Facebook's Oculus Rift Arrives

Virtual reality firm Oculus said it has started shipping its much-anticipated Rift headsets from Monday, about two years after Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) bought the company for $2 billion.

In a blog post, Oculus said units will be shipping to more than 20 countries and regions.

"[T]he first pre-ordered Rifts will start shipping mid-week and arrive soon after. We're working as fast as we can to get Rifts to customers who pre-ordered. If you pre-ordered, you'll get an email when your order is being prepped (1-3 weeks prior to shipping) and then another one when your payment method has been charged and your Rift is on its way," Oculus said.

Customers can place orders for Rift headsets on Oculus.com or purchase an Oculus Ready PC and Rift bundle from Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Best Buy Co Inc (NYSE: BBY) and Microsoft Store.

Oculus said there are more than 30 games available on the Oculus Store and growing catalog of video content.

Priced at $599, each Rift headset comes with a sensor, remote, cables, Xbox One controller, and Lucky's Tale.

When Mark Zuckerberg announced the acquisition of Oculus in 2014, he said the following about Rift headset:

"When you put it on, you enter a completely immersive computer-generated environment, like a game or a movie scene or a place far away. The incredible thing about the technology is that you feel like you're actually present in another place with other people. People who try it say it's different from anything they've ever experienced in their lives."

In its review, Techcrunch said, "Buying a shiny first-gen product in a totally new consumer product category is doubly risky. This generally holds true for the Rift. Though the hardware experience it offers feels surprisingly refined and well thought out, the broader ecosystem is still a bit of a Wild West."

On the competitive front, Sony Corp (ADR) (NYSE: SNE) and HTC Corp are expected to launch their virtual reality devices this year.

Image credit: Rafael Valentim, Flickr