Valve Index headset sales have doubled after Half-Life: Alyx announcement

Valve sold 103,000 units of its Index VR headset in the fourth quarter of last year, according to analysts. That is more than double than in the previous quarter. The Index was also the most popular VR headset for PCs.

Analyst firm SuperData states that Valve sold a total of 149,000 copies of its VR headset last year. The Valve Index was released in late June, and in November the company announced the VR game Half-Life: Alyx. According to the analyst firm, Valve could have delivered more copies of its headset during the holiday season; the demand is greater than the supply. The Index is currently also sold out.

SuperData also estimates that Facebook sold 705,000 units of its Oculus Quest headset in 2019. In the fourth quarter, 317,000 units were sold, slightly less than the 338,000 PlayStation VR headsets sold in that quarter. SuperData states that the Quest was also regularly sold out and that Facebook could have sold more.

The Oculus Quest is a standalone headset that costs 449 euros including controllers. In November last year, Oculus released beta software with which the Quest can also be used in combination with a PC. Valve’s Index headset costs 1079 euros as a complete set with base stations and controllers. The glasses are also for sale separately for 539 euros.