Meta started cutting prices of its VR headsets. Starting March 5, the Quest Pro will retail for $1,000, up from its previous price of $1,500. The rather significant price drop was announced by Mark Zuckerberg himself on an Instagram channel. He says the move is meant to help “more people get into VR.”
Even the highest-end model The 256GB Meta Quest 2 will become cheaper and retail for $429i instead of the previous price of $500. The Quest 2 128GB will keep its $400 price point, which means a double storage upgrade will only cost you $30. This is a “popcorn pricing” strategy in action.
It’s worth noting that this 256GB Quest 2 price reduction, while welcome, it’s still not enough to match the price of the original Quest 2. You may remember that Meta raised the prices of the Quest 2 last year. The 128GB one went from $300 to $400, while the 256GB one went from $400 to $500. At the time, Meta explained the unusual price hike with increased manufacturing and shipping costs. He also promised that the additional revenues would be used to boost investment in VR research and development.
While we can’t say whether that promise has been delivered, we do know that Meta is investing 20% of its total spend in 2023 in the Reality Labs division. There is no doubt that Zuckerberg is investing heavily in VR. Indeed, if the rumors are true, a new generation of Quest headphones is expected to be launched by the end of the year. That could be one reason why Meta is looking to move some inventory of its latest generation products ahead of launch.
In any case, if you want to get into VR on a budget with the excellent and very popular Quest 2 or spend a little more for one Quest Prothis seems to be a good time to do it.
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