Facebook-owned Oculus has announced that its Rift headset is coming to Canada and Europe later next month. The parent company revealed that it will include new partners for in-store demos, and that the headset will be available on September 20.
Customers in the UK can get the virtual reality (VR) device from the Amazon.co.uk website. Retailers such as Harrods, John Lewis, GAME Digital Plc, and Curry’s PCWorld will also stock the headsets. Customers in Canada can order the gadget from Microsoft’s online store as well as Best Buy. It will also be available on Amazon online stores for customers in France and Germany,; French customers can also get it from FNAC, while German customers can purchase it from Saturn and MediaMarkt.
The Oculus Rift is priced at £549/€699, which makes it one of the more expensive VR acquisitions across the globe. The headset faced some shipment delays for buyers in the US, but the same is not expected with its rollout in Canada and Europe. Facebook has had enough time to iron out any potential issues; but, given that this is the first time Oculus will ship Rift headset outside of the US, some problems may still arise.
It is interesting to keep the recent Brexit fiasco in mind, as was pointed out by TechCrunch. Oculus Rift’s similarly priced rival, HTC Vive, has seen its price rise by £70 to £759 since Britain exited the European Union. Facebook Inc. has avoided a similar price jump with its headset, which might be the deciding factor for early adopters in the UK.
Overall, this makes Oculus Rift’s £549 asking price more attractive in comparison. That said, the gadget currently relies on Xbox One controllers to do the job, and the Oculus Touch motion controllers will not be released until the end of this year; consumers will have to pay separately for Oculus’ proprietary controllers. Since the controllers are expected to interpret users’ movements within the game, it is least likely that the accessory will be cheap.
This is perhaps a testament to the state of VR industry right now. The VR headsets are not exactly an unfinished product, but the industry as a whole is struggling to provide complete experience to propel VR into mainstream. Facebook Inc. has perhaps jumped the gun by launching its Rift headset early, but it has established itself as one of the early adopters of the VR industry. That said, the product on offer is not complete; although, the company has pushed for multiple shows and movies on the VR platform, there is not enough content to entice the masses to adopt the technology as a legitimate platform.
The Verge’s Adi Robertson perhaps reflected the views of a few individuals in an article titled “If there’s nothing to do on a new VR gadget, don’t buy it.” That might very well be the consumer sentiment regarding VR products in general. It will be interesting to see how Facebook Inc. bucks this trend once its Touch motion controllers and headset is set for global release. All in all, Oculus Rift’s release in Europe and its eventual coverage of North America should help bring the product in limelight.