This is new, different, and even exciting. What does “this” mean? Pressing keys. In particular, I’m typing on a keyboard that seems to move in the air in front of me, on top of my real-life office desk. This is what I’m writing on the Meta Quest 3, Meta’s newest VR gear. Or rather, I was sending myself a message through VR WhatsApp. Though “virtual reality” isn’t quite right these days. Following several generations of headsets that only offered immersive VR, the Meta Quest 3 also leans toward mixed reality. It has an improved set of six outward-facing cameras that show your real-world surroundings in full color, track your hand movements much more accurately than on the Quest 2, and make digital objects, like ghostly keebs, within reach.
Just plain better. It’s more comfy, stronger, easier to use, more pleasant for long periods of time, and easier to figure out. Okay, now you know everything you need to know about Meta’s newest headset. Even if you bought a Quest 2 a few years ago and haven’t used it as much as you thought you would, this update is worth it just for the passthrough improvements. For example, I can now easily find my coffee and safely walk around the room without taking my headset off.
Features
Meta has improved this year’s VR gear in almost every way, such as the processor, the materials used, and the hardware itself. Here are the best new features, along with my thoughts on each one:
Slimmer form factor:The first thing I noticed about the Quest 3 when I got my hands on it (or should I say, heads-on?) was its smaller body. Because they need so many cameras and sensors to process your surroundings, VR headsets, even ones that don’t need to be connected to a PC and external devices, are naturally front-heavy. The Quest 3 (515g) is heavier than the Quest 2 (503g), but the new pancake lenses and other slimmed-down parts on the front make it much easier to hold on your head with the head strap.
Better controllers: Meta also made its Touch Plus controls smaller by taking out the sensor rings that made the old ones awkward to use and store. The company says it was able to do this with the help of some AI/machine-learning improvements and new sensors on the headset (shown above). These sensors can better predict how your hand and fingers will move.
The new controllers are not only easier to use, but the haptics inside them feel much more real. Sometimes they buzz like old Nokia phones when games set off the most basic noises, but other times they feel solid and solid, letting me know when I press a virtual button or charge a blaster.
More cameras and sensors: If it looks like Meta’s marketing didn’t make it clear that the Quest 3 was designed for mixed reality events. The two new RGB cameras and depth projector might have. The new headset is much more accurate at showing how close or far away things are and better at showing your surroundings in full color.
When I was trying the Quest 3 in my living room, the MR features made me raise an eyebrow more than once:
You can now map your guardian area, which is the area you mark as “safe to move around with a headset covering your eyes.” All you have to do is walk around and let the cameras and sensors do the measuring. It still takes some work, and I suggest walking around sofas, plants, and other objects and staring up and down to get the most realistic play space from the headset. But the fact that you can do this without a controller is another step toward a VR/MR future where your eyes and hands are all you need to control it.
First Encounters, the new beginning game, is like Space Invaders but in mixed reality. Aliens will break through your walls, and you’ll have to shoot them down. Since I had already set up my whole living room for gaming, seeing fake cracks in the ceiling made me smile right away. It was safe for me to move around and not worry about running into things because the passthrough was accurate enough.
With the headset on, I can read and talk on the phone at the same time. Compared to the Quest 2, which only showed a white square that lit up and a few infrared lights here and there.
Pancake lenses that look like they were made by pros: Users will be happy to know that the Quest 3 now has the 4K+ Infinity Display pancake lenses found on Meta’s more expensive VR gear. This is because the Quest 3 costs almost a third of what the Quest Pro did. That not only makes the field of view (FOV) bigger (how much you can see from one corner of the screen to the other), but it also makes text and pictures much clearer and more detailed. When I was working on my virtual screen in the Immersed app, I could really tell the difference.
Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2: A new Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform powers the screens and the system as a whole. It claims to be twice as fast for graphics than the Quest 2. I spent an hour comparing the load times of games like Beat Saber, Superhot VR, Onward, and more on both headsets because the Quest 3 is backward compatible, which means it can run games and services that worked on the Quest 2.
Better sound in three dimensions: I didn’t think sound would be one of my favorite things about Quest 3, but it is. Surround sound technology called 3D spatial audio is built into the new gear. It takes virtual and mixed reality experiences to a whole new level. During my demo of Dungeons of Eternity, this improvement stood out most when the dungeon master was showing me the ropes during the intro. I wasn’t paying attention because I was too busy exploring the cave and observing how the textures were drawn.
In Conclusion
In the end, the Meta Quest 3 is, as Zuckerberg put it, the best “mainstream mixed reality headset” on the market right now. I say that because 1) the headset finally gives you a good passthrough experience and 2) there isn’t much else that’s similar at this price. The Sony PlayStation VR2 does cost the same, but you also have to think about how much the PlayStation 5 costs.
I wish Meta had done one thing better with Quest 3. Meta only offers the Quest 3 in 128GB and 512GB capacities right now, so you’ll have to make do with either just enough memory or maybe too much. My review unit has about 15 games downloaded, and it has already used up 90GB of the 128GB. I’m now in the “I like this game, but how big is the file size?” part of consumption.
Before you buy a Quest 3, I suggest that you remember how much space your favorite apps and games need. This will help you make the best choice.
