Earlier this week, the Facebook-owned virtual reality company Oculus launched the Rift virtual reality headset. Despite its massive technological appeal, the Rift raised some eyebrows in the tech community due to its massive price tag amounting to as much as $599.

When Oculus announced the pre-order date of the Rift, enthusiasts and hardcore virtual reality fans have all flocked to get their own. However, the massive appeal of the device did not deter some market analysts to question the headset's price tag.

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Part of the controversy about Oculus Rift's price tag can be traced back to Oculus co-founder Plamer Luckey's comment claiming that the price of the device will be somewhere around $350 which is the price of the development kit it has sent to several developers. The tech community expected that price to be much lower and was shocked to know that Oculus hiked the price of the device to as much as $599.

In a Reddit question and answer session, Palmer said, "My answer was ill-prepared, and mentally, I was contrasting $349 with $1,500, not our internal estimate that hovered close to $599 - that is why I said it was in roughly the same ballpark."

In an interview with NDTV, Oculus chief executive Brendan Iribe said that the reason why the Rift is expensive is because its components are expensive as well. The Oculus Rift promises unparalleled virtual reality experience, in order to make sure that the device delivers that promise the company has to resort to reliable and costly components.

Several market analysts agree that the sky high price of the Oculus Rift will play a significant role in its overall success or flop. The virtual reality market is slowly getting crowded with headsets and devices coming from other companies.

For some people who want to have a virtual reality device but does not agree with its price tag, there are a handful of alternatives. The Samsung Gear VR is currently priced somewhere around $200. It uses the same technology as the one integrated on the Oculus Rift and requires a Samsung smartphone.

Although the Samsung Gear VR sports a lower price tag, it does not offer the same immersive virtual reality experience that the Oculus Rift can provide.