An Attendee Tries On The Oculus VR Inc. Rift Development Kit 2 Headset At The 2014 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) In Los Angeles, California
An attendee tries on the Oculus VR Inc. Rift Development Kit 2 headset at the 2014 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles, California June 11, 2014. There has been a rising interest in virtual reality platforms among publishers and developers, who hope the years-old technology -- which creates a 360-degree view that immerses players in fantasy settings -- can finally become a viable platform to reverse shrinking video game industry revenues and draw a new generation of users. Picture taken June 11, 2014. Reuters/Kevork Djansezian

Oculus VR has announced that the consumer version of the Oculus Rift VR headset will launch some time during Q1 of 2016. The announcement comes nearly three years after Palmer Luckey and the team at Oculus held a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign for the device.

News of the release window comes via the official Oculus Blog, which also offers consumers their first ever look at what appears to be the final design of the device. The blog entry also adds that while the device ships in Q1 2016, consumers will be able to start placing preorders later this year.

“The Oculus Rift builds on the presence, immersion, and comfort of the Crescent Bay prototype with an improved tracking system that supports both seated and standing experiences, as well as a highly refined industrial design and updated ergonomics for a more natural fit. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be revealing the details around hardware, software, input, and many of our unannounced made-for-VR games and experiences coming to the Rift,” reads the blog post.

The announced release window puts the release of the Oculus Rift behind that of its main competitor on PC, the Valve and HTC backed Vive, which will be released toward the end of the year. As noted by PCGamer, the Vive is expected to launch at a premium price-point, while Oculus Rift’s Nate Mitchell told Eurogamer their device would launch with a price point between $200-$400. A launch in 2016 puts the Rift in closer competition with Sony’s VR headset called Morpheus. However, Sony’s Morpheus will be exclusive to the PlayStation platform and is not expected to be a direct competitor to the Rift.

While both Sony and HTC/Valve pushed VR heavily during the latest GDC 2015 conference, Oculus was relatively quiet on the subject. The company was present at the event, but it did not bring an evolution of its previously unveiled Crescent Bay prototype, which lacks a 3D input device, such as Morpheus’ PlayStation Move controllers and Vive’s motion sensitive wands.

However, IGN reports that Oculus acquired Nimble VR in December 2014, a company that specialises in creating skeletal tracking and finger tracking software for VR. This has led to speculation that the company is developing its own 3D input technology for inclusion in a consumer version of the Rift.

(Credit: YouTube/CNET)

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