Sony Undercuts Virtual Reality Rivals With $399 VR Headset

By | March 15, 2016

Scalper1 News

Sony ( SNE ) will be the last of the big three virtual-reality headset makers to hit the market this year, but its product will be the cheapest and have the broadest software support. Sony late Tuesday detailed its launch plans for the PlayStation VR, a virtual reality headset that connects to its PlayStation 4 video game console. PlayStation VR will go on sale in October in Asia, Europe and North America. It will be priced at $399 in the U.S., the company announced at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Sony pushed back the release date to ensure that it could deliver enough devices and have a wide variety of game titles available at launch, Andrew House, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, said in a statement . “PlayStation VR represents a transformative experience in gaming, and we wanted to take the time needed to launch with a broad variety of content and a sufficient supply of hardware,” House said. “We are beyond excited to deliver to consumers the amazing experience that PS VR offers.” Sony expects to have more than 50 games available for its PlayStation VR by the end of the year. Sony will offer a free download of six games called “Playroom VR” to owners of PlayStation VR to demonstrate the virtual reality gaming experience. Among the most anticipated VR games in development is an all-new “Star Wars Battlefront” from Electronic Arts ( EA ). In addition to games, the PlayStation VR headset can act as a virtual large screen TV for watching movies. Facebook ( FB ) will be first to market with a high-end virtual reality headset, the Oculus Rift. It is set to ship on March 28 in 20 countries, including the U.S. The Oculus Rift will cost $599 and require a high-end PC with a graphics card. Bundles of the Oculus Rift headset and “Oculus-ready” PCs start at $1,499. Another VR headset, the HTC Vive, is due to go on sale April 5 and cost $799. Like the Oculus Rift, Vive requires a high-end PC with a dedicated graphics processor. Vive is a collaboration between smartphone maker HTC and video game developer Valve. While PlayStation VR doesn’t need a PC to operate, it does require the PS4 game console, which currently retails for about $350. Also, some games will require PlayStation Move and camera accessories to track your movements. RELATED: Apple iPhone To Be Dragged Into Virtual Reality Market   Scalper1 News

Scalper1 News