Meta Quest 3: getting started with Meta’s new VR headset

June Wan/ZDNET

At the height of the pandemic, the headset named Oculus Quest 2 at the time was THE virtual reality (VR) headset that everyone was buying. Leisure time was limited to everyone’s living space, which placed this competitively priced headset as the definitive and most affordable gateway to virtual realities far, far away.

Three years later, while the buzz around VR has been overshadowed by cutting-edge technologies such as generative AI, robotics and even mixed reality (MR), Meta releases the highly anticipated successor to the Quest 2. The hope is to satisfy the enthusiasts who really believe in a great metaverse, while bringing a new appeal to a market that, last year, was carried only by a $3,500 helmet that has not even been released yet.

Meta offers the Quest 3 at a price of € 200 higher than that of the previous version of the Quest. So, what do you get for this supplement? Has Meta done enough to deserve your money and attention? Here is my analysis, after spending an afternoon with the Quest 3 before the Meta Connect event.

The design of this helmet is new

To begin with, the most noticeable difference between the new and the old Quest model is the design. This change was announced by Meta six months ago when the company released the trailer for the Quest 3 a day before Apple unveiled the Vision Pro.

The new helmet is not only more elegant and less bulky to wear, but it is equipped with an improved support system which, according to Meta, should make it possible to adapt to a greater number of users, including those who wear glasses. But even with the push and pull mechanism to extend the perimeter of the skirt, I had a hard time getting my medium-sized frames to fit in the helmet, which I was able to do with the Quest 2.

Here is a more detailed overview of the new adjustment system that Meta offers. June Wan/ZDNET

For users who have glasses, like me, the hope with this new helmet is that there is enough space for our besicles, and hope that the interpupillary distances (DI) is wide enough to suit our natural vision. Otherwise, the alternative is to buy additional lenses recommended by Meta and manufactured in partnership with Zenni, for $50. I will continue to use the Quest 3 with these lenses in order to test their effectiveness for spectacle wearers.

Improved display quality

With the image above, you may have been able to see the new optical set of pancake lenses (reduced thickness) that Meta has integrated. It is similar to the Quest Pro and significantly reduces reflections and other artifacts that weaken the immersive quality of VR experiences. The most interesting thing is that the design of the pancake lens allowed Meta to refine the screen side of the Quest 3 helmet (40% thinner, to be exact), which makes it less heavy at the front when worn.

The company has still managed to improve the quality of the display compared to the Quest 2 (don’t forget that this thing still costs € 200 more) with two 2064 x 2208 LCD panels that refresh up to 120 Hz and a horizontal field of view of 110 degrees and vertical of 96 degrees.

June Wan/ZDNET

It is equally important to highlight the new set of cameras on the front of the Quest 3. There are now six sensors on the gray plastic cover, two of which are RGB cameras that are an integral part of mixed reality experiences that require more accurate color production and Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping or SLAM). Unlike Quest 2, which described your environment in pixelated grayscale, Quest 3 gives a much more photo-realistic impression.

Automatic securing

This is an invitation to use the headset for games and applications mixing digital overlays with your environment, as was highlighted during the demonstration of First Encounters and Ghostbusters – Rise of Ghost Lord. Even before I started the game, the Quest 3 had already, via its multiple sensors, mapped my demonstration area by measuring the depth and distance of furniture, objects and walls nearby!

I didn’t even have to draw the virtual security zones with my controller like I did on Quest 2. In short, an experience without constraint.

Meta

The Meta Quest 3 is the first VR headset to integrate Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform, which offers twice as fast graphics performance and improved loading times. This is what I could see by switching from one game to another during the hour I spent playing. The Quest 3 also benefits from an increase in RAM, which goes from 6 to 8 GB. We will have to see what this gives in case of prolonged use of VR and Mr. For now, I am satisfied with the experience.

ZDNET’s (provisional) buying tips about the Meta Quest 3

As we have already mentioned, Meta sells the Quest 3 with a 128 GB hard drive. This configuration should be enough for dozens of VR games and app downloads, but if you need more, you will have to pay €700 for the 512 GB variant. Indeed, Meta will not offer this year’s Quest in 256 GB, which means that you will have to settle for a storage space that is either just enough or too large.

Stay tuned to ZDNET for a full review of the Quest 3 headset, where I’ll look at its performance, battery life, mixed reality applications, and much more.

Source: “ZDNet.com “