The first unit of the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset has begun shipping. Customers who have preordered should get their VR headsets starting Monday.
VR is the next big thing in the gaming industry and gamers want to try VR headsets being developed by many companies. Oculus Rift is one of the most anticipated VR headsets, and customers have been waiting for it for months.
Finally, the time has come when the company has started shipping the VR headset to those who preordered their unit by backing the project on Kickstarter, which started in 2013.
Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus VR and inventor of the Oculus Rift, tweeted about the delivery.
Rifts are finally shipping to both pre-orders and Kickstarter backers! Getting ready to flood our servers with Rifters.
— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) March 24, 2016
Brendan Iribe, the CEO of Oculus, also posted an image of Oculus Rift's packaging on Twitter, which was followed by a message confirming the shipping schedule of the VR headset.
The first Oculus Rift has shipped, deliveries begin Monday 3.28.2016. pic.twitter.com/C0MMKmezun — Brendan Iribe (@brendaniribe) March 24, 2016
The Oculus Rift costs $599, which makes it an expensive alternative to the Samsung Gear VR that sets consumers back by $99.99. Despite five times the price tag, the Oculus Rift has found plenty of takers and was among the most successful Kickstarter projects. The VR headset is being touted by pundits as a game changer, but it remains to be seen if the headset will live up to the promise.
Earlier in March - at the GDC 2016 - Oculus announced that it would be making available 30 VR games to the owners of the Oculus Rift, which they will be able to access on the first day of delivery. At the CES 2016 in January, the company also gave us a peek into the neat-looking case the Rift would be shipped in.
Moreover, the Oculus Home interface for the Rift will help users in searching for new Rift-ready contents, explore the game and app library, as well as connect with friends.
Earlier this year, Facebook-owned Oculus revealed that it intended for the headset to hit retail stores in April. Currently, one can preorder the VR headset on Oculus' website. Ordering the Oculus Rift now means it will ship in July 2016. A customer is entitled to a single unit only.
