Oculus VR temporarily halts dev kit sales as components discontinue (update)

Oculus VR will temporarily cease taking orders for Oculus Rift development kits once stocks dry up, according to an update on the Oculus sub-Reddit, due to the discontinuation of parts used in the virtual reality headset.

"Certain components used in the Oculus Rift developer kit are no longer being manufactured, meaning they are no longer available to us for production," community manager Andres Hernandez wrote. "As a result, we don't have the necessary materials to produce additional kits. We are looking into alternate sources for the needed components, and we don't yet have a timeline for when additional units will be available. We'll be sure to keep everyone posted."

While an Oculus VR representative confirmed with Polygon that "well over 50,000 units" have been shipped to date, the company was unable to share additional information about the component shortage, timeframe and its impact on other Oculus VR products.

What stock is still available is quickly running out, according to Hernandez. Sales will be suspended as inventory sells out in each region until new orders can be fulfilled. At the time of Hernandez' post, dev kits are currently available to the U.S., Canada, countries in the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Switzerland and Norway.

"We never expected to sell so many development kits and VR only made this much progress with the community's support and enthusiasm" Hernandez wrote. "Even though we never wanted to sell out, it's a good problem to have."

Update: Oculus VR told Polygon that the discontinuation of parts does not impact the development or manufacturing of any other Oculus products.