Meta announces $500 Quest 3 VR headset

Meta’ new virtual reality (VR) headset Quest 3 is set to be launched later this year, the company announced recently.

The headset features higher resolution, stronger performance, breakthrough Meta Reality technology, and a slimmer, more comfortable form factor, according to a press statement published in Meta’s website.

The Quest 3 will ship in all countries where Meta Quest is currently supported this fall, it said.

The 128GB headset’s price starts at $499.99, with offers of additional storage option for those who want some extra space, Meta said without specifying any price range for the alternate version. The headset will be launched during the Meta Connect, which returns on September 27.

Compared to its predecessor, the Quest 2, the Quest 3’s design is lighter and more comfortable, with a “40 per cent slimmer optic profile”, while a new Snapdragon chip inside has twice the graphics performance.

According to Meta, Quest 3 combines their highest resolution display and pancake optics to make content look better than ever. To power those extra pixels, this will be the first headset to feature a next-generation Snapdragon chipset developed in collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies.

That next-gen Snapdragon chipset delivers more than twice the graphical performance as the previous generation Snapdragon GPU in Quest 2 — meaning you’ll get smoother performance and incredibly crisp details in immersive games.

Besides, the headset is equipped with Meta’s best-in-class Meta Reality technology that lets users seamlessly blend their physical world with the virtual one.

“These new experiences go beyond today’s mixed reality by intelligently understanding and responding to objects in your physical space and allowing you to navigate that space in natural, intuitive ways that were nearly impossible before. High-fidelity color Passthrough, innovative machine learning, and spatial understanding let you interact with virtual content and the physical world simultaneously, creating limitless possibilities to explore.”

Also, users can now play a virtual board game on their kitchen table with Demeo, decorate their living room with virtual art courtesy of Painting VR, or dive into a fully immersive world to do things that are simply not possible otherwise.

With a 40% slimmer optic profile compared to Quest 2, Quest 3 is a sleeker, more comfortable headset. Meta redesigned Quest 3’s Touch Plus controllers with a more streamlined and ergonomic form factor. The outer tracking rings have been dropped to make the controllers feel like a more natural extension of the user’s hands.

The Quest 2 also comes with TruTouch haptics that first debuted in Touch Pro. Users can upgrade to fully self-tracked Meta Quest Touch Pro Controllers for a premium experience. Quest 3 is compatible with the Quest 2 catalogue of over 500 VR games, apps, and experiences.

Meanwhile, Meta has announced a price drop of Quest 2. Starting June 4, 128GB SKU version of the device will be available at $299.99 and the 256GB SKU at $349.99.

Furthermore, Meta has announced a software update for the Quest 2 and Quest Pro GPU and CPU. “Quest 2 and Pro will see an up-to 26 per cent CPU performance increase with an up-to 19 per cent GPU speed increase for Quest 2 and 11 per cent for Quest Pro.”