Details about the first commercial Oculus Rift virtual reality headset have finally hit the internet, with a tentative release date ending months of rumors and speculation.
The news comes via a tweet by VP of Product Nate Mitchell from his official account. “Extremely excited to announce that the Oculus Rift will be shipping Q1 2016! We can’t wait to get it in your hands,” it said, sending fans into a tailspin of excitement.
It will be the first time an Oculus Rift was released for user consumption, as past editions were purely for developers. While it was possible to buy an early release version to use with limited compatible games, only a percentage chose to invest before the final and user friendly product was launched.
In spite of that fact, many have tried out the headset. Conferences like E3 have been providing tests for the last couple of years. Web series like the Fine Bros Teen React and Elders React have had some of their most successful episodes relating to the hardware. The hype has been immense.
Even with Microsoft overshadowing them for a time by showing off their prototype Project HoloLens, OR has dominated the public consciousness and is often seen as a game changer (literally).
Seeing images from the follow up blog post on OR’s official site, the design appears to have gotten an upgrade. It is sleeker than the original design, and it looks more comfortable and perhaps even lighter.
The overwhelming impression I personally got when I saw it was of some kind of Batman related product. It looks like a gadget the Dark Knight would come across as an upgrade in the Arkham series. But don’t hold that against it.
Consumers who have been waiting for a chance to snag the final product might be a bit disappointed to learn that there won’t be a 2015 release. But following comments made by people involved in the comments that backed away from the idea, it is nice to know it will at least be in the early part of 2016. After all, it could have been a year or more as they worked out the kinks.
I don’t plan on buying one, myself. I already own four consoles, a number of mini consoles, two PC’s, a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone…I am set. But that doesn’t mean I can’t wait to jump on one that a friend will inevitably buy and finally try it out for myself.
Source: Oculus VR
