The Meta Quest 3 is official! Effectively, once more!
At this time, Meta kicked off its annual developer convention, Meta Join. To start out issues off, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stage to indicate off the Quest 3, its new consumer-friendly blended actuality headset. Whereas the corporate already introduced the headset again in June to get forward of Apple’s Imaginative and prescient Professional reveal at WWDC, right this moment’s occasion supplied much more particulars about what we will count on from the Quest 3 than we already knew earlier than.
We already knew that the Quest 3 would function a 40% slimmer optic profile, a Snapdragon chip able to twice the GPU processing velocity because the Quest 2, higher-resolution shows, a 6GHz wi-fi band along with the present 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands from the Quest 2and new Contact Plus controllers. And, in fact, the headset shall be able to full-color pass-through blended actuality.
At this time, Zuckerberg and staff went deeper, revealing extra particulars about what we will count on with its newest headset. The Quest 3 will function a show of 2064 x 2208 pixels per eye, an honest bump in comparison with the Quest 2’s decision of 1832 x 1920 pixels. Meta says that it represents a “30% leap in visible decision and 40% louder audio vary than Quest 2.” The brand new headset additionally options the second era of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 processor, which the corporate says is twice as performant because the second-generation headset which makes use of the first-gen XR2.
The Quest 3 is anticipated to realize between two to 3 hours of battery life — about the identical because the earlier era headset. Whereas the brand new controllers run on detachable batteries, the corporate can also be releasing its personal elective charging dock for customers who don’t wish to fear about having useless controllers after they go to make use of the headset. There’s already a giant third-party marketplace for this, so we’ll should see how many individuals select Meta’s providing over a probable cheaper possibility on Amazon.
Talking of issues which have a giant third-party market, Meta can also be altering up the face masks you employ with the headset. As a substitute of the froth piece that comes with the Quest 2, the Quest 3 opts for a rubber materials as a substitute. If you wish to get colourful, the corporate is providing the face masks in Blood Orange or Elemental Blue colorways along with the included Black possibility — sorry, no new colours for the headset itself.
The brand new headset, regardless of having a 40% slimmer optic profile, really weighs heavier than its predecessor. Meta says that the Quest 3 weighs 515 grams — 12 grams heavier than the Quest 2. Nevertheless, the corporate believes that its redesigned strap and up to date design of the headset itself will nonetheless give customers an pleasant expertise with out it feeling too cumbersome. We’ll have to attend to see if that’s true as soon as folks get their palms on it.
Talking of getting their palms on it, The Verge was in a position to go hands-on with the headset early and posted a video about their expertise beneath:
After seeing what Meta is bringing to the desk with the Quest 3, I’ve a sense that I’ll be selecting it over Apple’s Imaginative and prescient Professional headset. Whereas Apple’s is extra technically spectacular, I can’t see myself paying $3,500 — seven occasions greater than the Quest 3 — for a mixed-reality headset that we nonetheless don’t know what experiences shall be accessible for it. Because the Quest already has developer base, I feel I’m sticking with Meta till Apple can show builders are creating tons of apps for its headset — and lowers the value by at the very least half.
The Meta Quest 3 will launch on October tenth and begin at $499 for the 128GB configuration (a 512GB configuration will even be accessible for $649). You’ll be able to preorder the headset on the Meta Quest web site beginning right this moment and, as soon as the listings are dwell, on the same old third-party retailer suspects. A preorder will even internet you a replica of Asgard’s Wrath 2 when it launches on December fifteenth. Those that select the 512GB configuration will even get six months of Meta Quest+, its video games subscription service included.
