Skip to main content

Palmer Luckey drops another hint about how much the Oculus Rift will cost

palmer luckey pledge revive patreon  founder at oculus 5
Image used with permission by copyright holder
The staff at Oculus has been doing a good job of playing their cards close to their chests so far, revealing details about the consumer version of their virtual reality headset bit by bit. At this stage we still don’t have a fixed release date or a final retail price, but company founder Palmer Luckey has dropped another hint about how much you’re going to have to pay to get hold of a headset.

The prototype version of the Oculus Rift that’s already been sent out to developers cost $350, and Luckey was asked at the recent Oculus Connect conference whether the consumer version would be in line with that.

“You know, I’m going to be perfectly honest with you: We’re roughly in that ballpark,” Luckey told Road to VR’s Ben Lang. “But it’s going to cost more than that. And the reason for that is that we’ve added a lot of technology to this thing beyond what existed in the DK1 and DK2 days.”

“We need to put a stake in the ground and say: This is the best possible experience that we were able to make. No compromises were made in terms of quality,” continued Luckey. “Get the cost down as much as you can on that experience, but make it so that the Rift is something that everybody wants to use to the best of your ability.”

If your Oculus Rift savings jar currently holds $350, then you might want to top it off just a bit to get ready for next year — the Rift is scheduled to go on sale to the public in the first few months of 2016.

And while the Oculus Rift might be aiming for the high end of the VR headset market, Luckey thinks there’ll be something to suit every budget once the hardware manufacturers start producing these devices in large volumes. “With all the projects we’re working on and all the partners we’re working on, I’m confident there’s going to be VR existing at multiple quality points and price points,” he adds. “With the Rift, it makes sense to do what nobody else is doing which is invest in making the best possible quality headset.”

Editors' Recommendations

David Nield
Dave is a freelance journalist from Manchester in the north-west of England. He's been writing about technology since the…
10 best desktop computers of 2024: tested and reviewed
The iMac screen on a desk.

There are hundreds of desktop PCs you can buy from brands like HP, Dell, Apple, and Lenovo, but only a select few make it on our list of the best desktops. We've reviewed dozens of desktop PCs across both Windows and macOS, and these 10 stand out from the pack.

The Dell XPS Desktop 8960 remains the best desktop PC you can buy in 2024. However, we have several other options depending on your budget and needs, including desktops for gaming, remote work, and more. We'll provide a quick overview here, but make sure to read our write-up on how we review desktops for a deeper look at our evaluation process.

Read more
This Serta office chair is on sale from $360 to $230
The Serta Smart Layers Brinkley Manager Chair on a white background.

Are you on the hunt for office chair deals? Here's one that should help boost your productivity -- the Serta Smart Layers Brinkley Manager Chair for only $230, following a $130 discount from Lenovo on its original price of $360. We're not sure how much time is remaining before you lose the chance to get this office chair at 36% off though, so if you're interested in this offer, we highly recommend that you push through with the transaction as soon as possible. Any delay may cause you to miss out on this bargain.

Why you should buy the Serta Smart Layers Brinkley Manager Chair
For an office chair that provides both comfort and performance, you can't go wrong with the Serta Smart Layers Brinkley Manager Chair. It features five layers of foam with ComfortCoils that are individually wrapped, for the ability to provide relief on the critical pressure points of the body while maintaining pleasant temperatures even during extended use. The office chair's ergonomic design, lumbar support, and waterfall seat cushion makes it even more comfortable so you won't get body pains when your daily workload forces you to sit for several hours each day.

Read more
Best router deals: Save on mesh networks and Wi-Fi 6 routers
The Netgear Nighthawk AXE11000 Tri-Band Wi-Fi 6E Router on a table.

If you haven't bought a router in a while, now is really the time to do it, as a lot of modern routers are better suited to a world where you might connect several devices to one router at the same time. In fact, part of the new Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E standards is built around the concept of the Internet of Things and connecting to dozens of devices. That's great if you have a lot of smart home gear you need to connect without getting a ton of latency; plus, the newer standard helps with working around congested airwaves where everybody has some form of router and Wi-Fi connection running.
Of course, there are a lot of routers to pick from out there, and if you don't have a lot of tech-savvy, it can be overwhelming. That's why we've gone out and found our favorite router deals that will give you the best bang for your buck, and that includes mesh router deals too.

Best Router Deals
TP-Link Archer AX3000 -- $83, was $130

Read more