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VR is Taking the World by Storm: Over 1 Million Headsets Sold in Q3

Zenbane
MVP
MVP

As some may recall, back in 2016 the numbers for PCVR were barely approaching 1-million if we combined the estimates of both the Vive and Rift figures. And that's the total from April 2016 all the way through December.

Today, however...

For the first time since being introduced to the market, over one million (yes, that’s 1,000,000+) VR headsets flew off the shelves in a single fiscal quarter.

First thought to be a “fad” or gimmicky piece of tech, professionals within gaming and other industries are now changing their tune, touting functional VR as a technological breakthrough that could impact any number of industries and change our daily lives for the better.

When most of us think about VR we immediately default to gaming, but VR is so much more. Virtual reality is now taking a front row seat in a wide range of industries and applications, from healthcare, to education, to military and defense.


And for those of us with a competitive streak, we can see who is leading the charge:

    •    Sony – 490,000 units (or ½ of total sales volume)
    •    Oculus – 210,000 units
    •    HTC – 160,000 units


Congrats to Facebook and Oculus for maintaining their #1 spot in PCVR.

Here's the lengthy article that is worth the read:
https://www.vrbeginnersguide.com/vr-is-taking-the-world-by-storm/
91 REPLIES 91

BeastyBaiter
Superstar
I find it amazing people are still buying the HTC set given it's price and lack of features compared to the other PCVR options. If you want the most complete system, you get the Rift. If you want better resolution or a more laptop friendly setup (no external cameras/lighthouses) then you get the Samsung Odyssey. In no situation does it make sense to get the Vive thanks to its absurd price.

Rob_In_Phoenix
Rising Star


I find it amazing people are still buying the HTC set given it's price and lack of features compared to the other PCVR options. If you want the most complete system, you get the Rift. If you want better resolution or a more laptop friendly setup (no external cameras/lighthouses) then you get the Samsung Odyssey. In no situation does it make sense to get the Vive thanks to its absurd price.


Yeah this does surprise me they remain so expensive.  Perhaps it's driven by sales to institutions rather than individual retail.  Why anyone would buy a Vive for twice the price of an Rift is beyond me.

"First thought to be a “fad” or gimmicky piece of tech,"

I'm guessing the author is only interested in the thoughts of the media, not those of professionals.
Big PC, all the headsets, now using Quest 3

Rob_In_Phoenix
Rising Star
I'd like to hear from the "VR is just a fad" group to find out if they are still holding onto that position or if they believe differently now.

If it's still a fad, explain the numbers.

BeastyBaiter
Superstar
Well to be fair, a lot of it is a fad or just gimmicky. If all you ever saw were a few crappy 360 videos and 5 minutes of Solitaire VR, you might reach the same conclusion. Obviously there is a lot more than that available, but I can see the uninitiated jumping to conclusions based off of a lackluster first experience. I read similar articles when smartphones first started popping up. I've also been reading about the death of PC gaming for the last 20 years. :lol:

Actually, the author was saying that professionals within the gaming industry... and others (professionals) were thinking it was just a fad.  I'm pretty sure many industries have been using VR for 20 years+.

"First thought to be a “fad” or gimmicky piece of tech, professionals within gaming and other industries are now changing their tune,"
Big PC, all the headsets, now using Quest 3

Anonymous
Not applicable
I remember these figures coming out before. They're guesstimations, not actual sales figures. There's no way in hell that the Rift has only sold 50,000 more units than the Vive.

The only time that we'll know definite sales figures is when either Oculus or HTC announce that they've sold over 1m units. I strongly suspect that Oculus will be the first company to announce this despite the sales that HTC have had from VR arcades in Chine and other countries in East Asia.

Anonymous
Not applicable
Oh, and we'll see the Rift being $299/£299 this time next year too. B)

Morgrum
Expert Trustee
Didnt I see this exact trend last mth. 
Every post seems like Deja Vu lol.
WAAAGH!