May 06--Oculus VR, the Facebook-owned company best known for its Oculus Rift virtual reality headset, announced Wednesday that the first consumer version of the device will ship in the first quarter of 2016, with pre-orders available later this year.
A developer kit for the earliest Oculus Rift was first made available to early adopters back in 2012. Following the $2-billion acquisition of the company by Facebook in 2014, it has since developed more advanced versions of the Rift that include features such as head tracking, a more ergonomic fit and integrated audio.
Oculus is the first of the high-end virtual reality headset makers to announce a release window for its product. The company did not announce a price. More information about the headset's technical specifications is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
