Meta Quest 3 will be released in the fall and will feature a number of improvements over its predecessor, but will cost more.
Meta has just announced the next generation of Meta Quest. What are the improvements?
- Meta Quest 3 will feature the highest resolution display of any Meta headset to date, as well as custom pancake lenses.
- A next-generation Snapdragon chip co-developed with Qualcomm promises to more than double the GPU performance compared to Meta Quest 2's Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1.
- Meta Quest 3 offers high quality color pass-through with dual 4MP RGB cameras and a depth sensor. The resolution in pass-through mode is ten times that of Meta Quest 2.
- Meta Quest 3 has a 40 percent thinner profile than Meta Quest 2 (excluding the foam facial interface) which results in improved comfort.
- The controllers have also been redesigned and are now called Touch Plus Controllers. They have a more ergonomic design and no tracking rings. The new controllers support the enhanced TruTouch haptics first introduced in the Touch Pro controllers.
The Touch Plus controllers come without tracking rings. | Image: Meta
Meta Quest 3 will be more expensive, Meta Quest 2 cheaper
Meta is promoting the Meta Quest 3 as the first mass-market device to deliver high-quality virtual reality and mixed reality experiences.
"Ultimately, our vision is to enable you to move through all realities in a way that’s intuitive and delightful,” says Mark Rabkin, VP of VR, “going beyond the rigid classifications of ‘virtual reality’ and ‘mixed reality’ to deliver truly next-gen experiences that let you effortlessly blend the physical and virtual worlds."
The Meta Quest 3 headset (right) will be much thinner than the Meta Quest 2, thanks to pancake optics | Image: Meta
Meta Quest 3 is backwards compatible with Meta Quest 2 and supports all games, apps and experiences released in the Meta Quest Store, which now numbers over 500. Many more titles will be unveiled today at the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase, including a flagship AAA title being developed by Meta's Oculus Studios.
Meta Quest 3 will be released this fall and will be available starting at $499.99 (128GB storage model). A higher storage model will be announced at a later date. Meta plans to reveal more details at the next Meta Connect, which kicks off on September 27.
