Sony PlayStation VR Headset to be out in October 2016

Sony has announced its PlayStation Virtual Reality (VR) headset will be available in October for $399, cheaper than the Oculus Rift priced at $599 and HTC Vive priced at $799 (its main competitors).

The announcement came at the Games Developer Conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, where the company showed off the consumer version of the headset.

Most notably, Sony revealed "Social Screen", a local multiplayer mode that incorporates both the VR headset and your television so your friends aren't just watching you with a big headset covering your eyes.

Sony also revealed the official specifications for the headset:

• Display: OLED
• Screen Size: 5.7-inches
• Resolution: 1920 X RGB X 1080 (960 X RGB X 1080 per eye)
• Refresh Rate: 120Hz, 90Hz
• Sensors: 360 Degree Tracking/9 LEDs
• Field of View: Approx. 100 Degrees
• Latency: Less than 18ms
• Controller: Dualshock 4 and PS Move

Sony said the PlayStation VR headset will work with roughly 50 games at launch and will have a cinematic mode for viewing movies and television shows. 

Unlike its competitors, the PlayStation VR won't require an expensive PC build to run. It will only need a PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Camera to work, currently available for $60.

Sony says the PlayStation Camera will be required -- so the PlayStation VR is really $460. The company says it wasn't included in the $399 price, because it believes most of its customers already have the accessory.