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An Oculus Quest 2 virtual reality headset and controllers. \u00a9 Getty Images \/ Phil Barker<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n
RT.com<\/p>\n
Facebook has agreed to replace the removable foam face liners in its Oculus virtual reality headsets after months of customer complaints about skin irritations such as rashes and hives. The recall affects about four million units.<\/p>\n
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)\u00a0reported<\/a>\u00a0that the tech giant\u2019s Oculus subsidiary had received 5,716 complaints of skin irritation incidents related to the facial interfaces in its Quest 2 VR headsets. Some 45 people who used the device had severe reactions that required medical attention.<\/p>\n \u201cThe foam facial interfaces can cause facial skin irritation and reactions including rashes, swelling, burning, itching, hives, and bumps,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0stated the CPSC notice, which identified that the affected headsets had serial numbers beginning with \u20181WMHH\u2019 and ending with a number below 1264.<\/p>\n In a\u00a0statement<\/a>\u00a0on Tuesday, Oculus said it had issued a\u00a0\u201cjoint voluntary recall\u201d<\/em>\u00a0notice with the CPSC and Health Canada for the face liner\u00a0\u201cin response to reports from a very small percentage of users who have experienced skin irritation where the foam portion of the facial interface rests on the skin.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n A Facebook spokesperson told The Register that the recall does not apply to the headset itself, only the detachable facial interface\u00a0\u201cmade principally of polyurethane foam.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Soon after the Quest 2 system launched last October, users raised the skin irritation issue, with complaints of burning sensations, red facial marks, and hives while wearing the VR headset. In December, the company said<\/a>\u00a0that it had received reports from\u00a0\u201cabout 0.01%\u201d<\/em>\u00a0of people using the headset \u2013 but it claimed the\u00a0\u201cvast majority\u201d<\/em>\u00a0of cases were\u00a0\u201cmild and … should resolve on their own.\u201d<\/em>In June, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission issued a recall of the Quest 2 due to skin irritation caused by the headset\u2019s foam interface. Facebook previously confirmed that an EU commission is looking into the face mask \u2013 which has led to its headsets being pulled from shelves across the Eurozone.<\/p>\n While comparing the complaints to the\u00a0\u201coccasional skin irritation\u201d<\/em>\u00a0caused by motorcycle helmets, glasses, and ski goggles, Oculus admitted that the condition may be caused by\u00a0\u201csubstances introduced during the manufacturing process or reactions between materials in the headset and cosmetics or skincare products\u201d<\/em>\u00a0and said it had made changes to address the reported effects.<\/p>\n However, in April the company downplayed the issue, despite an internal investigation identifying\u00a0\u201ca few trace substances that are normally present in the manufacturing process\u201d<\/em>\u00a0that could\u00a0\u201ccontribute to skin discomfort.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n It claimed these were at\u00a0\u201clevels below the industry standard\u201d<\/em>\u00a0and said it did not find\u00a0\u201cany contamination or unexpected substances\u201d<\/em>\u00a0in its manufacturing process.<\/p>\n Coinciding with Tuesday\u2019s recall notice, the company updated its issue page to note it was introducing a new silicone cover that fits over the foam facial interface and \u201ctemporarily\u201d<\/em>\u00a0paused all global sales of the Quest 2 headset till August 24.While the CPSC has not released any comment on the recall, it does have rules about businesses correctly identifying irritants, which the agency\u00a0defines<\/a>\u00a0as anything that\u00a0\u201ccauses a substantial injury to the area of the body that it comes in contact with.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cExperts have advised that skin irritation can occur in some segments of the population from many household items \u2013 even things like tomatoes or shampoo \u2013 and that the rates we have seen are in line with expectations,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Facebook Reality Labs head Andrew Bosworth said in a statement.<\/p>\n