• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion

3

'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion

3

'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
TechVirtual Reality

The Honeymoon Is Over for Oculus Rift

By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 1, 2016, 2:57 PM ET
The Oculus Rift will ship for consumers in Q1 2016
The Oculus Rift will ship for consumers in Q1 2016Courtesy of Oculus VR
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Well, that didn’t take long.

There are plenty of people excited about the Oculus Rift, but the hardware maker is already facing a growing backlash from customers who pre-ordered the device and, at this point, have no idea when they’ll get their hands on one.

Worse still, they complain, inquiries to the company are largely being ignored.

“I was so excited for this week, and Oculus just took a big [expletive deleted] on that,” wrote one frustrated user on Reddit. “I thought this week would be filled with a million unboxing videos and everyone talking about their awesome experiences. Instead we get this. The store opens when almost no one has a Rift, developers must be wondering why no one is buying their games, and now everyone is just angry or frustrated. All I want is communication from Oculus.”

Oculus did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

But the day before the Rift’s official launch, co-founder and CEO Palmer Luckey promised at the time units would start arriving for Kickstarter backers on Monday followed by customers who pre-ordered later would receive units by mid-week, likely Wednesday. That was quickly followed by a tweet asking buyers to “stay tuned for future updates”.

Stay tuned for future updates, I will give them as soon as possible – this particular update was set in stone just hours ago!

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) March 28, 2016

On Twitter, there have been no updates from Luckey, other than a repost of the above Tweet on Thursday. But Luckey has dropped by the Oculus subreddit occasionally throughout the week to address some of the complaints of the Rift’s hard core fan base about the company’s general radio silence.

 

 

“Don’t shunt blame to other people, this is my call,” Luckey wrote. “I am not going to wax poetic about this, since I have done so in the past, but bottom-line: I won’t give in-depth updates on any situation without knowing it is solid, true, and finalized. Until I can do so, the best I can do is remind people that I will get them information as quickly as I can. On the rare occasions when things still change, even when they change for reasons out of my control, I get crucified anyway. Sometimes that means updates have to wait until things get locked down, and sometimes that means waiting a little longer to give everyone good info.”

While no one knows exactly what’s causing the delays in shipping Rift units, there are some common themes in the complaints. Many buyers whose pre-orders entailed a March delivery insist they have not only not received their Rifts, but they haven’t yet seen the charges show up on their credit cards or received an email saying the order is processing.

That could be a problem with the payment provider or a last minute manufacturing issue. Oculus owner Facebook (FB) has never made a mass-market physical product before, which is possibly why units are in such short supply at launch—or it could be something else entirely.

The vocal minority (and it does appear to be a vocal minority at this point), at least, doesn’t seem to care and is getting fed up.

Community unrest isn’t the only of Oculus’ problems. Critics were decidedly mixed on the Rift in early reviews. Tech publications gave it a fairly enthusiastic welcome. But mass market media outlets, like the Wall Street Journal, bluntly assessed that the Rift “isn’t ready for the mainstream.”

About the Author
By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Tech

kalshi
CryptoKalshi
Kalshi’s ‘chronically online’ war room figured out World Cup virality — and realized AI might be bringing back the monoculture
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 21, 2026
3 hours ago
fl
North AmericaElections
Trump-backed hopeful to succeed DeSantis unveils plan to protect local water, electricity from data centers
By Matt Brown and The Associated PressJuly 21, 2026
3 hours ago
Bolt CEO Ryan Breslow
CommentaryHuman resources
The CEO who fired HR was right. About the wrong thing.
By KeyAnna SchmiedlJuly 21, 2026
4 hours ago
‘We all failed’: Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner on Hollywood, video games and the big question of IP
Arts & EntertainmentDisney
‘We all failed’: Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner on Hollywood, video games and the big question of IP
By Joshua HongJuly 21, 2026
4 hours ago
Jersey Mike's Subs restaurant.
C-SuiteCFO Daily
Jersey Mike’s tests how far investors will stretch on restaurant IPO valuations
By Sheryl EstradaJuly 21, 2026
4 hours ago
all five founders of SkyPilot pose for a photo
Startups & VentureTerm Sheet
SkyPilot, from Databricks’ cofounder, raises $20M to be the Switzerland of AI compute
By Lily Mae LazarusJuly 21, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
21 hours ago
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
AI
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
By Jason MaJuly 18, 2026
3 days ago
Current price of silver as of Monday, July 20, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of silver as of Monday, July 20, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago
It’s not just Taco Bell lettuce and possible glass in Pillsbury rolls: Food and drink recall events reached a 6-year year-over-year high
Retail
It’s not just Taco Bell lettuce and possible glass in Pillsbury rolls: Food and drink recall events reached a 6-year year-over-year high
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of July 20, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of July 20, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.