One of the best things about the Oculus Quest 2, when compared to the previous model, is the value. Not only did the Oculus Quest 2 cost $100 less than the original Oculus Quest ($299 versus $399), the Oculus Quest 2 even had its internal storage expanded from 64GB to 128GB without a price increase. However, recent news revealed that Meta, the owner of the Oculus Quest brand, is increasing the price to $399. But why is the Oculus Quest 2 getting more expensive?
According to Meta, the reason why the price is increasing is because Meta wishes to invest more funds in virtual reality research and development. They argue that the price increase will help them do this. They also offer incentives to make the price go down with more people.
But will the price of the Oculus Quest 2 ever go down? And how does this affect other types of the Oculus Quest 2?
Why is the Oculus Quest 2 Getting More Expensive?
As discussed above, the increase in price of the two Oculus Quest 2 models is, according to Meta, meant to allow them to invest more funds in virtual reality research and development. This leads to the price of the Oculus Quest 2’s two models – the $299 128GB and $399 256GB models – increasing by $100 each, to $399 and $499 respectively.
Unfortunately, neither of the increases is accompanied by any change in the hardware, although if you purchase a new Oculus Quest 2 headset after the price increases on August 1, you would be given a free copy of Beat Saber, a rhythm game where you use the motion controls of the Oculus Quest 2’s controllers to hit obstacles flying towards you to the beat of the music.
Are refurbished Oculus Quest 2 headsets increasing in price as well?
In addition to selling new Oculus Quest 2 models, you can also purchase refurbished Oculus Quest 2 headsets for a reduced price. With the increase in price from $299 to $399, it begs the question, are refurbished Oculus Quest 2 units also increasing in price? A refurbished Oculus Quest 2 model could run you $249, but starting August 1, the price is going to increase at the same rate, to $349. Meanwhile, the $499 model, when refurbished, will be sold for $429. One thing to consider, however, is that, despite the price increase, you will not also get the free copy of Beat Saber.
How will this affect the sale of used Oculus Quest 2 headsets?
While it cannot be said definitively how this will affect used sales, a used Oculus Quest 2 will likely begin to sell for a more comparable price. You may, however, be able to find someone selling an Oculus Quest 2 for less than $300, which may be due to them
Will the Oculus Quest 2 get any cheaper?
When it comes to the Oculus Quest 2 getting cheaper in the future, that is a difficult question to answer. Honestly, it depends on a variety of factors. One of the biggest factors is whether the reaction to the price increase is vocally negative enough. The reason for Meta, one of the biggest corporations in human history, to increase the price did not come off as the most genuine.
A lot of people felt skeptical at best that Meta required a price increase to be able to fund development in the virtual reality space. Considering just how large Meta is, people cried foul, mocking the notion on its face. There is merit, however, to the idea that Meta simply does not want to eat into profits, and is passing the cost onto the users instead.
The Oculus Quest 2 was stated to be increasing to $399 by August 1, which makes it highly unlikely that anything will change with the pricing – at least before the price change, anyway. As far as the price change goes, the best chance of this happening is if sales underperform their expectations, which is a distinct possibility. An additional wrinkle is Meta’s comments on the price, where they state that they are confident that even with the increase, other virtual reality headset developers will struggle to match it.
Is Oculus Quest 2 cheaper than its competitors?
While Meta professes that its competitors cannot afford to beat the Oculus Quest 2’s lowest price point, much less match it, is that the truth? Well, at least as far as dedicated VR headsets go, it is definitely still good value, since you do not need a gaming computer or video game console to connect to the Oculus Quest 2.
One VR headset that does actually match the price of the Oculus Quest 2 – at least, the cheapest option, anyway – is the $399 PlayStation VR headset. While the headset itself is the same price, it is valuable to note that it does not work on its own. In order to actually use it, you would first need either a good enough gaming PC or any model of the PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5.
Can you expand the storage of an Oculus Quest 2?
The Oculus Quest 2 comes in two models, as we discussed: the $399 128GB model, and the $499 256GB model. While either model is an adequate amount of space for many, there are some who may want to expand this further. So they may ask, can you expand the storage of your Oculus Quest 2, via options such as a microSD card? Unfortunately, the answer to this is no, as there is no port to add additional storage, and you cannot swap the internal hard drive for a bigger one.
This may bristle some people who bought a 128GB headset, and now their only option is to buy a now more-expensive 256GB model. This is especially frustrating when you consider just how large some games, such as Resident Evil 4 and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, take up a significant amount of storage.
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