Oculus Rift launched last week but most of the people who pre-ordered the virtual reality headset have not received it yet. The Facebook subsidiary announced that customers who ordered the VR device up through April 2, Saturday will not have to pay any shipping and handling fees. Oculus sent an email explaining that a component shortage is causing shipping delays of the company's first product.
The total cost of the Oculus Rift headset is now $599 without the waived $30 shipping cost. This is a big move as Oculus VR launches the first high-end headset after Google Cardboard and Samsung's Gear VR in an industry that Digi-Capital predicts will be worth $30 billion by the year 2020.
Rift headsets started official shipments on March 28, Monday. However, CEO Brendan Iribe tweeted that the first batch was being sent slower than the company had originally projected, according to The Verge.
Oculus has also verified it will begin updating the VR headset's arrival window. The company will provide a new status update on April 12 on its official Oculus.com website about when customers will receive their VR gadget, according to VentureBeat.
Reviews of the Oculus Rift mostly agree that the VR device has a sleek look that includes a fabric-covered headset and foam-padded carrying case.
However, pre-order customers disagree about issues such as the headset's weight and comfort. Some reviewers shared that it took a while to make adjustments so the unit fit comfortably on their faces, while others reported it fit well over a pair of eyeglasses.
Many gamers also noted that their experience with Rift is incomplete without the Oculus Touch controllers. The unit was shipped with an Xbox One controller.
Oculus is not the only company with shipping delays as some customers of the HTC Vive headset report that their pre-orders were canceled.
HTC explains that the issues were related to credit card data. However, the company did not try to reconfirm orders for the VR headsets or ask customers to make their purchase with a different credit card.
Meanwhile, the company has promised to work with its customers and financial institutions to get everything cleared up before shipments begin on April 5, Tuesday.
Here's an Oculus Rift review: