According to a report just published by Bloomberg, a $200 wireless Oculus VR headset will be unveiled later this year for a launch in 2018.
An anonymous source confirmed this and added that this Oculus VR headset, codenamed "Pacific", will be more compact than the current Oculus Rift headset while being lighter than the Samsung Gear VR device (345 g). This is not entirely unexpected, as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg teased during last year's Oculus Connect conference that the company was looking for a "sweet spot" between the Oculus Rift and the Samsung Gear VR.
We're working on this. It's still early. We don't want to get your hopes up. We have a demo. We don't have a product yet. This is the kind of thing we believe will exist... a completely new category of virtual reality product.
Bloomberg also reports that this Oculus VR headset will sport an interface akin to that of Samsung's Gear VR and will be controlled via a wireless remote. This move could help usher Virtual Reality into the mainstream market, given that the current high entry price certainly discouraged millions of potential customers (though there's a sweet deal going on for a limited time that gets you both the Oculus Rift and the Oculus Touch for $399).
Meanwhile, Facebook is also working on another Oculus VR headset codenamed "Santa Cruz", which will be a wireless version of the Oculus Rift.
In case you're among those who didn't buy a Rift headset because of the price, would you consider getting this $200 device in 2018? Let us know in the comments.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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