Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook and Oculus, just announced a price hike for their VR headsets. Starting in August, the price for the 128GB Meta Quest 2 will increase by $100 (USD) to $399.99 (USD). The price of the 256GB Meta Quest 2 will also increase by $100 to $499.99. As if that weren't bad enough, Meta says that they are increasing the prices for Meta Quest 2 accessories and refurbished units at the same time. New prices for the accessories were not revealed.
Meta, the company that is valued at or above half of a trillion dollars, says that the price increase is due to a cost increase in the costs for production and shipment. Meta claims that increasing the price will allow them to continue to "grow (their) investment in groundbreaking research and new product development that pushes the VR industry to new heights."
The Meta Quest 2 has been out for roughly two years now. A price increase on hardware that has been out this long is almost unheard of. On Twitter, Meta says, "In order to continue investing in moving the VR industry forward for the long term," the prices for their devices need to be increased.
VR is still quite niche in comparison to other gaming tech. Increasing the barrier to entry for potential consumers isn't exactly what I would call "moving the VR industry forward" by any stretch of the imagination. This is doubly true for hardware that has been out for roughly two years.
If you really want to pick up a Meta Quest 2 before this price increases, you have just a few days to do so. If you do end up picking up a Quest 2, an offer for a free copy of Beat Saber is included for a limited time.
Meta is estimated to have shipped over 10 million Quest 2 devices in 2021. This is more than other big players in the VR world such as Sony and HTC. The relatively attractive price of just $299 made it an attractive option for those looking to jump into the world of virtual reality.
It is not clear whether or not Meta's ongoing financial and social failure that is their push "metaverse" is partly to blame for this price increase.
