If you’ve been undecided about buying the expensive Meta Quest Pro headset, this week might change your mind. Out of the blue, Meta has taken a knife to the Quest Pro’s price in the UK and US, bringing its cost down by a significant margin.
In the US, the price has dropped from $1500 USD down to $1100, saving you $400. In the UK, the price has been slashed to £1300, down from £1500. The price cuts are only taking place in these two territories, with European countries maintaining the normal €1800 EUR price point. Additionally, the discounts are time-limited, one week for the US and two weeks for the UK.
What is really shocking is that these price cuts came so soon after the official launch, only three months ago. Meta hasn’t given a reason as to why, but some easy conclusions can be made. At the full price point, the Meta Quest Pro isn’t selling as well as Meta hoped. Or there is the upcoming competition from HTC’s VIVE XR Elite. While the headset is cheaper, it doesn’t include features such as face and eye tracking.
Get a Quest Pro refund
Dropping the price soon after the launch will not please early adopters. However, there is a ray of light in so much as they can claim the difference back. VR commentator Brad Lynch has said buyers can claim a refund, taking the sting out of the discount news.
Meta Quest Pro hasn’t received glowing reviews from the press, picking apart the headset on a range of issues. A mixed reality (MR) device, the Quest Pro has augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) capabilities. These include full-colour passthrough, a rear-mounted battery and a multitude of tracking sensors. It can also play the full suite of Quest 2 games – like these free VR games. Although to play them you’ll need the additional lighter blocker for £49.99.
Compounding the issue of whether to buy a Quest Pro is the fact that Meta Quest 3 is expected to arrive later in the year. Last year, during Meta’s Q3 2022 earnings call, CFO David Wehner mentioned: “Conversely, our growth in cost of revenue is expected to accelerate, driven by infrastructure-related expenses and, to a lesser extent, Reality Labs hardware costs driven by the launch of our next generation of our consumer Quest headset later next year.”
So, is the tech in the Quest Pro worth the cost when some of it will very likely trickle down to the cheaper Quest 3 in less than 12 months? Let us know what you think in the comments below.