Shipping mishaps hit Oculus Rift, HTC Vive early orders
Early buyers of the first virtual reality headsets to hit the mass market are running into shipping issues.
Specifically, Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe announced on Twitter early Oculus Rift orders "are going out slower than we orig[inally] estimated," and the company would be covering the shipping costs for any previous Oculus orders to make up for the mishap.
Palmer Luckey, the Oculus VR co-founder, spoke about his desire for a smooth launch of the Oculus Rift and how important it was for the future of virtual reality in an interview last week.
Oculus VR confirmed over the weekend the shipping delays are due to an "unexpected component shortage."
Further, HTC Vive pre-orders hit a snag after credit card and debit card issues through a third-party provider led to many Vive pre-orders to be cancelled.
"While fulfilling this week's orders for HTC Vive, a limited number of individuals were affected by auto cancellations due to processing issues with financial institutions," an HTC spokesperson told Polygon. "We're actively working to resolve this, and have already reinstated orders for some customers."
The HTC Vive, which costs $799 compared to the Oculus Rift at $599, is set for an April 5 launch.