When a Westford teenager couldn’t get a replacement controller for his Oculus Quest Virtual Reality headset, he reached out to NBC10 Boston Responds for help.
Wondering what it's like to be in virtual reality?
"I would say it's almost like transporting yourself to a different world," said Jack Whitman, a high school student in Westford, Massachusetts. "It's still an amazing feeling when you're holding a lightsaber or an object in VR, and you know, it's like you can feel it, but you take the headset off and you just standing where you were the whole time."
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Whitman has an Oculus Quest virtual reality headset.
When the batteries in one of his controllers began dying quickly in January, he submitted a support ticket with Oculus. He says the company sent him a shipping label to send the controller back, and he put it in the mail.
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"They actually told me they would send just a refurbished device or just a replacement controller," said Whitman. "And they also said it would just take between three to five business days after they received the package."
Whitman says he was notified that his package was received, but he didn't hear anything else.
"For the next two and a half months or so, I kept asking them about the progress of it, what's going on, and they just told me it was under investigation," he said. "They were processing the return, but they wouldn't send anything back. And every time I contacted them, it was just the same 'We're working on it' response. And after a while, I felt like this isn't going anywhere. So I needed to contact someone for help."
His parents told him to call NBC10 Boston Responds for help, and he did.
"It was definitely a very irritating thing, because VR was such a big part of how I was playing with friends, and especially how I was getting activity," said Whitman.
We contacted Oculus about the issue and received a general email saying the company was working to resolve it. We also contacted Facebook, which owns the company.
"After you had actually sent your communication to Oculus, I believe about a week to a week and a half later, I got the shipping confirmation that the controller was coming," said Whitman.
A Facebook spokesperson confirmed by phone that Whitman received his replacement and said the delay was due to inventory.
The company also gave him a $30 gift card.
"I'm very pleased with the final outcome, even though it did take a while," said Whitman. "Thank you for your help, and I think that I'll be able to use my VR headset the way I've always wanted to in the past and continue using it that way."
If you high school students out there have a consumer problem that you can't resolve yourself, or if your parents need help, reach out to us by filling out this online form or call 1-888-521-NEWS. We will get back to you!
