China-based VR headset creator Pimax has introduced a new payment model following the recent announcement of its Crystal Light PC VR headset, which will let try it out before plonking down the full price of the headset.
The company calls its new scheme the “Trial Payment, Final Payment” model, as outlined in a recent announcement, making it available first in select regions including the US, Canada, EU, UK, Australia, and New Zealand.
The new payment model is slated to go into effect on its website sometime this week. When it does, here’s how the company says it will work:
It’s a pretty unique way of getting you to buy a headset, or more specifically, three flavors of its Crystal Light headset: one with controllers ($900), one with SteamVR tracking faceplate ($900), and the headset alone ($800), all of which feature local dimming.
At least for the headsets mentioned above, during the trial period users pay $200 less than the sticker price and receive a 15-day trial with the promise of zero-cost returns. If you’re happy with the headset, you pay the remaining balance, and the company removes additional software locks on the headset to allow you the “full” experience, Pimax says.
It’s unclear for now how the trial version will differ from the “full version” in terms of software locks; we’ve reached out to Pimax to clarify this and will update when/if the company responds. We’ve also asked whether the company intends on extending the program to other headsets beyond those mentioned above, so check back to find out.
Meanwhile, Pimax is in the process of launching a bevy of products. In addition to Crystal Light (now in pre-order) and Crystal Light Super, which were announced last month, the company still has to fulfill previous orders of a number of other products, including Pimax Reality “12K” headset, a 60GHz wireless add-on for streaming PC VR, and its Pimax VR Station for streaming PC VR content to its headsets.