £400 it is closer to being an 'impulse' buy rather than a justified purchase.

[porina]

11 minutes ago, huilun02 said:

VR is a fad that will die. It won't become wildly popular even if it becomes dirt cheap, because strapping the thing to your face is simply impractical for everyday use. Yeah you can use professional use as an excuse, which doesn't change the fact that its impractical for regular people.

Do you game every day on a PC? Do you play some sport requiring equipment every day? You don't have to use it daily to consider one. The question comes down to, is it worth it for an individual? If you enjoy using it, it can be worth it even at higher prices. At a low enough price, there is more potential market, but even if it was free not everyone would want it. For example, if you offered me a set of golf bats for free, I'd still never use them. At least, not for the intended purpose... the market will evolve. Then you get the arguments of AR vs. VR, or maybe some science fiction direct brain connection and ditch the physical totally.

 

Not saying pricing is the only limitation. The extra tracking accessories and space required in general to maximise its potential will not suit everyone.

 

In a quick look, I note the price for Vive is as high as its ever been. They don't seem to be in a panic over it.

[zMeul]

they can cut prices all day long, VR is not a thing

[MEC-777]

33 minutes ago, zMeul said:

they can cut prices all day long, VR is not a thing

As someone who participates regularly in several racing sim leagues, VR is definitely a thing. It's just too expensive at this point for most people to adopt it. Having tried it, it's definitely something I will be saving up for in the future. 

[Stefan1024]

1 hour ago, huilun02 said:

VR is a fad that will die. It won't become wildly popular even if it becomes dirt cheap, because strapping the thing to your face is simply impractical for everyday use. Yeah you can use professional use as an excuse, which doesn't change the fact that its impractical for regular people. That and the fact that VR solution manufacturers will all try to establish a monopoly, by making VR products proprietary and the media platform exclusive. That means the market and software will be fragmented as f.

If VR pushes the R&D long enought until we get nice AR I don't minde if VR dies.

[zMeul]

47 minutes ago, MEC-777 said:

As someone who participates regularly in several racing sim leagues, VR is definitely a thing. It's just too expensive at this point for most people to adopt it. Having tried it, it's definitely something I will be saving up for in the future. 

except "leagues" is not the mass market

VR is a niche inside an already niche market or hi performance PCs

[Sakkura]

6 minutes ago, zMeul said:

except "leagues" is not the mass market

VR is a niche inside an already niche market or hi performance PCs

The majority of VR headsets sold have nothing to do with PCs.

[christianled59]

16 minutes ago, zMeul said:

except "leagues" is not the mass market

VR is a niche inside an already niche market or hi performance PCs

I doubt it'll ever really die. People want immersive entertainment, and vr provides that. It is extremely inconvenient right now, so I see every point you are making. But you have to understand the tech will improve drastically. Eventually I see it being as simple as putting on a pair of sunglasses; all the tracking is done inside out and it have some sort of built in motion system for the hands. In a few decades, we'll probably have some sort of neural system for movement.

 

Even if the gaming industry isn't what pushes the tech there, eventually the professional market will. I use vr for 3d design every day. 

[Bcat00]

51 minutes ago, Stefan1024 said:

If VR pushes the R&D long enought until we get nice AR I don't minde if VR dies.

Lol, i'm thinking the exact same thing. I tried VR at a VR cafe a couple of times already and heck, there's no way i'm spending that money for the goggle and hand set despite my computer being capable of running it.

 

 

[Prysin]

6 hours ago, ESPImperium said:

http://news.sky.com/story/oculus-rift-price-slashed-again-amid-concerns-over-sales-10943409

 

 

 

Is this the sign of the times that VR may not be the next big thing? Im sure it would be cool to pick one up for such a cheap price, but for that price, id rather invest that in a monitor upgrade as it would be much more useful long term, especially if it had touch screen functions as i think that touch screen monitors may be the next 'big' thing after 3D and now VR.

Too bad they also slashed the budget for your post, so you could not give AUTOMATIC text color for your quotes. But dont worry, after a few years, reading black text on black background becomes easier.

[apm]

Just now, christianled59 said:

I doubt it'll ever really die. People want immersive games, and vr provides that. It is extremely inconvenient right now, so I see every point you are making. But you have to understand the tech will improve drastically. Eventually I see it being as simple as putting on a pair of sunglasses; all the tracking is done inside out and it have some sort of built in motion system for the hands. In a few decades, we'll probably have sort of neural system for movement.

gaming in VR could be niche.

imagine watching any event, concert, movie or whatever in VR. that might be bigger than gaming.

[MEC-777]

48 minutes ago, zMeul said:

except "leagues" is not the mass market

VR is a niche inside an already niche market or hi performance PCs

Niche or not, it is very much a "thing". 

[christianled59]

37 minutes ago, apm said:

gaming in VR could be niche.

imagine watching any event, concert, movie or whatever in VR. that might be bigger than gaming.

Entertainment in general