Meta’s virtual reality headset, the Quest 2 is getting a price hike of $100. This announcement comes from the official Meta Quest VR Twitter page which cites the price rise as being part of its vision to “move the VR industry forward.”
In order to continue investing in moving the VR industry forward for the long term, we are adjusting the price of Meta Quest 2 headsets to $399.99 (128GB) and $499.99 (256GB) starting on 8/1/22.
— Meta Quest (@MetaQuestVR) July 26, 2022
The 128GB Meta Quest model is currently priced at $300 with its 256GB model sibling going for $400 on most marketplaces. These prices have been standard since their initial release. Meta’s new jump in price sees both these products having $100 extra added on two years after release.
In Meta’s Twitter announcement it included adjusted prices of its Meta Quest models, with them sitting at $400 for the 128GB model and $500 for the 256GB edition. While this jump in pricing isn’t put in effect at this exact moment, it is putting pressure on anyone looking to buy either of the virtual reality headsets very soon. The prices are set to change across various marketplaces first thing next month on August 1.
Reaction to the decision is already critical. With inflation on the rise and fears of an impending recession, an increase in VR pricing seems ill-timed for Meta. The news is also coming just as Sony is preparing to launch its PlayStation VR2 headset, which will borrow some key features from the Quest 2. If Sony’s headset ends up being cheaper, it could create some serious competition for Meta.
If you’d like to get your hands on a Meta Quest 2 console before the price raises $100 for each you’ll have to act fast. The price is set to increase next week on August 1.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.