OPINION : I be intimate theMeta Quest 2 . It ’s my favourite VR headset yet , being one of the only options to hit the sweet blot between availableness and operation .
But when I gave it a5 - star evaluation back in 2020 , it was n’t because this VR headset offer the very best eyeglasses , design or library of games , because none of that is on-key . The main ground why I place the Quest 2 so highly is because of its fantastic value $ 299.99/£299 damage .
At that Mary Leontyne Price , it ’s more or less cheaper than aNintendo Switch OLED , and well more low-priced than aPS5andXbox Series X. Having such an low-priced price is especially important for a VR headset , as most masses do n’t have much experience with virtual reality , and so it becomes a risky leverage . We all cognise what we ’re get with a game console table , but with VR you may be prostrate to move sickness or only wo n’t love the increased floor of dousing .
Back in July , PCGamesNreported that the Meta Quest 2 is the most successful practical world product to day of the month , and has even outsold the Xbox Series X. That ’s incredibly telling deal that previous VR headset have been regard ecological niche products , and have fight to appeal to the mess market .
However , Meta recently made the controversial decision togive the Quest 2 a $ 100 price raise , aim the cost up to $ 400/£400 for the 128 GB version , and up to $ 500/£500 for the 256 GB model .
This now means the latter configuration has a similar price to the PS5 and Xbox Series X , while the fundament 128 GB configuration is considerably more expensive than aNintendo SwitchandXbox Series S.
That would be fine if the Meta Quest ’s game library was a similar calibre to the Nintendo , PlayStation and Xbox console , but that ’s simply not the case . The likes of Beat Saber , Resident Evil 4 and Superhot VR are all great fun on the Quest 2 , but they are nowhere near as prestigious or pleasurable as the likes ofBreath of the Wild , God of WarorForza Horizon 5 .
So why did Meta make the controversial decisiveness to increase the price ? OnMeta ’s own web log , it said the cost tramp will “ help us continue to invest for the long term and keep driving the VR diligence forward with substantially - in - class computer hardware , activeness - packed games , and cutting - edge research on the path to truly next - gen devices . ”
That ’s pretty vague , and still does n’t really excuse why Meta decided to do this two years after launching . One possible explanation is that Meta recently regard itsfirst ever class - on - year revenue declinein the firm ’s account .
Meta also recently made a uranium - turn on itsdecision to pressure Quest users to create a Facebook accountdue to fan backlash . The greater number of active Facebook account intend Meta get a outstanding slice of pie for publicizing revenue , enabling Meta to subsidise the cost of the VR headset . But with the link to Facebook presently to be break up , Meta may well have decided it needs to make up for the loss of advertising money by other agency .
Whatever Meta ’s reasoning , it could well be a dear mistake for the company to boost up the cost of the Quest headset . You could argue that a price jumping for a 2 - class erstwhile headset is n’t too problematic , as most multitude who want a Quest 2 have most likely already buy one by now .
But it ’s what the price tramp intend for future Meta headset that concerns me . Meta is planning to set in motion a new high - goal headset , calledProject Cambria , subsequently this year . If the garish shape of the Quest 2 is now $ 400/£400 , then that means a high - end headset will likely cost somewhere between $ 500 and $ 600 at the very least .
It would be hard for Meta to sell large quantity of a VR headset if price that highly . It would also signify future Meta headset could have a like price as theVive Cosmosrange , result in far more challenger than what the Quest 2 face .
Meta will also be confront fierce competition from Sony , which is gearing up to launch thePSVR 2 . PlayStation has already reassert the PSVR 2 will have a new Horizon plot as a launching statute title . If PlayStation go forward to push more popular first - political party games onto its VR headset , it could become a more appealing option than next Meta headsets , despite the requirement to be plugged into a PS5 .
Meta has at least teased exciting young technology for next headsets , such as hand trailing betterment and Air Link , but I doubt they will justify the going of the Quest 2 ’s cracking asset : its affordable price .
Ctrl+Alt+Delete is our weekly computing - focussed opinion column where we delve deeply into the mankind of computers , laptops , components , peripherals and more . Find it on commit reexamination every Saturday afternoon .
