Meta Quest 3S off to a slow start, early data suggests
Meta Quest 3S was supposed to take the VR market to new heights. But early indications show weaker than expected demand.
Omdia market researcher George Jijiashvili has analyzed two indicators of the success of Meta Quest 3S.
First, he analyzed the number of downloads of the companion app Meta Horizon, which is required to set up Meta Quest.
The app was the number one free app in the US App Store on Christmas Day, suggesting that there were a lot of Quest headsets under the Christmas tree. The question is, how many?
Jijiashvili compared the number of app downloads in 2024 with the number of downloads in previous years. The download numbers are estimated and come from market research firm Sensor Tower, which analyzes smartphone app download numbers.
The comparison shows that the number of app downloads on Christmas Day dropped by 27% compared to the previous year (293,000 in 2024 compared to 403,000 in 2023). Although the total number of downloads for the year as a whole increased slightly (from 7.6 million to 7.8 million), it fell short of the record years of 2021 and 2022.
App downloads are not synonymous with sales, but are a safe indicator of success. Sensor Tower does not count repeated downloads, app updates, or subsequent downloads to new or additional devices for an existing iOS/Google Play account.
The statistic shows the number of estimated companion app downloads from May 2019 (launch of the first Quest) to the end of 2024 | Source: Omdia, Sensor Tower
These figures suggest that approximately the same number of headsets were sold in 2024 as in 2023 when Meta Quest 3 was released. The much cheaper Meta Quest 3S was therefore unable to achieve a significant increase in sales in comparison.
Black Friday: Weaker Amazon sales than in 2023
A second indicator presented by Jijiashvili is data taken from Amazon product pages.
According to this data, more than 160,000 Quest headsets were sold in November 2024 (i.e. during the Black Friday deals) and in eight countries, which is a 16 percent decrease compared to 2023. So there is no significant growth here either. Meta Quest 3S accounted for 66 percent of sales, with Quest 3 making up the rest.
The statistic compares the number of Quest headsets sold in November 2023 and 2024 on Amazon US and seven other Amazon marketplaces. | Image: Omdia
Amazon US accounted for 73 percent of Amazon's total sales. The U.S. therefore represents the lion's share of the Quest market, as the image above clearly shows.
Meta Quest 3S's success may still accelerate
These indicators are not encouraging considering how cheaply the Meta Quest 3S was offered and how powerful the device is.
It is possible that the market for headsets of this type is saturated and that major hardware innovations, a significantly improved form factor, and new use cases are needed before the product can reach entirely new customer groups.
However, the Quest 3S should not be written off. Meta Quest 2 became a hit only in the two years after its release, as the first statistics show.
We expect another important indicator of Meta Quest's success directly from Meta on January 28th. On that day, the company will announce its fourth quarter results, including the revenues of Reality Labs, the division that develops and sells Meta Quest.
Interested in VR and AR? Then follow us on Facebook or X or share your experience in the comments. For feedback, topic suggestions, or other ideas, please email us at hello@mixed-news.com.
Note: Links to online stores in articles can be so-called affiliate links. If you buy through this link, MIXED receives a commission from the provider. For you the price does not change.
