Oculus Rift targets $300 price point at launch, could be free one day

Jos

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There’s been plenty of chatter about Oculus Rift and the promise of truly immersive gameplay. But for all the praise we see in the media, few have actually tried one of the development units, while most people make do with the reactions of amazement from those using it in YouTube videos. There’s nothing set in stone yet for a commercial release, though for the first time, the company has mentioned a target price: $300.

Depending on how you see it, that makes it either a rather expensive peripheral, or reasonably priced for a device that hopes to influence how we play games in a more meaningful way than next-gen consoles.

Oculus CEO Brandon Iribe obviously leans towards the latter. In an interview with Edge Online he talks about getting the device to market and acknowledges that “the lower the price point, the wider the audience.” Initially it’ll be hard getting it lower than that, but Iribe hints at the possibility of subsidies through partnerships later on.

“You can imagine if Microsoft and Sony can go out and subsidize consoles because there's enough money to be made on software and other areas, then there's the potential that this, in partnership, could get subsidized.” Although he didn’t delve into specifics, and it doesn’t sound like there’s anything specific being planned, Iribe says they could earn recurring revenue from a VR game and ask a lower upfront price for the headset.

The executive imagines being able to give out the Oculus Rift for free at some point so it’s used by as many people as possible. “We're not there yet, but we're sitting there thinking all the time, how can we make this free?” Hopefully they’ll be able to crack that one eventually, but for now we’ll just keep our fingers crossed for enough developer support to make it a worthwhile investment, and a release date in the not-too-distant future.

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As long as u will get half HD resolution on a simulated 200" screen its useless even when sold at 20$
You shouldn't be so critical.

I remember playing games at 640x480 and then moving to 800x600. The tech is new, give it time to pay for itself as well as future upgrades. I'd be happy playing at 1,280 x 800 resolution (640 x 800 per eye, as long as the closeup items didn't look like Minecraft.
 
Regarding the resolution, they're not using it linearly. There are more pixels for the centre. From everything I've read it's a very effective solution. I've yet to read a comment from someone who used the Rift which said anything bad about it.

Not to mention that they did show a 1080p prototype at E3, up from 1280x800 for the development prototype. That may be what they'll end up selling for $300.
 
I think this is really exciting technology! Certainly looks very impressive from the videos I've seen so far. One of my mates works for google and he said one of his colleagues had one in the office the other day, I'll have to find out if it was any good or not.
 
I think this is really exciting technology! Certainly looks very impressive from the videos I've seen so far. One of my mates works for google and he said one of his colleagues had one in the office the other day, I'll have to find out if it was any good or not.

well, tell us what he says ;)
 
well, tell us what he says ;)

Saw him last night! :) He said it was odd at first to get used to then totally incredible. He said it was so immersive that at one point he forgot where he was and tried to stand up and walk somewhere, almost pulled the laptop off the desk! And then there was a bit of a readjustment period after removing them to get back to reality hah. I realllllly want to try one now!
 
Saw him last night! :) He said it was odd at first to get used to then totally incredible. He said it was so immersive that at one point he forgot where he was and tried to stand up and walk somewhere, almost pulled the laptop off the desk! And then there was a bit of a readjustment period after removing them to get back to reality hah. I realllllly want to try one now!


Sounds like it will create a new generation of zombies :)
 
There are technologies currently at work that when combined should offer a really interesting experience. It is predicted that when Oculus Rift releases the resolution will be bumped up. Then there is the Omni that is the in place treadmill that will keep you from dragging your laptop off the table. And of course a Kinect or Kinect like device to capture more of your motions. :p In essence, to have a complete VR experience you will need to shell out about a grand... that is not to bad since it is all new and the price will come down. It used to be 25 grand and more... I'm excited. About new game experiences, new UI and human interfaces with the Computer and accessing data. Awesomeness awaits!
 
It's not just predicted - it's pretty much confirmed by the devs in this video -
 
Will it support games I already own?
Could I play Quake 1 with this system?
In other words is there a front end that would allow someone to play a video game that is governed by a graphics engine?
Would it not so totally rock to play Outlast or Amnesia with this headset?!
It would so totally be awesome to rock flight sims without the need for extra expensive monitors!
I would love to walk the moon and look around - even if it's just that!
I am old enough to experience the joy in playing the first video games to ever come out (in 8 bit) but the joy of discovery was there. I cannot wait until they come out with an oculus what is light enough to be worn as slyish glasses that are 3k resolution!
Imagine if you could hook this up to treadmill or bike and look around as you bike around Paris!
 
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