If we need more evidence that the tech industry is currently affected by the current economic situation, we have it now thanks to Meta.  The agreement was that, if the price of the standalone Oculus Quest 2 VR headset was changed, it would be reduced.  However, the opposite will already happen: starting next August 2022, the cost of both the next available versions will increase by 100 euros each.As a result, the 128 GB and 256 GB storage variant of the headphones will not be available for purchase at the current price of 349 euros and 449 euros, respectively.  Prices for accessories, such as the Elite hard headband, are also expected to rise.  All new Quest 2 buyers will have access to the Beat Saber until December 31, 2022, which is essential for them and their enjoyment

Increased production costs due to increased international prices and raw materials

Not surprisingly, Meta has invoked current rumors of a fierce price hike caused by increased raw materials to support this rise, significantly increasing the helmet's production cost.  Emphasizing that these price increases will enable it to “continue to invest in research and development of groundbreaking new products from the meta company that will take the virtual reality industry to new heights,” the company also notes “billions of dollars” that have been spent “to enhance and grow the VR system.”  thriving environment”.

This is not the first time that meta has raised the price of a tech product due to the very complex economic conditions the world is currently going through.  We remember, for example, Nvidia's price hike on its RTX 30 Founders Edition graphics cards in January 2022, a year and a few months after the first versions of the series were introduced.  However, the Quest 2 does stand out in terms of the relative size of the increase: the increase achieved by the entry-level model, with 128GB of storage, is 27% when stated as a percentage.  The scenario in the price increase in America is even more dramatic because in its home country, this model scores +33%, from 299 to 399. 

It's important to remember that Quest 2 was priced exceptionally low when it was first released in the fall of 2022. Although its production cost was never announced, there's no doubt that Facebook/Meta was selling it at a pretty big loss given its entry price.  The €299 / €349 price tag, which was and is quite unusual for a VR headset with this level of capability.

This was done as part of Facebook's comprehensive business plan to accelerate public adoption of virtual reality while secretly preparing for important initiatives involving the famous metaverse technology.  Only two years later, these projects proved too costly for Mark Zuckerberg's business, and even the company suffered because of the high cost of manufacturing it was unable to afford the $13 billion of .  Therefore, we will dare to speculate that these new prices also represent a new, more reasonable approach to the upcoming market.