A month of sales breaks seems to have diminished Oculus Quest 2’s lead in the latest Steam hardware survey.
The August results show that Facebook’s standalone headset accounts for 32.15% of all headset usage on SteamVR. That’s 0.42% less than last month, and perhaps the first time Quest 2’s lead has actually shrunk since it was launched late last year. Note that these numbers may change in the coming days. Valve usually irons out any bugs early in the month, but total headset usage on Steam has dropped to 1.74%, which may well indicate changes are underway.
Either way, keep in mind that this doesn’t necessarily mean fewer people are using Quest 2 on Steam, it just means that more people using other headsets have taken on some of that stake.
Oculus Quest 2 Steam Lead Shrinks
However, there are good reasons for a possible reduction in Quest 2’s stake. In late July, Facebook stopped selling the headset because it was participating in a so-called “voluntary recall” of devices in response to a small group of users who reported problems with skin irritation via the built-in facial interface. Sales of the device only resumed on August 24th with a new silicone case in the box. It also removed the original 64GB version of the device from sale for $ 299 and replaced it with a 128GB version for the same price.
This sales break probably explains the decline as other headsets still on sale could have increased their share of usage during this time. However, Valve’s Index headset also fell to 15.99%, down 0.24% this month. Overall, however, Quest 2 is still comfortably ahead of other devices and still makes up almost 1-in-3 headsets on Steam. There are no other significant shifts to talk about this month.
2021 will likely round out quietly on the VR hardware side. Sony’s PS5 VR headset will not be discussed at this week’s big showcase event, and although Facebook is holding its Connect developer conference in late October, it is increasingly looking like this year’s big reveal will be its smartglasses, made in collaboration can be made with Ray-Ban.
So don’t expect any significant changes in the results of the Steam Hardware Survey anytime soon.
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